New York City Is Getting a New, High-design Green Space — Here's Where

An indoor-outdoor park is heading to Madison Avenue.

North View interior
Photo: Snohetta and MOARE

New York City is about to get a little greener.

Come later this year an existing Midtown Manhattan office space will be transformed into a new green space, with both indoor and outdoor areas — a perfect setting for a lunch break for tourists and locals alike.

The central room, looking west
Snohetta and MOARE

The project, which has been in the works since 2016, will bring more than 21,000 square feet of new green space to 550 Madison Ave., between 56th and 55th Streets. The gardens will have dozens of new trees, 10,000 perennial flowers, and around 200 shrubs, according to the Norwegian design firm behind the project, Snøhetta.

Front building rendering exterior
LMNB and Snohetta

"When designing the 550 Madison Garden, we were inspired by the regional context of the river gorges of the Catskills and by the vibrant and canyon-like quality of Midtown Manhattan," Michelle Delk of Snøhetta shared with NBC New York.

Front building rendering exterior
LMNB and Snohetta

Diving deeper into the space, the garden area will take over the west end of the existing building to create a series of interconnected "rooms" that a brief from the design firm says will "provide both quiet spaces and larger, more open areas." The rooms will be partially sheltered from the weather by a glass canopy, according to a Snøhetta description, making it an excellent all-season respite where visitors can meet with friends for a meal or simply hang out.

Exterior view at night
LMNB and Snohetta

The new space is set to open sometime this fall and will allow visitors from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. daily. For more information and to track upcoming progress, visitors can track the design process via Snøhetta's Instagram.

While this particular slice of green may not be ready to visit just yet, NYC is still home to plenty of other parks, around 1,700 according to the city. Central Park may be the most well-known, but there are plenty of others throughout the five boroughs to explore, especially if you want to find some without the crowds.

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