Empire State Building

The Empire State Building, currently the tallest building in New York City and one of the most well known buildings in the world, is mostly made up of office space. However, the building also serves as a major broadcasting station for New York City, which is the biggest media center in the U.S. Ever since the World Trade Center was destroyed in September 2001, most of the commercial television and FM radio broadcast stations have used the top of the Empire State Building to transmit their programs.

Broadcasting at the Empire State Building began in 1931, the year the building opened. Experimental broadcasts were conducted by RCA from an antenna that was on top of the building’s spire. RCA rented the 85th floor and built a lab. Later the 85th floor was used for RCA’s television operations. First it was an experimental TV station, W2XBS channel 1. In July 1941, this channel became commercial station WNBT, channel 1 (which is currently WNBC-TV channel 4). In 1940, WEAF-FM (currently known as WQHT), an NBC FM station, started transmitting from the antenna.

NBC had exclusive right to transmit from the top of the Empire State Building until 1950. At that time the FCC broke the exclusive deal because of consumer complaints that they had to constantly adjust their antennas when switching television channels. By this time New York had 7 television stations. They needed to broadcast from a common location so that viewers would not have to constantly adjust their antennas. A giant broadcasting tower was constructed. Other TV broadcasting stations moved into the Empire State Building with RCA up on the 81st, 82nd and 83rd floors, and often brought FM radio stations with them. Construction was completed on the new broadcasting tower in 1951 and multiple FM radio and TV transmissions began. Separate FM antennas were added in 1965 surrounding the 102nd floor observation deck.

Construction of the World Trade Center caused difficulties for the TV stations. Upon completion of the World Trade Center, most of the television stations moved there. At this point the transmitter facilities and antenna structure at the Empire State Building were renovated for the FM radio stations that were still there. Other FM and UHF TVs moved into the Empire State Building from other places in the New York metro area. When the World Trade Center was destroyed, a lot of changes had to be made to the transmitter rooms and antennas to facilitate the move of many of the stations from the World Trade Center back to the Empire State Building.

Currently the Empire State Building houses 44 television and radio states, and both digital and analog signals. The building also contains the Western Hemisphere’s biggest FM combiner system. The Empire State Building also has over 100 antennas that provide data communication services and point-to-point radio services to telecommunication and utilities companies as well as public safety agencies. The lower levels of the building have antenna locations that are available for broadband and cellular users.

The Empire State Building is one of the most recognizable buildings in the entire world. Built in 1931, the famous skyscraper was the tallest building in the world until it was eclipsed by the World Trade Center in 1972. The Empire State Building once again became New York City’s tallest building after the World Trade Center was destroyed in 2001. The Empire State Building is also the second tallest building in the United States behind the Sears Tower in Chicago. The impressive 102-story skyscraper stands at 1,454 feet tall.

The skyscrapers famous Art Deco inspired design was by the architectural firm of Shreve, Lamb and Harmon Associates. The building was commissioned by an investment group led by General Motors executive John J. Raskob, and former presidential candidate and Governor of New York, Alfred E. Smith. The investment group was in a race to build the world’s tallest building, the chief rival being the Chrysler Building that was already under construction.

The skyscraper is a four-facade building made of limestone, whose form was inspired by a pencil. There are two observatories on the 86th and 102nd floors of the skyscraper, offering breathtaking views of New York City and the surrounding areas, and a towering spire at the top of the building. Its lobby features multi-colored marble and granite. The Empire State Building is a stately, elegant statement of modernist architecture.

The building was constructed by one of the leading commercial contractors of the day, Starrett Brothers and Eken. The Empire State Building was completed in record time and under the projected budget. The construction firm used fast-track construction techniques, prefabricated manufacturing off site, a sophisticated logistics and planning schedule, and the use of highly skilled workers to complete the massive project in record time. Construction began on March 17, 1930 on St Patrick’s Day and was completed in May 1931.

The Empire State Building opened with much fanfare on May 1, 1931 when President Herbert Hoover pushed a button to turn the lights on to the building from Washington D.C. The building opened during the middle of the Depression and the investors had a hard time filling the office spaces. Some New Yorkers dubbed the building the Empty State Building. The building did not become profitable until the 1950s.

The Empire State Building is one of the crowing achievements of 20th century architecture and construction. It is a symbol of aesthetic and engineering ingenuity and one of New York City’s most famous landmarks. The floodlights at the top of the building draw even more attention to the stately tower. Different colors light up the building against the night sky, according to the season or occasion. The stately skyscraper has also made its way into popular culture consciousness. The building may be best known for its appearance in the classic King Kong film, and has also appeared in countless other films over the years including An Affair to Remember, Annie Hall, Guys and Dolls, Manhattan, Sleepless in Seattle and When Harry Met Sally.