Design Firm Suggests Fitting New York's Stalled Building Sites with...Icebergs

Woods Bagot New York

Remember when we had to get used to seeing those damn cows all over the place in New York City? And then, today, we got the pianos, and some lost rubber ducky signs? Now design firm Woods Bagot wants to put recyclable iceberg structures in the place of all the "frozen" building projects around the city. Okay, we're gonna say it: This is...odd.

Per Crain's,

The angular bright-white structures -- which resemble the one that did in the HMS Titanic -- are designed for quick and easy assembly and disassembly, once the real estate market revives.

According to Woods Bagot New York Principal Jeff Holmes, the inspiration for turning eyesores into something attractive came about from seeing so many stalled sites during his daily commute from Penn Station to the firm's former office in the Garment District.

Curbed has made use of their Photoshop skillz to imagine a New York City filled with fake floating ice. (Nice job, guys!)

Now, we realize iceberg attractiveness levels are a matter of personal taste -- we've frankly never seen a hot one, but then we're notoriously discriminating. And barring that whole a-bunch-of-people-died-on-the-Titanic conundrum, which might make even full-fledged iceberg lovers hesitant about plastering them all over town, aren't there numerous things more eye-pleasing to the typical New Yorker that might make sense to slot into the space of a partially finished building? Like, skylines, or vistas, or bars? Anti-BP slogans? Or perhaps a larger-than-life recyclable Robert Pattinson or Justin Bieber -- people seem to like those two. But, really, an iceberg? Do we really need faux architectural icebergs in New York City?

"Owners and developers are spending money every day to cover these idle sites, and people are hesitant to build on them in the meantime," said Holmes. "We wanted to make something high quality with a real presence to attract top-notch venues."

The firm has yet to build any of these icebergs, but is in talks with several developers. Developers, come on. R. Patz? Or maybe...just finish the buildings?