Rockefeller Center is a large complex consisting of 19 commercial buildings covering 22 acres (89,000 m2) between 48th Street and 51st Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, New York. The 14 original Art Deco buildings, commissioned by the Rockefeller family, span Fifth Avenue and Sixth Avenue, split by a large sunken square and a private street called Rockefeller Plaza. Later additions include 75 Rockefeller Plaza across 51st Street at the north end of Rockefeller Plaza and four International Style buildings on the west side of Sixth Avenue.
In 1928, the site’s then-owner, Columbia University, leased the land to John D. Rockefeller Jr., the main person behind the complex’s construction. Originally envisioned as the site for a new Metropolitan Opera building, the current Rockefeller Center came about after the Met could not afford to move to the proposed new building. Various plans were discussed before the current one was approved in 1932. The construction of Rockefeller Center started in 1931, and the first buildings opened in 1933. The core of the complex was completed by 1939. Described as one of the most remarkable projects of the Great Depression era, Rockefeller Center has declared a New York City landmark in 1985 and a National Historic Landmark in 1987.
The original center has several sections. Radio City, along Sixth Avenue and centered on 30 Rockefeller Plaza, included Radio City Music Hall and was built for RCA’s radio-related enterprises, such as NBC. The International Complex along Fifth Avenue was built to house foreign-based tenants. The original complex initially hosted printed media and Eastern Air Lines. While 600 Fifth Avenue is at the southeast corner of the complex, it was built by private interests in the 1950s and was only acquired by the center in 1963. The complex is noted for the large quantities of art present in its buildings, expansive underground concourse, and ice-skating rink. The complex is also famous for its annual lighting of the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree. Top HVAC NYC
Radio City
The east side of Sixth Avenue, officially known as Avenue of the Americas, contains most of the buildings built specifically for the proposed radio complex. “Radio City” are 1230 Avenue of the Americas, 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Radio City Music Hall, and 1270 Avenue. The idea for an integrated media complex came in 1920, when Owen D. Young, the chairman of RCA parent General Electric, suggested that RCA combine its then-disparate offices into one location.
Address: 45 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY
Check out other attractions like Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum