Verizon

You won't find this in any tour books - in fact I doubt find this in any books at all. There is also virtually nothing online. There is very little reason for most visitors or NYC residents to be in this immediate area across from 1 Police Plaza, circumscribed by various thoroughfares and ramps for the Brooklyn Bridge and FDR drive. The streets around it are relatively unknown, even to residents - Pearl Street, Madison Street, Avenue of the Finest and St. James Place. Why would I want to blog this and bore you, the reader? For one, the hulking monolith at 375 Pearl Street built in 1976 by Rose, Beaton, & Rose, has always intrigued me. And it has achieved a few distinctions - I have seen it on lists of the ugliest buildings in Manhattan. The huge illuminated Verizon logo with its swoosh, visible for miles around from Brooklyn, parts of Manhattan and other eastern approaches, is a point of contention with many who liken it to an enormous billboard that ruins views. The sign was installed in 2002, replacing the old bell logo from Bell Atlantic. Verizon was formed in 2000, the product of various mergers and acquisitions with GTE, Bell and NYNEX. Efforts have been made to have the sign removed, but apparently it complies with the law. Frequently described as windowless, the building does appear to be so, however, closer examination reveals that the distinctive dark vertical striations along its facade are actually created by columns of glass windows. The building was designed to be a switching hub but there was difficulty in bringing the lines into the building, so it is used for administrative functions. For the wordsmiths among readers - Verizon is a portmanteau of the words veritas (the Roman goddess of truth) and horizon ...