200 West Street
Encyclopedia
Goldman Sachs Tower is the global headquarters of Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...

 located in Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan
Lower Manhattan is the southernmost part of the island of Manhattan, the main island and center of business and government of the City of New York...

. The building is a 740 feet (225.6 m), 43-story building that opened in October 2009 in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...

. It is located on West Street
West Side Highway
The West Side Highway is a mostly surface section of New York State Route 9A that runs from West 72nd Street along the Hudson River to the southern tip of Manhattan. It replaced the West Side Elevated Highway, built between 1929 and 1951, which was shut down in 1973 due to neglect and lack of...

, between Vesey and Murray Streets. It is adjacent to the World Financial Center
World Financial Center
The World Financial Center is a complex of buildings across West Street from the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan in New York City, overlooking the Hudson River. This complex is home to offices of companies including Merrill Lynch, RBC Capital Markets, Nomura Group, the Wall Street...

 and the Conrad Hotels
Conrad Hotels
Conrad Hotels is an international brand of upscale luxury hotels and resorts owned and operated by the Hilton Worldwide. Conrad was considered the luxury flagship brand in the Hilton Family of Brands, named after company founder Conrad Hilton, until being supplanted by The Waldorf-Astoria...

, across the street from the Verizon Building
Verizon Building
The Verizon Building is a 32-story Art Deco building in New York City, located in Lower Manhattan. It is named for Verizon Communications, for which it is the headquarters. The building is located at 140 West Street, adjacent to the World Trade Center site and 7 World Trade Center, and is bounded...

, and diagonally opposite the World Trade Center site
World Trade Center site
The World Trade Center site , also known as "Ground Zero" after the September 11 attacks, sits on in Lower Manhattan in New York City...

 and One World Trade Center.

The skyscraper was designed by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners
Pei Cobb Freed & Partners
Pei Cobb Freed & Partners is an architectural firm that was founded in 1955 by I. M. Pei as I. M. Pei & Associates, in 1966 called I. M. Pei & Partners, and received its current name and organization in 1989. The founders were I. M. Pei, Henry N. Cobb, and Eason H. Leonard. Pei and Leonard retired...

, and received a Leed Gold certification.

Features

The building features an environmentally friendly raised floor underfloor air system. Conditioned air for the occupants is provided by multiple environmental air towers located in the tenant space that deliver 62 °F (16.7 °C) air into a raised access floor plenum. This underfloor air system provides users with the ability to control their own space temperature as well as improving the ventilation effectiveness. When building churn occurs, workstation moves can be performed more easily with lower cost and less product waste.

Construction

Construction on the building's foundation began in 2005 and faced various construction problems before completion in late 2009. On December 14, 2007, a nylon sling on a crane failed, sending a 7-ton load falling to the ground. It crushed two trailers on the ground and an architect inside. The architect, Robert Woo, may never walk again. Work at the site was halted for several days for safety violations.

The project was halted by New York City officials after a construction accident occurred on May 17, 2008. A 30 by 30 in (762 by 762 mm) piece of steel fell eighteen stories onto a neighboring baseball field that was in use by children, though no one was injured. The City issued a Stop Work Order and cited the general contractor, Tishman Construction, for five violations. Work resumed in the months thereafter.

The first employees arrived in October 2009. The building occupies 2100000 square feet (195,096.4 m²) and features six large trading floors. Goldman Sachs headquarters were previously at 85 Broad street, and main trading floor was previously at One New York Plaza

Financing

Built in the area affected by the 9/11 attacks, the project was awarded $1 billion in Liberty Bonds. A $5 million, 80 feet (24.4 m) by 23 feet (7 m) mural was created for the entrance lobby by artist Julie Mehretu
Julie Mehretu
Julie Mehretu is an artist, best known for her densely-layered abstract paintings and prints. She lives and works in New York City...

.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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