NYC Department of Design & Construction, for the
City Center 55th Street Theater Foundation
New York, New York
Helpern Architects was entrusted with the prestigious project to save the leaking dome of City Center, an important civic structure. Built in 1924 as a temple for the Shriners, the city-owned midtown Manhattan theater is now often used by dance and theater companies.
The landmarked building’s distinctive “Modified Arabian” architectural style displays various Moorish and Egyptian mosque elements. The best-known feature, though, is the theater’s 104-ft-wide by 50-ft-high dome over the main auditorium. [The quirky design was by Architect Harry P. Knowles, completed by Clinton & Russell.] The steel-framed concrete dome was covered by thousands of Ludowici tiles that had begun to leak. We surveyed the dome, evaluated its condition, made recommendations for its repair and restoration, and then undertook the repairs. The project took four years to complete.
Our approach was to remove the existing tiles, replace the under-roofing materials with a modern waterproof roof system, and reconstruct the tile roof using 28,475 new, graduated [getting narrower toward the top] clay tiles. To give the appearance of the original tiles, we specified a random gradation of colors from light red to ochre.
The underlying waterproof membrane, critical for porous tile roofs, is 14,000 square feet of eighth-inch-thick liquid fiberglass resin. The tiles are fastened in 469 rows to a spider web of 23,300 linear feet of steel track.
Awed by the project, the March 25, 2005 NY Times Metro section opened with a feature article titled, “Fixing a Leaky Roof, and What a Roof!” that you can read here.
If domes are your thing, learn about our restoration of the remarkable dome of Columbia University’s Low Library, here.
