Stella Tower Crown Restoration

JDS documents the painstaking process of recreating the Art Deco ornament that completes Stella Tower’s conversion

When JDS Construction began its conversion of the 1927 Stella Tower at 425 West 50th Street, the team uncovered original drawings that indicated the presence of an ornamental “crown” at the top of the building. Though it had been removed, and the remaining support structure bricked up since the 1950s, with some careful excavation, the team was able to restore the crown, making Ralph Walker’s soaring design complete once again. Here, project director Tom Alaimo describes the painstaking process of recreating the Art Deco ornament that makes Stella Tower’s conversion emblematic of JDS Development’s approach to NYC Real Estate Development.