Construction is finishing up on The Rolex Building, a 30-story commercial tower at 665 Fifth Avenue in Midtown, Manhattan. Designed by David Chipperfield Architects and developed by the Rolex Realty Company, the 469-foot-tall structure will yield 165,000 square feet of office and retail space for the Swiss luxury watchmaker. Adamson Associates is the architect of record for the project, which is located at the corner of Fifth Avenue and East 53rd Street.
Exterior work has largely concluded since our last on-site update in November, when the hoist remained attached to the northern elevation and the podium levels on this face stood exposed. Nearly all of the serrated glass envelope panels have since been installed, with only a small sliver of the gap from the hoist still waiting to be enclosed on the lower levels. The sidewalk shed continues to block off the ground floor as interior work progresses.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
665 Fifth Avenue. Photo by Michael Young.
The below renderings preview the final appearance of the glass cladding that wraps around the northern and western elevations of the tower.
Rendering of 665 Fifth Avenue. Credit: Rolex.
Rendering of 665 Fifth Avenue. Credit: Rolex.
The project is planned to feature a multi-level Rolex retail flagship space, office floors for Rolex and outside tenants, and amenity areas including a restaurant and event space. Angeles Wealth Management is among the tenants expected to occupy space in the building.
Sustainability features include a double-skin façade, all-electric operations, rainwater and greywater recycling, and a heating and cooling system that circulates temperature-controlled water through ceiling pipes.
The nearest subways from the ground-up development are the B, D, F, and M trains at the 47th–50th Streets–Rockefeller Center station along Sixth Avenue, as well as the E and M trains at the 5th Avenue–53rd Street station to the east.
The Rolex Building is slated to open this fall, and is targeting LEED and WELL Platinum certifications.
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That blindingly white almost solid southern elevation seems to me so jarring and out of place, especially on Fifth ave, I know, I know, at some time in the future they expect a tower to be built on that corner, but stil..
I’ve been watching this one.
I see what you did there
It’s a beautifully designed and executed curtain wall dont get me wrong, but for a brand like Rolex I think some stone or other materials needed to be used besides monotonous glass. Its technical which is a nice nod to intricate watchmaking but its not strong and timeless and to me thats what Rolex should represent
I once saw an aerial view of this building looking down at it. Those serrated glass envelope panels, at different stages, makes the building look like the movement (gears) of a watch. I wish that picture was shown here.
Great idea for artwork in the showroom.
Quite lovely.
This would make a nice corporate office space for TikTok.
I second that.
Wait a minute!
While the sawtooth facade is a bit of a one trick pony, the quality of the construction is apparent. It’s a nice building, but it’s not exceptional. Truly signature design for a particular company may not age well. This building could easily be offices for any company in the future.
Jeff Bezos! Rolex is for the rich !! Tax them on the taxes they pay!
wahhh
I live in my mom’s basement and have a Timex. Not fair!
(in future David, avoid replying on my comments)
What has your comment to do what David wrote?
Are you 13 or what?
Grow up.
who asked you loser
free speech free country.
Cholly you are such a typical right-wing snowflake. Free country – freedom of speech. David is always respectful and is completely within his rights to respond to you. If YOU do not like it, I suggest YOU not post here!
This is a very nice building, by the way. Much better than its predecessor!
free speech but not for me? and Im not right wing. LOL
and I have a right to respond to him. and you want to silence me to leave? again free speech. you must have went to the Ivy League with you hypocrisy – and still have no job. grow up.
only for those lefties like you – and who the __ are you . he can defend himself . unless of course you are one and the same – just two accounts. – both from mommy’s basement.
cheer up maybe one day you can afford a rolex
oh did I hurt your feelings? grow up snowflake
You are kinda funny…
Very insecure and prepubescent (I hope you know the word since you obviously didn’t go to an Ivy League Uni xD), but kinda funny 😀
It stands out quite a bit.. but the design is unique and of very high quality. I think it will age well.
Time will tell.
Time always tells 😀
Boy you’re really dialed in with the watch puns in this comment section
Blah
Big improvement from the 70s bland box it replaced.
In person, it looks better, but yes given that this was a corporately owned and financed by Rolex and it really part of their marketing, why not push the envelope on the design. It is better than most, but compared to other cities, New York deserves to be at the cutting edge of design and architecture as well.
Very Swiss. A few years back I worked for a company with a factory next door to a few Rolex buildings in Biel-Bienne, which, as I recall, stood out with their signature green glass curtain wall and massive logo on the top. However today, most modern buildings in Switzerland are far more understated, so this makes sense. And I personally find this to be a very attractive addition to 5th Ave.
Does it have its original box and papers?
So, I know they have all the money in the world, but do they need to DOUBLE the window washing? Those interior windows open into the facade? I would think inside out the view would be distorted looking through two sets of windows?