New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-05-26
WOULD PUT DIP
in FIFTH AVENUE
Winners in Art Society
Contest Suggest Subway
Under AID Street.
PEEKSKILL MAN
GETS FIRST AWARD
Other Plans Take Second ana
Third Prizes, Due to Cost
Of Condemnation.

Out Of total Of two hundred com
pctitors for prizes offered By the Mu-
nicipal Art Society for the hest archl-
tectural solution Of the intersection
Of an avenue and street the society
having in mind the congestion Of trat-
fc M Fifth Avenue and Forty second
Street AS an example John FLOYD
Yewen, Of 120 Regia Street. PeekskllI'
\ Y. won the first prize, Of $500. John
Ambrose Thompson and Ernest Low
Of lOl Park Avenue, TINS city won '"e
second prize, OF 500, ana 'aiFI"
ling. with Ierbeu +. DAVIS OF %
Fifth Avenue, the thlr' pr1e, OF flV',
The Jury of award met at the ga
Icrv OF the National As club, ~
East Nineteenth stree "TeIc ...
drawings are on exhibition. Inc jury
included:
+. p. Goodrich, consulting engineer
Of the city; Lawson Purdy, president
of the Department of Taxes and As
sessments; Lawrence Is. Dunham'
Third Deputy Police Commissioner;
Daniel L. Turner, deputy engineer OF
subway construction; Alfred Ludwig
Superintendent Of Buildings; Nelson
p. Lewis, chief engineer Of the board
of Estimate; George W. BrecN, OF the
Art Commission; George Is. Ford, con
sultant Of the Committee OF the Clty
Plan; Richard Ii. Hunt, president OF
the American Institute OF Architects
Charles v. Stoughton, president OF the
Municipal Art Society; Charles X.
Lamb, William \. Taylor and Harry
Allan Jacobs.
John Floyd Yewells design was Sc
lected for its extreme simplicity, as
il has the minimum amount of con
demnation Of property. His plan mas
a tower in the centre of the lnteracc-
ton OF the avenue and the street,
with the buildings cut OF at each cor
uer, allowing rotary circulation. Inc
car tracks on the streets are depressed
in such a manner as TO pass under the
avenue at the intersection. There is
clever arrangement in this plan ny
which the car lines seek the lower
level at one point and the vehicle traI-
fc at another, yet both car line and
vehicular traffic arrive at the same
lower level. The great advantage IN
this plan also is that the shops on the
streets can be approached by yehlcu-
lar traffic and are in no way shut OF.
1 he NtslEll VI JNllAl s1llblboN iAHiilF
son and Ernest f. Lewis was by far
tho most monumental solution of this
problem, and as a beautiful architectu-
raj effect regarded as the best.
Here also the car tracks are de-
pr ssed, allowing the vehicles on the
avenue to pass over them. This hand
ling Of the traffic is not considered so
good, the shops on the street having
no connection with the avenue except
in a roundabout way. The shops also
are lessened in value, because they
are not approachable by carriage trade.
OF all the designs this showed the
maximum amount of condemnation Of
property, having large circular plaza,
with the corners much cut Off. To
make up for the loss Of property, these
competitors placed a large circular
building in the centre of the plaza,
which made UP for the condemnation Of
property at the four corners.
The drawing which won the third
prize has the most successful treat
ment Of relieving congestion by piac-
ing arcades under the buildings facing
the street. thus allowing the sidewalk
space 20 be made into a roadway. This
also has the depressed car tracks and
is the best solution of the arcade idea.