{"id":761259,"date":"2024-10-23T12:37:09","date_gmt":"2024-10-23T11:37:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/?p=761259"},"modified":"2024-10-23T13:34:05","modified_gmt":"2024-10-23T12:34:05","slug":"heatherwick-studios-vessel-reopens-after-three-year-closure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.architectsjournal.co.uk\/news\/heatherwick-studios-vessel-reopens-after-three-year-closure","title":{"rendered":"Heatherwick Studio\u2019s Vessel reopens after three-year closure"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 16-storey<\/a> viewing platform reopened on Monday (21 October) at the Hudson Yards development in New York after having been closed for nearly three years.<\/p>\n

The Vessel closed in 2021 after four people died from falling from the structure. The youngest was 14 years old.<\/p>\n

The building, which cost an estimated \u00a3154 million, originally opened in 2019 as part of the Hudson Yards scheme in Manhattan for developer Related Companies.<\/p>\n

Floor-to-ceiling steel meshing was installed this summer, covering about half of the Vessel\u2019s walkways. Four of the Vessel\u2019s stairwells and adjoining platforms now have safety measures. The top level is now permanently closed.<\/p>\n

Heatherwick Studio and its founder Thomas Heatherwick were understood to have worked on the designs for the meshing. The studio previously told the AJ it was \u2018distraught\u2019<\/a> over the earlier deaths.<\/p>\n

A Heatherwick Studio spokesperson said: \u2018The Vessel has attracted more than 3 million visitors since it opened in 2019. We are pleased that the structure is now reopening. We hope that it will continue to deliver the experience we originally envisioned \u2013 as a unique place for exploration and a one-of-a-kind take on the city of New York.\u2019<\/p>\n

The AJ understands Heatherwick Studio proposed safety barriers before the Vessel was built, but the plans were never implemented.<\/p>\n

The studio \u2018exhaustively explored physical solutions to increase safety\u2019, which required \u2018further rigorous tests\u2019 to \u2018identify a solution that is feasible in terms of engineering and installation\u2019, Heatherwick previously told the AJ.<\/p>\n

Speaking ahead of the Vessel\u2019s reopening, Related\u2019s chief executive Jeff T Blau told the Associated Press: \u2018Not a day goes by that we don\u2019t have visitors walking up to our staff asking where they can buy tickets and when it will reopen [and] that interest hasn\u2019t diminished during the time we\u2019ve been closed and we\u2019re excited to welcome guests from all around the world back to Vessel with additional safety measures in place.\u2019<\/p>\n

In 2021, Related\u2019s billionaire chairman Stephen Ross told US news website the Daily Beast<\/em><\/a> that he had considered never reopening the Vessel.<\/p>\n

Related was contacted for comment.<\/p>\n

\n

The Vessel at @_HudsonYardsNYC<\/a> reopened this morning with new safety netting after 4 people took their lives there three years ago. @1010WINS<\/a> #thevesselnyc<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/7rEFygoWCt<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Marla Diamond (@MDiamond8) October 21, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n