8. The 5th Avenue Apple Cube

Photo by Riff Chorusriff for Untapped Cities.

The 5th Avenue Apple Store is one of the best-known and most successful retail sites in the world. Located in the middle of GM Building Plaza, the 30-square foot glass tube has been called the “world’s smallest skyscraper.” Harry Macklowe, in partnership with Apple and Steve Jobs, developed the cube in 2003. The store itself lies under the cube and is open 24 hours of the day, every day of the year.

The tour, led by Eckersley O’Callaghan’s Gregor Horstmeyer, will examine the glass cube and spiral staircase from an engineering, fabrication, and construction perspective. Attention will be given to specific connection details that helped achieve a design of maximum transparency and simplicity in this crowded Manhattan plaza.