Developer Related Companies has released additional images of the SOM-master-planned Hudson Yards West development in New York, amidst an outcry from local advocates.

First announced last year, the development is proposed for a disused rail yard to the west of Hudson Yards – a neighbourhood master-planned by KPF, with buildings including Diller Scofidio + Renfro’s The Shed performance centre and BIG’s The Spiral skyscraper.

Related Companies has released new images of the proposed development

Related Companies (Related) has released new renderings of the scheme, which add more details to the potential structures and show a massive Hollander Design and Sasaki-designed park. SOM will be carrying out the development master plan, and will activate what it calls an “urban void”.

SOM said that a “vast platform built over the railyard” will created on top of which the development will sit.

“Equipped with ventilation and critical fire and life safety measures, the platform will modernize the Long Island Rail Road’s infrastructure, while supporting a 5.6-acre park that unites the site with all of its surroundings,” said SOM.

It is planned for a rail yard on the Hudson River

The project is still being reviewed by the city, but it will contain three skyscrapers – the tallest of which may reach 1,172 feet (357 metres) in height, making it a supertall.

In the renderings, the largest of the skyscrapers is roughly pyramidal in shape with floor-to-ceiling glass covered in louvres. No details about the skyscrapers’ architects have been released.

The images also show a park weaving around the buildings and extending to the area along the waterfront.

SOM has worked with Hollander Design and Sasaki to devise a scheme where all car traffic is pushed to the perimeter, opening up the middle of the development to parks and pedestrians and providing easy access to the aspect of the park along then Hudson River.

“By designating Hudson Green exclusively for pedestrians, all car traffic will be pushed to the roads that border the site,” said SOM.

“These streets, which currently operate as a makeshift parking lot and service roads where pedestrians rarely walk, will be completely redesigned.”

It will include skyscrapers, a park and a school

According to the proposal, Related is working with global hospitality group Wynn Resorts to plan a hotel and casino for the development, one of many such proposals as New York prepares to issue three casino licenses next year. Other proposals include a development on Manhattan’s East Side designed by BIG.

As of now, the resort and amenities will occupy the podium of the pyramidal skyscraper on the north side of the plot, and will also service the Javits Convention Center across the street.

Affordable housing has also been included in the Hudson Yards West development, according to Related, which said 324 affordable units out of 1,500 apartments are part of the plan. A K-8 school is also included in the proposal.

SOM also noted its commitment to sustainability for the project, and said that it plans to make the buildings all-electric, outfit the site with photovoltaic panels, and irrigate the park with storm water recycled on site.

Local advocacy group Friends of the High Line has protested the proposal

The development has recently been criticised by Friends of the High Line, an advocacy group that led the conversion of a former elevated train track into a landscaped walking path designed by studios Field Operations, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, and Piet Oudolf.

The renderings show the High Line extending to the south of the development, wrapping around the development to the west.

Friends of the High Line claimed that the development will negatively affect views from the High Line and the success of businesses in the area.

However, Related denied the claims, calling them “disinformation”.

“First, the High Line is not remotely under threat by our proposal to develop the Western Rail Yards; as longtime neighbors and supporters of the High Line, we have met with them 10 times and made substantial amendments to our proposal in response to their concerns,” a spokesperson told Dezeen.

“Since that time, they have failed to communicate any substantive concerns and instead have launched a disinformation campaign.”

The 5.9-acre park will wrap between the proposed structures

Other developments around the original Hudson Yards development include two massive skyscrapers by SOM as part of the Manhattan West development.

The images are courtesy of Related Companies/Wynn Resorts. 

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