Nic on Fifth - (290' - 26 Stories)

[twincitizen]

Well this makes my day! ha ha ha. The reduction in height and floors was a mistake. The original 34 story proposal with the cantilevered crown was a much better design. The new crown actually looks better for the building's shorter height in some ways. But the big problem is there is no clear architectural relationship formed between the base and the crown.The top looks like an afterthought with no vertical carry through with the forms, color, or geometry of the base and shaft. I'm afraid this is probably ESG's first high rise design and their lack of experience shows. On the positive side ,I think the street level is great and works well with the intersection. They did a good job here and I think that almost makes up for the awkwardness above it.

I'm like a full-grown adult so I tried really hard not to giggle, but there are way too many phallic terms in this post...I was in tears by "geometry the of base and shaft"

[John]

Well this makes my day! ha ha ha. The reduction in height and floors was a mistake. The original 34 story proposal with the cantilevered crown was a much better design. The new crown actually looks better for the building's shorter height in some ways. But the big problem is there is no clear architectural relationship formed between the base and the crown.The top looks like an afterthought with no vertical carry through with the forms, color, or geometry of the base and shaft. I'm afraid this is probably ESG's first high rise design and their lack of experience shows. On the positive side ,I think the street level is great and works well with the intersection. They did a good job here and I think that almost makes up for the awkwardness above it.

I'm like a full-grown adult so I tried really hard not to giggle, but there are way too many phallic terms in this post...I was in tears by "geometry the of base and shaft"

Well, however you want to read into it is your business . But those are terms used to describe the parts that form a skyscraper.

[min-chi-cbus]

Odd that you would say that. I agree this is good infill, and the density is great, but I think the design is pretty blah, even when compared to a lot of the 6 story infill projects. Hopefully it is just bad renderings.

Word.

I'd rather have well-designed 6-8 story buildings that meet the street well than high-rises with little character in the heart of the CBD. Now I'm not against this project 100% per se, but I think it actually is an under-utilization of this site's potential (key word, as I realize that before this and TCF we were looking at a surface lot for the indefinite future).

[min-chi-cbus]

Well this makes my day! ha ha ha. The reduction in height and floors was a mistake. The original 34 story proposal with the cantilevered crown was a much better design. The new crown actually looks better for the building's shorter height in some ways. But the big problem is there is no clear architectural relationship formed between the base and the crown.The top looks like an afterthought with no vertical carry through with the forms, color, or geometry of the base and shaft. I'm afraid this is probably ESG's first high rise design and their lack of experience shows. On the positive side ,I think the street level is great and works well with the intersection. They did a good job here and I think that almost makes up for the awkwardness above it.

I'm like a full-grown adult so I tried really hard not to giggle, but there are way too many phallic terms in this post...I was in tears by "geometry the of base and shaft"

Well, however you want to read into it is your business . But those are terms used to describe the parts that form a skyscraper.

PARTS that "form" a SKYSCRAPER?!?!

JK. I like a good phallice joke as much or more than the average bear myself! You could say I have phallices on the brain (ref to The Office)!

[Didier]

If you look at this block from the perspective of the park that may or may not eventually lie in the block just to the north, it's hard for me to really complain about height.

The configuration will provide a two-building step up, which will be a positive in several ways:
[tab=30]
• More sunlight for the "park" and the library. Have you ever been in the library on a sunny day? It's beautiful.

• With the shorter Xcel building, more Nic of Fifth units will have "park views." Assuming the Gateway Park gets built, these views will be amazing.

• From a purely aesthetic standpoint, the shorter Nic of Fifth building will add great density to the skyline while allowing the truly great buildings — such as Wells Fargo — to remain highly visible at the top of the "pyramid."

[Avian]

A little detective work led me to find these images on the web. These may or may not be accurate given the change to the tower's roof but they make the project look a whole lot better I think. The way the building meets the street is quite nice.





I'm assuming this is the amenities floor, looking from the Marquette side toward the Nicollet Mall.



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[min-chi-cbus]

That is COMPLETELY different from the renderings we've seen to date! Whereas before the building looked tan or brownish now it looks white or cream colored. For some reason, the lighter material seems to work better for this (stumpier) building for me.

[mnmike]

I am pretty certain we have seen these before...from the promo boards at the architecture exhibit...someone posted pics of those didn't they?

[Avian]

^Maybe..I didn't look through all the pages of this thread. I found these at lmacg.com > computer rendering > exterior.

[mnmike]

Actually...I think they are slightly different...I think they were similar, but not day time. Anyway, nice find. I feel like even the developer is really still finalizing the design and materials for this...I just really hope it looks better than the precast on Skyscape, and I hope it is glassier. If it does, I will like it just fine:)

[sushisimo]

Nice! Although, the Xcel expansion building looks way off.

[spectre000]

Those renders show a 6 level podium. The redesigned one has only 5. So those must be out of date. Too bad. They look great.

[Wedgeguy]

IF they use quality materials for the cladding thing building will be fine. If they do it on the cheap then if will be a turd on the skyline.

[sushisimo]

a turd on the skyline.

33 South Sixth.

[John]

A little detective work led me to find these images on the web. These may or may not be accurate given the change to the tower's roof but they make the project look a whole lot better I think. The way the building meets the street is quite nice.





I'm assuming this is the amenities floor, looking from the Marquette side toward the Nicollet Mall.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

That first rendering a couple days ago sucks. The more detailed renderings of the street level are really beautiful! Now if we could find a better rendering of the revised roof, I bet it may look pretty good. I actually like that they eliminated the cantilevered crown when they reduced the height. It fits the building better.

[nasa35]

this should still be a 500 foot building. Nice infill though/

[Aville_37]

Beautiful. This will definately liven up this block. What a different impression this and the new Xcel building are going to make to people arriving on the blue line.

Now, keeping fingers crossed they find quality RETAIL/restaurant tenants for the first floor/skyway level.

[Nick]

Here's a shot from the top of the ramp.

[Andrew_F]

Is that a skyway stub coming out of the parking ramp? Funny to think that it's going to be torn down just as a building that it could finally connect to is going up.

[robotlollipop]

Why would it be torn down? I haven't seen any renderings for that side of the building so I just assumed they were going to use it.