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Similar LVMH Tower, Savoy‑Plaza Hotel, Fuller Building, Cornelius Vanderbilt II House, 590 Madison Avenue | ||
The L.P. Hollander Company Building is located at 3 East 57th Street (Manhattan), New York City. The edifice received the 1930 gold medal of the Fifth Avenue (Manhattan) Association for the best structure built in the Fifth Avenue district during the year. The L.P. Hollander Company Building was erected prior to the Empire State Building and 500 Fifth Avenue, which were judged for the year 1931. The Empire State Building and the Lilly Dache Building were designed by William F. Lamb of Shreve, Lamb & Harmon, architects, who was responsible for planning the L.P. Hollander Building. The Hollander Building was built by Starrett Brothers & Eken.
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The structure began as a shop for women. This is reflected in its delicate and rich design, which features femine motifs. It adjoined the site of an edifice occupied by the New York Trust Company, at the corner of Fifth Avenue, which had also recently been completed. A structure known as the old Hollander Building stood at 550 - 552 Fifth Avenue at this time. Its name was changed to the Weber & Heilbroner Building in August 1934.
Architectural design
The Hollander building is situated on a plot of land that had been occupied by the Stuyvesant home, a private residence in the 57th Street district. In 1939, the property was owned by Augustus Van Horne Stuyvesant Jr. and the estate of Anne W. Stuyvesant.
The structure is composed of two stories of rich metal work in silver, a shaft made of a series of vertical lines composed of stone, and an upper panel framed horizontally, yet carrying the vertical motifs of the shaft. The whole, along with its various portions, are framed in black granite. The edifice possessed a gray, silver, and black color scheme. The silver hue is made up of aluminum metal parts, gray of the limestone mullions, and black of the granite frame. Two small side doors, one for service and another which acted as a fire exit, are utilized as flanking motifs for a primary show window. The doors are plates pierced for light, grilles in reverse. Window backgrounds of the Hollander building are the work of Jock D. Peters, in collaboration with Eleanor Lemaire.
Building tenants
On March 15, 1933, the fashion boutique "Joseph's" opened shops at the Hollander Building. The store was directed by Milton Wolf who had been president of Joseph and Benjamin Pitman, and vice-president of the original L.P. Hollander Company. Joseph's featured a number of small shops assembled under one roof. Their merchandise selection offered items as diverse as swirling gowns for spring, and swanky bags.
In December 1939, the Hollander Building was leased for twenty-one years to Stouffer's for a new unit in its chain of restaurants. The company operated other eateries at 540 Fifth Avenue and in the Pershing Square Building, in the Grand Central Station zone. Aymar Embury 2nd was the architect who redesigned the two lower floors of the establishment, with a design employing white marble, featuring a new facade.