Six months after a crane now infamously dangled for days at the One57 residential tower on West 57th Street, becoming a metaphor for a city on edge, construction workers are prepping to replace it and evacuate neighboring residents.
The Wall Street Journal reports that pieces of the disassembled new crane will be raised today to the top of the tower and placed on a temporary platform.
The new 150-foot-long boom is scheduled to arrive next Friday, at which point it will be assembled horizontally along 57th Street.
After the original boom snapped back on October 29, 2012 (see video below) due to 100-mile-per-hour winds produced by Hurricane Sandy, hundreds of residents, businesses and hotels were evacuated for more than a week.
Some nearby residents will experience something of a flashback next week, when the Alwyn Court and Briarcliff apartment buildings – and an office building next door – are evacuated for a day; part of 57th Street will also be closed during the move and while testing is done, the Journal reported.
At 1,005 feet, One57 is the tallest apartment building in the city, and the $90 million sale of its penthouse was the most expensive in the city’s history.
An amateur video captured the crane collapse:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azXmt7Cf0XE&w=560&h=315]
