Building Security in the New York Region 1

17 March 2005

First of a series.

A good introduction to building and landscape security:

Building Security: Handbook for Architectural Planning and Design, Barbara A. Nadel, McGraw-Hill, New York, 2004.

What remains lacking in building security is experience with military-grade (terrorist) attacks and defenses, along with a deficiency in depth of field understanding of structures and landscape. For this information military documents are essential, although the best are classified.

Bear in mind that most building design professionals are trained to work with documents not facilities, and they practice at a legally-mandated distance from physical structures. Indeed, in order to avoid liability for physical failure most do get involved in construction, maintenance and security of facilities and grounds, and professional design contracts specifically exclude such responsibility. Moreover, the rise of the construction manager, who also knows construction contract documents not actual construction and facilities, has further distanced professionals from knowledge of facilities and landscape hazards and threats which can come only from direct, frequent contact with the physical environment.

Note in the Building Security handbook the fragmentation among some 120 professional groups for comprehensive building and landscape security, and there are few if any professionals who knows them all. This is true of building design and construction in which there are dozens of specialities involved, ostensibly working under the supervision of project architects and/or engineers, but by and large working independently. The gaps between professional responsibilities, as well as lack of oversight in depth, that creates vulnerabilities in building and landscape security -- a hard lesson learned from fragmented and complacent national security which led to the 9/11 disaster.

Building and landscape security would benefit from more Red Team testing by those who have no stake in concealing known-but-secret vulnerabilities. Public safety and security is put at risk by adopting the national security rationale that exposure of weakenesses would aid the enemy.

Natsios Young Architects (Cryptome sponsor) offers first in a series on red teaming building and landscape security with examples in New York City region based on the firm's experience with design and field survey of over 400 buildings and sites over 30 years. Examples from the New York region and elsewhere around the world are invited. Send to ny@natsios-young.com

Building Security in the New York Region 1

Since 9/11 Natsios Young Architects has been observing alleged upgrade of building and site security against terrorist attacks in the New York City region, some seemingly serious around governmental structures, but most ineffectively lightweight to non-existent at other facilities, accompanied by a campaign of security warnings and protection promises by officials and property owners. Here are photos taken yesterday of prominent mid-town Manhattan "anti-terrorist" protection pretense, non-existent, humorous and fake.

Alternatively, instructively, see "FM 6-20-10. Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures for the Targeting Process:"

http://atiam.train.army.mil/portal/atia/adlsc/view/public/296978-1/fm/6-20-10/toc.htm

Trump Tower

Trump International Hotel and Apartments

The Sony Building

Museum of Modern Art

Lincoln Center

Marriott Marquis Hotel, Hilton Hotel, 1177 6th Avenue Offices Pass-Through Buildings

Half-Protected Through-Building Tunnel

Now the Real News: Network Broadcast Desks

Trump Tower

This shows perhaps the only use of a stretch limo as a barrier to supplement the lightweight decorative planters -- which could be easily dislodged by a speeding attack vehicle, or best, circumvented by coming at the tower from the wide-open Tiffany's end of the open sidewalk. The main entrance leads to a multi-level atrium provided under a city program for additional floors. This vulnerable cavity is located directly below some of the most expensive apartments and offices in the world. Trump Tower (50 floors) adjoins equally tall buildings on three sides which would concentrate an exterior blast against the fragile glass facade -- an outcome of the London Center City blast in the 1990s. The entrance to Trump Tower multi-million-dollar apartments is on a side street, lightly protected with planters altthough the glass-facade is vulnerable to an exterior blast. Presumably Mr. Trump has the only long-term parking permit to block a traffic lane on jam-packed 5th Avenue. On The Apprentice banner, Mr. Trump unintentionally if macabrely jokes: "Thank You to the City of New York for Making this Hit Show Possible."

Trump International Hotel and Apartments

This high-rise luxury building (44 floors) sits on a low podium which provides protection from vehicle attack on all sides. But this attribute is offset by the easy access to the parking garage which would allow a devastating subterranean blast. The tower is free-standing and faces Central Park. This openness would help disperse the force of an exterior blast compared to the concentrated blast caused by being surrounded by other tall buildings like those around Trump Tower.

The Sony Building
This 37-story building, across the street from Trump Tower, has a vulnerable, planter-protected atrium and unprotected arcades in which an explosive blast could take out structural columns adjacent to the street. Compared to Trump Tower and many other glass-enclosed high-rises, the stone facade of Sony is excellent protection from an external blast.

Museum of Modern Art

The reconstructed museum has just reopened and its lack of security at the entrance other than for crowd-control, could be due to having a Japanese architect, feeling invulnerable, or the sky-high cost precluded cost of security, or simple belief that no harm will come to a world-class cultural institution despite its all glass front and through-block lobby. The entrance to the high-rise museum apartments (55 floors) next door is more discreet and protected, though it lacks street barriers.

Lincoln Center

Perhaps security is beefed up when thousands of New York's swellest attend evening performances, but the installation of heavy concrete barriers is vulnerable at their mid-point where a half-barrier has been located, perhaps to allow access for outdoor performances or to allow easier movement to and from long lines of limousines and taxis at performance times. Widely-placed planters at the arcade entrance present no obstacle to vehicular attack. On the side of the complex only a lightweight pick-up is used to partially block direct access to the central court of the three main performance buildings. A huge parking garage underlies the entire complex with lightly-staffed entrances on three surrounding streets.

Marriott Marquis Hotel, the Hilton Hotel and 1177 Sixth Avenue Offices Pass-Through Buildings

The high-rise Marriott Marquis Hotel (50 floors), the New York Hilton Hotel and Apartments (34 floors) and 1177 Sixth Avenue office building (49 floors), repsectively, below, exemplify the many vehicular and pedestian pass-throughs and arcades that expose high-rise structural members to explosive blasts. Some pedestrian pass-throughs are protected with bollards but those for vehiculars are usually not except at high-value targets like government and military facilities.

Half-Protected Through-Building Tunnel

This through-block pedestrian tunnel under a high-rise building (34 stories) has show-piece protective barriers at the high-visibility West 57th Street end but no protection at all at the West 56th Street end.

Now the Real News: Network Broadcast Desks

NBC, Fox News and CNN, below, top to bottom, have unprotected glass-front street level national broadcast desks, all within a block or two of each other in the densest medial concentration in the world. Nearby is a police flying squad of vehicles ready take the talking heads to safety if not the whole carcasses.