Caption The Blaz screwing off on the Empire State Building

Empire State Building provides a dubious and dystopian essential service for the pandemic

NY Post


New Yorkers were left spooked Monday night by a glaring Empire State Building light display intended to honor emergency workers fighting coronavirus.

The iconic Midtown skyscraper announced the debut of a display that began at 9 p.m. Monday, and will continue on through the course of the ongoing pandemic.

“Starting tonight through the COVID-19 battle, our signature white lights will be replaced by the heartbeat of America with a white and red siren in the mast for heroic emergency workers on the front line of the fight,” read a tweet from the building’s official Twitter account.
But to some, in addition to solidarity, the siren induced anxiety, as it spun for the first time surrounded by low clouds.

“The @EmpireStateBldg reminding us that the city is in the middle of an emergency,” tweeted Rita King, who also posted a video of the display depicting an eerie scene.

King said on Twitter that she fully supports the cause, “but recommend[s] that the siren be replaced by the iconic pulsing heartbeat effect to reassure our heroic healthcare workers that their efforts will succeed, and soothe nervous New Yorkers now sheltering in place.”

Impunity City
 
As if New York being the epicenter of the COVID-19 epidemic didn't give enough stress, fear and uncertainty on the citizenry (and surely the world); the concerned folks that manage the Empire State Building actually thought this rapidly growing crisis needed a visual aesthetic aspect to it.

Henry Stern on another developer giveaway

From the Huffington Post:

...the skyline of New York City is ever-changing, and as generations of New Yorkers know, your view lasts as long as the owner of the lot next door allows. Property owners can build as of right on their land, consistent with zoning codes and city regulations.

In this case, however, the proposed tower was far outside the zoning codes, and required five separate changes in the law to give the developer the height and bulk of the building that he wanted to erect. That is why the Community Board and the City Council were involved under the city's Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (sometimes affectionately called ULURP).

If it is built, the proposed Penn Tower would have 56% more bulk than the zoning code would have permitted without discretionary bonuses. That comes out to almost a million square feet of additional office space. The variances granted to the developer also eliminate the setback regulations typically required for buildings of this size, thereby aggravating the impact upon the skyline from the perspective of New Jersey. The glare from night lighting of the financial tenants will further impact the view of the iconic Empire State Building from the east.

On this one, the CPC was clearly in the tank, abandoning its customary guardianship and attention to size, taste and design in its eagerness to approve the tower.

We believe that what happened in this case is a textbook example of unsound public policy, favoritism to a particular extremely well-connected developer, and lack of regard for the future of the commercial neighborhood around Penn and Moynihan Stations. To grant a massive upgrade to a property owner with no tenant, no financing and no immediate plans to build is premature and irresponsible. These valuable new rights will be for sale along with the property if the developer is unable or unwilling to build on the site.

This is a case of the city making an extraordinary gift, probably worth hundreds of millions of dollars, to one of its richest and most influential developers. It is a top-down decision, clearly made at City Hall and not by the Planning Commission, which should have been embarrassed at the tricks they had to turn.

You got it! Also, there is a major conflict of interest here because:

Ms. Quinn did not mention that a loophole has allowed Vornado Realty Trust to contribute thousands of dollars to her campaign even though the company, one of the largest real estate investment trusts in the country, has business before the city. Last week, Quinn and the council approved Vornado's controversial 15 Penn Plaza development, despite opposition from Community Board 5. - Crains

It's official: Even the city's most famous landmark isn't safe

From CBS 2:

Will the Empire State Building remain a stand-alone act? That question will be the focus of a City Council hearing Monday.

Council members will look into a proposal to build a 67-story, 1,200-foot office tower at 15 Penn Plaza, less than three blocks from the landmark skyscraper.

The Empire State Building’s landlord said the project will ruin its view and destroy the Manhattan skyline.

If the proposal passes the City Council, it would then go to Mayor Bloomberg for approval.

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer said the building would create jobs, office space and would give “people a sense that we are building again in New York City.”

But New Yorkers, who see the Empire State Building every day, have some thoughts of their own. “The Empire State Building is a landmark. We want to be able to see it wherever we are,” said resident Beverly Coleman.