Building of the Day: 360 Adams Street
The BOTD is a no-frills look at interesting structures of all types and from all neighborhoods. There will be old, new, important, forgotten, public, private, good and bad. Whatever strikes our fancy. We hope you enjoy. Address: 360 Adams Street, Cadman Plaza Name: New York State Supreme Court Building Neighborhood: Downtown Brooklyn Year Built: 1957…
The BOTD is a no-frills look at interesting structures of all types and from all neighborhoods. There will be old, new, important, forgotten, public, private, good and bad. Whatever strikes our fancy. We hope you enjoy.
Address: 360 Adams Street, Cadman Plaza
Name: New York State Supreme Court Building
Neighborhood: Downtown Brooklyn
Year Built: 1957
Architectural Style: Moderne
Architects: Shreve, Lamb & Harmon
Landmarked: No
Why chosen: The architects of the Empire State Building designed this courthouse thirty-six years after their masterpiece. They must have run out of ideas. Francis Marrone’s Architectural Guide to Brooklyn calls it an unloved building that dominates Cadman Plaza like a limestone beached whale. The entrance has some charm, with iconic reliefs of Moses dispensing the Law, but the bunker-like appearance of the huge building does not meet the other Moses Robert’s, hope of Cadman Plaza being Brooklyn’s Piazza San Marco. One thing is certain, however. The building has an excellent air-conditioning plant. The jury duty waiting room is the coldest room I’ve ever had to sit in for days on end.
Not much to love here (and I’d count myself in the modernist crowd). One thing, though – this ain’t Moderne.
The inside is a dump.
One end of the building should be hoisted into the air until the building is turned onto its side.
Then a pointy silver spire should be placed on its top.
Charge tourist $20 to go to the observation deck.
This building functions as a shield to separate neighborhoods.
It’s as if it was built by beavers trying to damn the flow of people.
To me, that’s the ugliest part of the building.
a tear down
A good cleaning would help.
Or maybe not.
However, The gorgeous bronze lamps out front come from the old Hall of Records, a Beaux-Arts masterpiece that did not survive the fifties.
ENY – the lobby while narrow benefits from the double height windows and therefore has a nice effect – the court rooms are generally very nice if a bit worn and acoustically challenged (far better than the new building next door) – net net – the inside is a functionally attractive albeit not grand courthouse – the outside is horrendous,
It’s not much better inside.
The square windows between the strip windows makes for an interesting architectural lasagna. It reminds me of those early computer data punch cards (talk about dating yourself!)
But you’re right, the bas-relief sculpture at the entry are pretty fab as is the mildly art moderne vibe inside. I don’t know if it is really the ugliest building around but it is one of the least loved.