Edge at 30 Hudson Yards. © Connie Zhou
10 and 30 Hudson Yards. © Connie Zhou
The highest outdoor observation deck in the western hemisphere, Edge cantilevers 80 feet from the 100th floor of the supertall tower to provide views in all directions, including below through a glass floor.
Kohn Pedersen Fox today celebrated the grand opening of Edge along with Hudson Yards developers Related Companies and Oxford Properties Group, and other collaborators. Piercing the sky from its record-setting height of 1,131 feet, Edge reveals never-before-seen 360-degree views of New York City and beyond spanning up to 80 miles. Edge’s 7,500-square-foot outdoor viewing area features a thrilling glass floor, angled glass walls, and outdoor skyline steps from the 100th to 101st floor.
Edge’s monumental triangular form completes 30 Hudson Yards’ architectural dialogue with New York City. The building, which anchors the Hudson Yards development, establishes key relationships with its context through mediating volumes between the height of the tower and the scale of the street.
“The Edge observation deck is the most dramatic in a series of gestures which link KPF’s buildings, in the Hudson Yards development, to the principal surrounding structures of the city,” said William Pedersen, KPF Founding and Design Principal. “Gesturing directly towards the Empire State Building, and higher than its observation deck, Edge pays homage to its role as the most emblematic of all New York buildings.”
“We see Edge as a unique opportunity to experience New York City,” said Marianne Kwok, Design Director. “With features that complement the design of 30 Hudson Yards, Edge is the result of an immense team effort, and its construction process was unprecedented. Now that it’s finished, I look forward to seeing it used and enjoyed by thousands of New Yorkers and visitors alike.”
A marvel of modern engineering and structural design, the 765,000-pound observation deck is comprised of 15 sections, each weighing between 35,000 and 100,000 pounds, bolted together and anchored to the east and south sides of the building. The outdoor viewing area is surrounded by 79 glass panels, each over 2 inches thick, 9 feet tall, and weighing 1,200 pounds. Manufactured in Germany and finished in Italy, the panels sit on a 6.6-degree angle facing outwards, allowing guests to lean out over the city. The mullion-free design ensures a completely panoramic view of the surrounding city. Edge’s glass floor spans 225 square feet provides dramatic views of the street below. Interiors of Edge are designed by Rockwell Group.
KPF is a leader in the design of supertall towers with accessible space at their highest levels. Edge at 30 Hudson Yards is one of 9 KPF projects completed in the last 10 years that include observatories. Of that group, Edge is the first one with an outdoor experience.
Tickets to Edge are available online here.
About 30 Hudson Yards
Rising above the Empire State Building, the 1,296-foot-tall 30 Hudson Yards is the second tallest office building in New York City, and features river-to-river panoramic views, outdoor terraces, a triple-height lobby, and direct access to the No. 7 subway line. The tallest tower in the development, 30 Hudson Yards is home to Edge, the highest outdoor observation deck in the Western Hemisphere, and serves as the headquarters for global media and entertainment company Warner Media, as well as its subsidiaries, HBO, CNN, and Warner Brothers. The Class-A office tower features large, efficient floor plans, cutting-edge communications systems for tenants and unparalleled amenities for workers.
30 Hudson Yards was designed alongside 10 Hudson Yards, its shorter neighbor to the south. Designed as a pair, the two towers tilt in opposing directions – 30 Hudson Yards faces the city and 10 Hudson Yards faces the Hudson River – engaging in a purposeful dialogue with one another. The towers’ dynamic skyline presence offers varying experiences depending on the viewing location and marks Hudson Yards within the New York cityscape. For more information about 30 Hudson Yards, please click here.
About KPF’s work at Hudson Yards
The scope of KPF’s work at Hudson Yards includes the design of 10 Hudson Yards, 20 Hudson Yards (also known as The Shops and Restaurants), 30 Hudson Yards, and 55 Hudson Yards. The firm is also responsible for the platform above the Long Island Railroad rail yards on which the whole neighborhood rests – a significant technical and engineering endeavor in and of itself. For more information, please click here.