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Zaha Hadid, one of the most visionary architects of our time, died at age 65 on March 31.
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Over the span of her career, the controversial and uncompromising architect created award-winning museums, condos, stadiums, and pavilions. In her last years, she took on a new challenge: designing a luxury apartment complex over the High Line, Manhattan's famed elevated park.
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The new apartment building will be nothing short of impressive, with an intricate metal and glass facade sculpted piece by piece. Inside, the high-rise will boast a parking garage with robot valets and the city's first private 3D IMAX theater.
Developer Related Companies broke ground in 2014, and the building should open by early 2017. Since it was both Hadid's first residential building in NYC and one of her last designs, it will remain a testament to her legacy.
In March, Tech Insider toured one of the units, the most expensive of which sell for up to $50 million. Take a look inside.
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Hadid's 135-foot-tall building lives at 520 West 28th Street on Manhattan's far west side. It's two blocks away from Hudson Yards, the new $20 billion neighborhood set to open in 2024.
Hadid was known for her curved buildings, many of which featured geometric forms.
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520 West 28th Street is no exception.
The stainless metal exterior wraps around to form an L-shape. To create the curves, each panel of cladding was laser-cut.
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The 11-story building will feature 39 apartments, including two penthouses with floor-to-ceiling windows.
This is the view from the window of one of the model apartments. You can see the High Line and West Chelsea down below.
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When I walked in, I immediately knew it was Hadid's work.
The marble kitchen island's edge swoop down just like the exterior building facade. Hadid worked with the Italian designer Boffi to create it, according to Related Companies' spokesperson Heather McDonough.
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Everything in the model apartment is top of the line. The windows open via apps and the lighting is energy-efficient. The furniture is beautiful, but the smart home gadgetry is fun, too.
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The kitchen comes with two ovens by Gaggenau: One is a typical oven, and the other is a steam oven — a cross between an oven and a microwave. The ovens swung open when I pressed the button on the side.
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If residents have a wine collection, they can store up to 99 bottles in this temperature-controlled rack.
The bathrooms (also a collaboration between Boffi and Hadid) include marble floors, rainfall shower heads, and six-foot-long tubs.
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The walls that enclose the toilet are especially fancy. The transparent glass frosts over with the flip of a switch.
The living room opens to a private balcony that overlook the High Line and a 2,500-square-foot sculpture garden. The art is curated by High Line Art, a public program that presents artwork on and around the walkway.
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The apartments will range from about 1,700 to 6,600 square feet, with two to five-bedroom layouts. All of the ceilings will stretch over 10 feet high.
The building also will include a parade of amenities, including an automated 12-car garage. When residents arrive, they notify the garage via a key fob, which automatically opens the door. Residents then drive onto the platform, and a kiosk asks them if they have their keys, bags, pets, and kids. Once everything checks out, the platform lifts the car to its parking spot like an elevator— but for a car.
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Doormen and a concierge will staff the lobby 24-7.
Through the lobby, there will be a private IMAX theater that seats 12 people. The developers hope to show films the same time they premiere in theaters, McDonough tells Tech Insider.
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On the same floor, there will be a private spa, fitness center, and 75-foot sky-lit pool.
The building will also feature four elevators (unusual for NYC apartments) that run next to each other in two elevator shafts. Residents will hardly ever need to wait.
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Residents who live here won't have to breathe normal city air. Before they move in, NYC's dirty air will be filtered four timed in every apartment — a small amenity considering the multi-million dollar price tag, I suppose.
The building will be impressive, but so is the neighborhood that surrounds it. Future residents could easily walk to Chelsea Market, the Hudson River running trail, the Whitney Museum ...
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... and the numerous shops, bars, and restaurants that are only a few blocks away.
Prices for the apartments range from $4.9 million for a two-bedroom apartment to $50 million for the largest penthouse.
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Hadid competed against other well-known architects to design 520 West 28th Street. Her style "is an optimistic view of the future," said Gregory Gushee, Related's executive vice president, in an interview with The New York Times. "It’s modern and taking advantage of curves, which is hard to do in real estate — it’s expensive to do, frankly — but the design was so compelling that we decided to spend the money."
Hadid, the first woman and Muslim to win the Pritzker Prize (the Nobel Prize of architecture), changed architecture forever with her futuristic buildings. 520 West 28th Street will serve as a testament to her creative vision.
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