LEGO Architecture 21028 New York City, Building Instructions, Page: 7 / 116

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Flatiron Building
Although never the tallest building in New York, or even
the first building in the United States with a triangular
ground plan, the Flatiron Building remains one of New
York’s most memorable structures.
Sitting on the intersection where Fifth Avenue and
Broadway cross, the Flatiron’s famous form was
dictated by the shape of the plot of leftover land that
lay undeveloped as the city raced northward during
the second half of the 19th century. In 1901 the architect
Daniel H. Burnham was hired to design a new showcase
headquarters on the site for Chicago-based contractors
The Fuller Company.
Burnham’s radical design created a great deal of debate
as the massive structure neared completion in 1902.
Many New Yorkers believed that the unstable building
would fall over at the first gust of wind. The Flatiron
withstood both the criticism and the strong winds and,
over a century later, stands tall as a groundbreaking
engineering marvel.
Valued today at $190 million, the Flatiron Building
continues to function as a popular retail and office
space. In 2009, Sorgente Group of America acquired the
majority of the Flatiron Building.
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Flatiron Building