New York University updated details on its proposed expansion at Washington Square in hopes of quelling public criticism of plans to re-imagine two superblocks. In November, NYU abandoned efforts to build its controversial 400-ft-tall Fourth Tower, which critics claimed would have dwarfed the I.M. Pei-designed Silver Towers on the site. New plans aim to meet academic space needs without exceeding the height of the Silver Towers and without use of eminent domain.
Plans include construction of a new seven-story public elementary school topped by seven stories of student residences. It would be located at the corner of Bleecker Street and LaGuardia Place, which was the proposed site of the Fourth Tower. Other aspects include creating three acres of open space, community-based playgrounds and dog runs.