The Empire State Building may have some competition.
Even before the loss of the World Trade Center, the Empire State Building defined the Manhattan skyline. After 9/11 and destruction of transmitting facilities at the World Trade Center, New York broadcasters moved to the Empire State Building.
This week there were multiple reports that the owners of the Empire State Building are challenging construction of a 1,216-foot skyscraper at 33rd Street and 7th Avenue, located less than a quarter mile away.
While the Empire State Building is higher, much of that extra height is due to the TV and radio mast on top. Matthew Schuerman, in his article Dueling Points of View on Manhattan's New Skyline on WNYC.org points out that the top floor of the ESB is only 34 feet above Vornado's 15 Penn Plaza skyscraper.
Schuerman's article includes some renderings of the Skyline with Vornado's tower, with the renderings from Empire and Vornado quite different in orientation and their depictions of the new building. Vornado's drawing shows the skyscraper at twilight,
"That is a very artful and best possible representation," said owner Anthony Malkin said, in defending the Empire's rendering. "Clearly, we did not choose the best representation. That would not serve our purpose, nor would it serve theirs."
None of the articles that I found discussed the implications of the new tower on existing broadcast operations at Empire. There are TV stations transmitting at high power from antennas on the mooring mast, which is much closer to the height of the proposed 15 Penn Plaza structure.
What impact will this new building have on their signal? Would Vornado consider installing a structure on top of its building to support broadcast antennas?
A 1,200-foot structure could provide competition for Empire. People on the top floor of the 15 Penn Plaza tower will be within a quarter mile of the Empire State Building and close to the main beam of stations transmitting from Empire. While RF power density should be below established maximum permissible exposure levels for humans, what impact will it have on electronic devices?
Don't expect the new skyscraper to appear soon. According to the WNYC.org article, Vornado hasn't found a tenant to rent its tower and is still years away from construction.
