CitySpire Building vs 550 Madison Avenue

Comparing the CitySpire Building and the 550 Madison Avenue is interesting because they both rise in New York, NY, yet they were conceived by two different design teams, Murphy/Jahn Architects and Johnson/Burgee Architects, and were completed at different points in time. They were finished more than 6 years apart.

This contrast within the same city allows us to see how different creative minds interpreted the evolving needs of New York across time.

Let's take a closer look!

The CitySpire Building is clearly the larger tower of the two, both in terms of height and number of floors. It rises to 814ft (248m) with 73 floors above ground, while the 550 Madison Avenue reaches 646ft (197m) with 37 floors above ground.

Of course, each project may have faced different briefs or regulatory constraints, which we don't really know about and could also explain the outcome.

Both the CitySpire Building and the 550 Madison Avenue were designed in line with the aesthetic conventions of the Postmodernism style.

At the time, this style was at the height of its popularity. So both Murphy/Jahn Architects and Johnson/Burgee Architects followed what was in many ways expected of them, producing designs that fit comfortably within contemporary architectural norms, rather than breaking with convention.

The CitySpire Building follows a mixed-use model, combining residential and commercial. In contrast, the 550 Madison Avenue has remained primarily commercial.

The CitySpire Building offers 338 residential units.

The 550 Madison Avenue also provides 20 parking spaces.

Both towers share the same structural solution, a Frame system.

A frame structure uses a grid of columns and beams to carry the building's loads. This frees the walls from structural duties, allowing for flexible floor plans and larger windows.

However, when it comes to the facade, both buildings use different approaches. The CitySpire Building uses a Curtain Wall facade, while the 550 Madison Avenue uses a Modular facade.

A Curtain Wall facade like the one seen in the CitySpire Building uses a lightweight glass curtain wall hung from the structure, while a modular facade like the one seen in the 550 Madison Avenue employs prefabricated panels, often mixing solid surfaces with smaller windows.