Coty Building

Coty Building
(2019)
General information
Location	Manhattan
Address	714 Fifth Avenue
Town or city	New York City
Coordinates	40°45′44″N 73°58′29″W
Named for	François Coty
Groundbreaking	1871
Renovated	1907 1990
Technical details
Floor count	6
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Woodruff Leeming
Known for	René Lalique Windows
Renovating team
Architect(s)	Beyer Blinder Belle
New York City Landmark
Designated	January 29, 1985[1]: 1
Reference no.	1534[1]: 1

The Coty Building is a building at 714 Fifth Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. The six-story building contains a French-inspired facade and mansard roof, which are integrated into the base of the adjoining skyscraper at 712 Fifth Avenue. The third through fifth floors contain 276 decorative glass panes, the only documented architectural work by René Lalique in the United States.

Built as a brownstone rowhouse in 1871, it was redesigned in 1907–1908 by architect Woodruff Leeming. It was commissioned by owner and real estate investor Charles A. Gould, who, foreseeing the neighborhood shift from residential to commercial use, wished to replace the facade of the brownstone. Upon its completion in 1910, the building was leased to perfumer François Coty, who occupied the building until 1941. During the mid-20th century, the building had a variety of tenants. With the development of 712 Fifth Avenue, the Coty Building was proposed for demolition in the early 1980s. The Coty Building's facade was preserved in 1985 as a New York City designated landmark. The Coty Building's original interiors were completely removed, and the skyscraper was completed behind the older facade in 1990.

Architecture

The design of the Coty Building's six-story facade dates to a 1907–1908 renovation from Woodruff Leeming.^[1]: 5 The facade is a glass wall surrounded by a frame. The first two stories have limestone-faced piers and a cornice supported by corbel brackets; they are treated as a single continuous section of the facade. The third through fifth stories are also treated as a single wall of glass, surrounded by a limestone frame with architrave motif at the top and bellflower pendants motifs on each side. Cast-steel spandrels are above the third and fourth stories.^[1]: 5

There are five vertical bays of windows, separated by thin vertical steel mullions. The general articulation remains unchanged from its original construction, although the original casement windows were removed and replaced with windows by René Lalique.^[1]: 6 These windows comprise the only documented Lalique architectural work in the United States.^[2] Each bay consists of a multi-paned casement separated by a transom. The central bays contain clear glass, though decorative glass is located in the side bays. There is an arched, scallop-shaped pediment with small brackets above the third floor. Each pane is about 0.5 inches (13 mm) thick, surrounded by metal frames; the exterior of each frame is raised.^[1]: 6 There are 276 panes in total, each measuring 14 by 14 inches (360 mm × 360 mm).^[3]

The third- through fifth-story facade contains intertwining vine and flower designs, which according to the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission are tulips. The top floor is set off by a modillioned cornice with console brackets supporting a balustrade. The sloping metal-covered roof with its arched dormers allowed the building to harmonize with its neighbors.^[1]: 5–6

Originally, 714 Fifth Avenue contained a storefront on its ground story and offices on the other stories. During the development of the skyscraper at 712 Fifth Avenue in the late 1980s, all of the original interiors were removed.^[4] A four-story atrium was installed behind the facade of the Coty Building.^[5][6][7] A 79,000-square-foot (7,300 m²) Henri Bendel store was built on the lower stories of the atrium.^[7][8] The store was designed with iron-railed balconies surrounding the atrium,^[7] and it was arranged so all stories of the building could have a direct view of the atrium.^[9]

History

Fifth Avenue between 42nd Street and Central Park South (59th Street) was relatively undeveloped through the late 19th century.^[10] 714 Fifth Avenue was built in 1871 as a brownstone rowhouse, one of several on the western side of Fifth Avenue between 55th and 56th streets.^[1]: 5 By the early 1900s, that section of Fifth Avenue was becoming a commercial area.^[11] The Coty Building, along with the Gorham, Tiffany, Charles Scribner's Sons, and Demarest buildings, is among the few surviving stores that were erected for smaller retailers on Fifth Avenue during the early 20th century.^[12]

Early and mid-20th century

By the first decade of the 20th century, owner and real estate investor Charles A. Gould, foreseeing the neighborhood shift from residential to commercial use, wished to replace the facade of the brownstone. Consequently, in 1907, architect Woodruff Leeming was hired to remodel the house.^{[1]: 5 [13]} Donald M. Mitchell received the general contract to remodel the town house, A side extension was to be erected at the rear, one story was to be added over the main building, and the interior would be renovated with electric lighting, an electric passenger elevator, partitions, and plumbing fixtures.^[13] The Real Estate Record and Guide wrote in December 1908 that the remodeled building had "a maximum of light and air on each floor, the general composition being good and at the same time securing the effect of proper supports for the upper stories by means of the side piers carried all the way down to the sidewalk level".^[14]

Second-story window detail

In 1910, the building was leased to perfumer François Coty, who used it as the U.S. headquarters of Coty. Coty commissioned jeweler and glass maker René Lalique to design a wall of glass windows. Lalique created an Art Nouveau-style composition of panes of glass decorated with flower vines, large enough to go from the third through fifth floors.^[1]: 4 The renovated building hosted exhibitions such as a 1910 exhibit to spread awareness of tuberculosis,^[15] as well as a 1914 benefit for the Committee of Mercy.^[16] Around 1921, Shoecraft Inc. leased some space in the building, where it remained for twenty years.^[17] In 1926, Coty moved the company's offices to 423 West 55th Street, retaining only the company showroom at 714 Fifth Avenue. The sixth floor was then leased to photographer Jay T. E. Winburn,^[18][19] while the fifth floor was leased to tailor Berkley R. Merwin Inc.^[20][21]

The building was owned by Gould until his death in 1926. His estate auctioned off its properties in January 1927, during which the building was purchased by Robert E. Dowling for $710,000.^[22][23] Coty's original lease extended until 1931 and was renewed until 1951. However, Coty Inc. remained at 714 Fifth Avenue only until 1941, when it moved the showroom to 423 West 55th Street.^[1]: 5 Also in 1941, Fareco Inc. bought the building from Dowling's City Investing Company for $675,000.^[24][25] The sale was made on behalf of the Coty interests.^[25] Women's apparel firm Kargere Inc. took the ground-floor storefront and the basement space in 1942.^[26]

Harry Winston then owned the building until 1964, when the Transportation Corporation of America acquired it.^[27][28] Hooks & Wax was hired to remodel the building for the Transportation Corporation's subsidiaries, which included Trans Caribbean Airways, DC Transit System, International Railways of Central America, and Spanish-language newspaper El Diario La Prensa.^[27] The Transportation Corporation was owned by O. Roy Chalk, who sold Trans Caribbean Airways to American Airlines in 1971 but continued to maintain his offices at 714 Fifth Avenue.^[29] Chalk sold the building in 1978 to Juschi Realty for $2.6 million. Chalk retained his third-floor offices while Juschi International opened a luxury women's sportswear and accessories shop on the basement and first, second, and fourth stories.^[30] By the early 1980s, a doctor living in Germany owned 714 Fifth Avenue, and an electronics store occupied the ground story.^[31]

Preservation

The storefront as seen in June 2021

In 1983, developer David S. Solomon began planning a 44-story office skyscraper at the southwest corner of 56th Street and Fifth Avenue. Since neither the Coty Building nor the adjacent Rizzoli Building at 712 Fifth Avenue were designated as official landmarks, he intended to replace them.^[4] The owners of Steadsol Fifth Associates, a consortium of which Solomon was part, bought both buildings in 1984 with the intent of demolishing them.^[32] 714 Fifth Avenue's owner agreed to sell his structure in return for a stake in the new skyscraper.^[31] The grimy windows caught the attention of architectural historian Andrew Dolkart, who found that the Coty Building's windows were the only documented architectural work by René Lalique in the United States.^[33] The Municipal Art Society advocated for the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission to give the building official-landmark status,^[4] and both were designated in early 1985.^[34][35]

Due to a lack of communication between the New York City Department of Buildings and the Landmarks Preservation Commission, alteration permits for the Coty and Rizzoli Buildings were initially approved in spite of the designations.^[36] The Coty and Rizzoli Buildings were given 24-hour police protection because of fears they could be demolished.^[37] Steadsol Fifth Associates later had its alteration permits for the Coty Building revoked.^[38] The Landmarks Preservation Commission also approved a Certificate of Appropriateness that allowed the new skyscraper, 712 Fifth Avenue, to be erected behind the existing buildings. The skyscraper thus had to be built with the Coty Building at its base, incorporating the old facades in the design.^[39] Steadsol Fifth Associates, which was developing the skyscraper, had its alteration permits for the Coty Building revoked following the landmark designations.^[38]

Over the years, the building's Lalique windows had gradually become covered by grime.^[4] In 1986, the Greenland Studio in Manhattan removed all 276 panels from the facade for renovation.^[3] Of these, 46 panels were replaced with replicas made by Jon Smiley Glass Studios in Philadelphia. In 1990, Beyer Blinder Belle restored the facade for the opening of Henri Bendel's flagship store in New York City. Inside, the former Coty offices were removed and the atrium was added.^[4] Further restoration occurred in 2000, after water erosion had caused some of the steel frames to expand, cracking ten panes.^[40] One author wrote, "This type of hybrid preservation [...] with a balance between development and preservation is politically and economically essential in modern cities."^[41] The Henri Bendel store behind the Coty Building's facade closed at the end of 2018,^[42][43] and jeweler Harry Winston leased the space in 2020.^[44][45]

See also

• List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan from 14th to 59th Streets

References

1. "714 Fifth Avenue" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. January 29, 1985. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
2. Stained Glass:A Journal Devoted to the Craft of Painted and Stained Glass. Vol. 86. Stained Glass Association of America. 1991.
3. Anderson, Susan Heller; Dunlap, David W. (April 21, 1986). "New York Day By Day; Lalique Windows Are Going But Just for Restoration". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
4. "A Belle of Fifth Avenue Returns, Freshened Up". The New York Times. February 28, 1991. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 10, 2019. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
5. Dunlap, David W. (February 17, 1991). "Commercial Property: 712 Fifth Avenue; High Hopes, and Vacancy, for a 4-Building Complex". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on February 16, 2022. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
6. Lancaster, Patricia J. (2000). Construction in Cities: Social, Environmental, Political, and Economic Concerns. CRC Press. pp. 131–133. ISBN 978-1-4200-3701-2. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
7. Bussel, Abby (June 1991). "The New Henri Bendel: Paris in New York" (PDF). Progressive Architecture. Vol. 72. p. 30. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
8. Gaskie, Margaret (June 1992). "Double Play" (PDF). Architectural Record. Vol. 180. p. 91. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
9. Dunlap, David W. (December 12, 2002). "Blocks; Public Space, Private Sales, at a Price". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 10, 2021. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
10. Bridges, William (1811). Map of the city of New York and island of Manhattan; with explanatory remarks and references. T&J Swords. hdl:2027/nnc2.ark:/13960/t6ww9pp9g. OCLC 40023003.
11. "Mr. Edward Harriman..." (PDF). The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide. Vol. 79, no. 2038. April 6, 1907. p. 296. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved June 9, 2020 – via columbia.edu.
12. Gill, John Freeman (January 17, 2020). "Fighting to Preserve the Magic of Lower Fifth Avenue". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
13. "Donald M. Mitchell to Alter a Gould Residence". The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide. Vol. 80, no. 2068. November 2, 1907. p. 700. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021 – via columbia.edu.
14. "Individual Examples". The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide. Vol. 82, no. 2127. December 19, 1908. p. 1200. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021 – via columbia.edu.
15. "Fleet Off for Cuba in Four More Days; Sailors' Shore Leave Expires at 8 a.m. To-morrow -- 5,000 Land for New Year's". The New York Times. January 2, 1910. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
16. "Art Notes; Exhibition of Art of the Theatre ;- Sporting Plates on View". The New York Times. November 9, 1914. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
17. "Building Near Radio City Leased by Shoe Concern". The New York Times. December 31, 1941. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
18. "$150,000 Rental Will Be Paid for 5th Avenue Floor: Photographer Has Signed 21 Years' Lease for Space at 714 To Be Vacated by Coty, Inc. Perfume Makers". New York Herald Tribune. August 25, 1926. p. 29. ProQuest 1112982705.
19. "Fifth Avenue Lease by a Photographer: Jay T. E. Winburn Takes Floor at No. 714 for a Period of Twenty-one Years". The New York Times. August 25, 1926. p. 35. ISSN 0362-4331. ProQuest 103758833.
20. "95-Year Tailor Firm Gels New Fifth Avenue Quarters". New York Herald Tribune. December 21, 1926. p. 34. ProQuest 1112681343.
21. "58th Street Floor Leased to Universal". The New York Times. December 23, 1926. p. 35. ISSN 0362-4331. ProQuest 103701598.
22. "$6,714,000 Buildings Sell In Two Hours: Charles A. Gould Estate, Including New Aeolian Structure and 11 Others, Goes in Record Auction Auctioneer Makes $300 Minute Fees Detectives Guard Bidders, Who Have Purchasing Power of $300,000,000". New York Herald Tribune. January 25, 1927. p. 1. ProQuest 1113509137.
23. "12 Gould Buildings Go for $6,714,000: Auction Sets New High Realty Values at Speedy Sale of Properties Here" (PDF). The New York Times. January 25, 1927. p. 1. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
24. "5th Ave. Property Figures in Trade; 5-story Structure at No. 714 Brings Indicated Price of $675,000". The New York Times. February 4, 1941. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
25. "Real Estate Transactions in the City and Suburban Fields: Coty Interests Buy Property On 5th Avenue; Dowling Receives $220,000 More Than Assessment for Parcel Held Since '27". New York Herald Tribune. February 5, 1942. p. 33. ProQuest 1320041696.
26. "Port Warehouses Lease More Space: Company Takes 50,000 Sq. Ft. At 60 Laight St., Making Total of 150,000 Sq. Ft". The New York Times. December 23, 1926. p. 35. ISSN 0362-4331. ProQuest 106361382.
27. "7‐story Building on Fifth Ave. Sold; Transportation Corp. Buys Parcel From Winston". The New York Times. June 24, 1964. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 21, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
28. "Transportation Corp. Buys 7-Story New York Building". The Wall Street Journal. June 16, 1964. p. 8. ISSN 0099-9660. ProQuest 132931111.
29. Eisen, Jack (July 11, 1971). "Chalk's Holdings: Alive, Well: His Salary Up 79% in Two Years". The Washington Post. p. H1. ISSN 0190-8286. ProQuest 148006714.
30. "Realty News--: Fifth Avenue Sales West Side Lease". The New York Times. January 29, 1978. p. R4. ISSN 0362-4331. ProQuest 123840871.
31. Blumstein, Michael (February 15, 1985). "Dollars Vs. History on a Fifth Ave. Block". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 24, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
32. Rangel, Jesus (May 29, 1985). "Panel Approves Tower Plan Using Facades of 2 Landmarks". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
33. Anderson, Susan Heller; Dunlap, David W. (December 3, 1984). "New York Day By Day; Glass Master's Windows". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
34. New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission; Dolkart, Andrew S.; Postal, Matthew A. (2009). Postal, Matthew A. (ed.). Guide to New York City Landmarks (4th ed.). New York: John Wiley & Sons. p. 117. ISBN 978-0-470-28963-1.
35. Prial, Frank J. (January 31, 1985). "5th Ave. Tower Blocked by Vote for Landmarks". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
36. Shepard, Joan (March 15, 1985). "Landmark Designation for B. Altman". New York Daily News. p. 1272. Retrieved December 3, 2020 – via newspapers.com .
37. Shepard, Joan (February 13, 1985). "Developers' lust decried". New York Daily News. p. 119. Archived from the original on June 6, 2021. Retrieved June 6, 2021 – via newspapers.com .
38. "Coty Building's Owner Loses Permits to Alter". The New York Times. February 22, 1985. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
39. Dunlap, David W. (February 17, 1991). "Commercial Property: 712 Fifth Avenue; High Hopes, and Vacancy, for a 4-Building Complex". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on February 16, 2022. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
40. Marciano, Tracy A. (October 31, 2016). "René Lalique's windows saved this Fifth Avenue building from destruction in the 1980s". 6sqft. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
41. Jerold S. Kayden; The New York City Department of Planning; The Municipal Art Society of New York (2000). Privately Owned Public Spaces: The New York City Experience. John Wiley & Sons Inc. p. 169. ISBN 9780471362579. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
42. Rizzi, Nicholas (September 14, 2018). "Henri Bendel, Including Fifth Avenue Flagship, Closing". Commercial Observer. Archived from the original on December 30, 2021. Retrieved July 21, 2021.
43. "After 123 years, Henri Bendel is closing. And it's leaving a lot of retail space behind". The Real Deal New York. September 14, 2018. Archived from the original on June 9, 2020. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
44. Jones, Orion (October 29, 2020). "Paramount Group Third Quarter Earnings 2020". The Real Deal New York. Archived from the original on July 11, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
45. Geiger, Daniel (February 25, 2021). "The world's priciest shopping street is in shambles, and one hint is Ralph Lauren's $27 million feud with its NYC landlord". Business Insider. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.

Further reading

• Dolkart, Andrew Scott (1984). The Coty Building (714 Fifth Avenue) and the Windows of René Lalique. Municipal Art Society.
• Costonis, John J. (1989). Icons and Aliens: Law, Aesthetics, and Environmental Change. University of Illinois Press. p. 73. ISBN 9780252015533.
• The New Yorker (1991). Coty building. Vol. 67. F-R Publishing Corporation. p. 101.

External links

• Image of the block circa 1980, Collections of the Museum of the City of New York by Edmund Vincent Gillon