[NYguy]

This sounds like a skyscraper nerds dream...

The tower, which would rise midblock between East 51st and East 52nd streets, features unusual elements, including a tapered, stiltlike midsection that will prop up the height of the floors above. The highest floors will feature a multilevel observatory.

According to several people who have seen Macklowe's proposal, he has envisioned a clear, plastic or glass-enclosed slide that would protrude from the building's exterior, giving riders the vertiginous sensation of soaring high above the city.

The building's mass-damper—a large, water-filled mechanism to reduce sway in supertall towers—would be on display with an accompanying seismograph that charts the energy of the movement it muffles.

That slide would be thrilling and amazing.

But the most amazing thing about that article is this quote...

While the tower's height seems certain to trigger backlash from some development watchdogs, at least one appeared amenable to the design - a potentially encouraging initial sign for a project that must pass through a public review. An executive at the Municipal Art Society, which is based in the Look Building directly next door to the planned skyscraper, said that the construction of such spires were exactly what the 2017 rezoning of East Midtown was meant to spur.

"MAS is not anti-development and not against tall buildings," said Tara Kelly, a vice president at the organization, who said Macklowe plans to give the group a more detailed presentation on the planned tower next week. "At first blush, this tower makes sense."

Never thought I would read that.