Nouvel Tower Gets the Nod Of City's Landmarks Panel

A planned 75-story glass condominium tower adjacent to the Museum of Modern Art has gained the key approval of the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission.

The landmarks commissioners yesterday unanimously approved the transfer of development rights from two landmarks on Fifth Avenue, the University Club and St. Thomas Church, to a site near Sixth Avenue formerly owned by MoMA, more than 500 feet to the west, where the new tower is scheduled to rise.

The West 53rd Street project has generated particular interest in part due to its scale and its architect, Jean Nouvel, who recently won the most prestigious award in his field, the Pritzker Prize.

The commission effectively decided that the development rights transfer would not have a negative impact on the landmarked buildings and that the proposal instead would aid the restoration of the University Club and St. Thomas Church.

The approval establishes a five-year maintenance plan for both of the landmarked buildings.

The project's developer, Hines, still needs several waivers from the city's Planning Commission and final approval from the City Council.

The president of the West 54th and 55th Street Block Association, Veronika Conant, said after the hearing that the commission yielded to the desires of the developer.

"We are deeply disappointed," she said. "We were hoping that the landmarks commission would consider our points."

Ms. Conant said the tower would not be in "harmony" with the surrounding neighborhood and that neither the University Club nor St. Thomas Church were in need of additional protections.

In their comments, a number of the commissioners referred to the limited scope of their decision and asked the Planning Commission to weigh the issues surrounding the tower, which has been criticized for its height and its mid-block location on a side street, rather than an avenue.