What is quality architectural and urban design?
Quality is embodied in the immediately adjacent buildings of the original 1975 Roosevelt Island housing development. These buildings were developed under the guidelines of a master plan developed by Philip Johnson, unquestionably one of the leaders of American architecture in the twentieth century. The buildings in the plan by Johnson were in turn developed by some of the most distinguished architects of the day. The significance of the Johnson plan was that it set high standards of architectural and urban design that were not simply geared to the formulas and priorities of developers. Johnson did not have the conflict of interest of working directly for the developers. The Johnson plan prescribed the building massing, the architectural articulation of circulation elements such as stairs and elevator banks in the building design, and many other details that made the original Roosevelt Island buildings so successful. Johnson could focus on issues of urban design without being constraine
