At last week’s annual meeting of the Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Council, the Spiral Tower was honored as the world’s best tall building in its category. The design extends the nearby High Line Park landscape onto the exterior and terraces of the Spiral Tower, offering green outdoor spaces accessible on every one of its 66 floors.
Developed by Tishman Speyer and built by Turner, the Spiral Tower has officially opened its doors to tenants including Pfizer, Debevoise & Plimpton, Turner Construction, and HSBC. Situated on West 34th Street between Hudson Avenue and Tenth Avenue, it borders Manhattan’s elevated High Line and Bella Abzug Park. Designed by BIG in collaboration with Adamson Associates and structural engineer WSP Cantor Seinuk, this commercial skyscraper features 66 floors, spans 2.8 million square feet, and stands 1,031.5 feet tall. The Spiral is currently pursuing LEED Silver certification. This marks BIG’s first completed super-tall building and the first commercial high-rise of its kind to be completed in New York.
From street level, the tower draws the eye upward along a green belt that extends the High Line beyond West 34th Street and into the Manhattan skyline. The building’s glass facade evokes a greenhouse effect, while the spacious, light-filled lobby welcomes visitors through entrances on Hudson and Tenth Avenues. Adorned with artworks by the Dutch studio DRIFT and lush foliage, the lobby incorporates seven different metal materials to honor the area’s industrial heritage. The floor size matches the precast concrete slabs used in the High Line’s construction, reinforcing the connection to the surroundings.
The spiral-shaped tower follows the zoning and enclosure of its site, with its volume gradually tapering upward. Its stepped design pays homage to classic Manhattan skyscrapers like the Empire State Building and Rockefeller Center, while its slender profile and use of contemporary materials reflect modern high-rise architecture.
The tower’s layered terraces and hanging gardens spiral upward, creating a continuous green ribbon around the building’s exterior walls. This design provides convenient terrace space for every office floor.
The Spiral offers approximately 13,000 square feet of outdoor space — an unprecedented landscape at over 300 feet above ground level in New York City. Most ground cover plants are native to the American prairie, selected for their resilience to strong winds and drought.
As the building ascends, a second layer of shrubs and tall winter-blooming plants is introduced. At the top, single-stem and multi-stem trees bloom as early as February. Vertical flower stands feature English ivy and Boston ivy, whose leaves persist through winter. Plant color varies on each side of the building, adapting to sunlight exposure and wind conditions.
Each terrace along the spiral offers stunning views of Manhattan, the Hudson River, and New Jersey. Some floors feature double-height leisure areas connected to adjacent levels by wide staircases, encouraging interaction among colleagues as an alternative to elevators. On the 66th floor, the Spiral houses its exclusive ZO clubhouse, providing private lounges and outdoor balconies for gatherings and relaxation.
The Spiral offers a modern office environment that seamlessly integrates with its surroundings. Its spatial design adapts to the evolving needs of users, fostering a connection to the outdoors through generous ceiling heights and carefully selected external glass coatings that allow natural light to penetrate deep into the interiors. The building’s innovative water management system captures rainwater, treats it, and redistributes it to irrigate the landscaping, conserving millions of gallons annually. This sustainable approach further solidifies the Spiral Tower’s status as a green landmark on the Manhattan skyline.
Project Information
Architect: Bjarke Ingels Group
Area: 2,800,000 ft²
Project Year: 2023
Photographer: Laurian Ghinitoiu
Manufacturer: Terrazzo & Marble
Design Partners: Bjarke Ingels, Daniel Sundlin
Technical Director: Douglass Alligood
Project Manager: Dominyka Voelkle
Project Team: Adrien Mans, Agla Egilsdottir, Ali Chen, Alvaro Velosa, Andreas Buettner, Andrew Lee, Anton Bashkaev, Armen Menendian, Beat Schenk, Benjamin Caldwell, Bernardo Schuhmacher, Cadence Bayley, Carolien Schippers, Cheyenne Vandevoorde, Christopher David White, Christopher Tron, David Brown, Davide Maggio, Deborah Campbell, Denys Kozak, Dong-Joo Kim, Erin Yook, Florencia Kratsman, Francesca Portesine, Gabriel Jewell-Vitale, Gabriella Den Elzen, Gaurav Sardana, Giulia Frittoli, Haochen Yu, Hung-Kai Liao, Ibrahim Salman, Jack Lipson, Jan Casimir, Jan Leenknegt, Janice Rim, Janie Louise Green, Jennifer Wood, Joshua Burns, Josiah Poland, Juan David Ramirez, Julie Kaufman, Kurt Nieminen, Lisbet Fritze Trentemøller, Lucio Santos, Luke Lu, Mackenzie Keith, Margaret Tyrpa, Maria Eugenia Dominguez, Martynas Norvila, Mateusz Rek, Maureen Rahman, Megan Van Artsdalen, Michael Zhang, Nicholas Potts, Otilia Pupezeanu, Phawin Siripong, Rachel Coulomb, Ruo Wang, Ryan Duval, Sang Ha Jung, Seo Young Shin, Simon Lee, Terrence Chew, Thea Gasseholm, Thomas Christoffersen, Tracy Sodder, Veronica Acosta, Veronica Moretti, Wells Barber, Will Fu, Yaziel Juarbe, Yenhsi Tung, Zoltan David Kalaszi
BIG Landscape Team: Emily Chen, Giulia Frittoli, Joseph Kuhn, Kathleen Cella, Kelly Neill, Lou Arencibia, Manon Otto, Marcus Wilford, Matteo Gawlak, Matthew Lau, Morgan Mangelsen, Simon David, Tony-Saba Shiber, Varat Limwibul
Owner: Tishman Speyer
Collaborators: Adamson Associates, Turner Construction, WSP Cantor Seinuk, Cosentini, Langan, Edgett Williams Consulting Group, Thornton Tomasetti, Heintges, Vidaris, Entek Engineering, FMS, Pandiscio, Doyle Partners, Squint Opera, Siteworks, Northern Design, Space Copenhagen, Michaelis Boyd, Studio Drift, Banker Steel, Roger & Sons, Permasteelisa, CMI, Vitrocsa, W+ W, Top Shelf Electric, Otis, National, Bamco, Garcia, Jacobson & Company, Cooper Plastering, Sponzilli, JBB, BIG Landscape, BIG Ideas
Location: New York, USA
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