| Ritz Tower | |
|---|---|
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| General information | |
| Architectural style | Beaux-Arts / Historism |
| Address | 465 Park Avenue |
| Town or city | Manhattan, New York |
| Coordinates | 40°45′42″N 73°58′13″W / 40.76167°N 73.97028°W |
| Construction started | 1925 |
| Completed | 1927 |
| Opening | October 15, 1926 |
| Height | 541 feet (165 m) |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 40 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect(s) | Emery Roth Thomas Hastings |
| Developer | Arthur Brisbane |
| Website | |
| Official website | |
| Designated | October 29, 2002 |
| Reference no. | 2118 |
The Ritz Tower is a luxury residential building at 465 Park Avenue on the corner of East 57th Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. It was built from 1925 to 1926 as an apartment hotel and was designed by Emery Roth and Thomas Hastings for journalist Arthur Brisbane, who was the developer. The Ritz Tower is about 541 feet (165 m) with 41 stories, making it the tallest residential building in New York City upon its completion. Because it was initially classified as an apartment hotel, the building was constructed to a greater height than was usually permitted.
Its classically-inspired design contains numerous setbacks with balustrades, as well as windows with pilasters and pediments. The lower floors are highly ornamented, featuring sculpted putti and urns, as well as rusticated limestone blocks. The top of the tower has a pyramidal roof with a tall obelisk. The interior of the building uses rich material, such as parquet floors and wood-paneled walls, all part of Brisbane's desire to make the Ritz Tower the most sought-after apartment hotel in the city. The tower had no individual kitchens in any of the 400 units. Residents over the years have included many personalities associated with the media. When the Ritz Tower was constructed, it received critical acclaim from architectural writers.
After the Ritz Tower opened on October 15, 1926, Brisbane contracted with the Ritz-Carlton Company to manage the building and the restaurants in it. Brisbane was soon unable to pay off the debt load and sold it to William Randolph Hearst, his longtime colleague and friend, in 1929. Hearst gave up the building to his bondholders in 1938 and the Ritz Tower became a housing cooperative in 1956. The retail space at the base has contained several restaurants and stores over the years, including Le Pavillon, one of the first authentic French restaurants in the U.S. In 2002, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the Ritz Tower as a New York City landmark.