THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING
The Empire State Building is a 102-story Art Deco skyscraper in New Yk City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. Its name is derived from the nickname for the state of New York. It stood as the world's tallest building for more than forty years, from its completion in 1931 until construction of the World Trade Center's North Tower was completed in 1972.[citation needed] Following the destruction of the World Trade Center in 2001, the Empire State Building again became the tallest building in New York City.
The Empire State Building has been named by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World. The building and its street floor interior are designated landmarks of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, and confirmed by the New York City Board of Estimate. It was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1986. In 2007, it was ranked number one on the List of America's Favorite Architecture according to the AIA. The building is owned and managed by W&H Properties.
1995 View from Observation decks
There is nothing else like the 86th floor observatory!
At, 1,050 feet (320 meters), reached by high speed, automatic elevators, it has both a glass-enclosed area, which is heated in winter and cooled in summer, and spacious outdoor promenades on all four sides of the Building.
High powered binoculars are available on the promenades for the convenience of visitors at a minimal cost.
Visitors with tickets purchased online will go directly to the elevator waiting area, bypassing the ticket line after passing through the security check.
*102nd Floor Observatory tickets are available for purchase at the Observatory ticket office located on the 2nd floor of the building and also on the 86th Floor
EMPIRE STATE BUILDING NIGHT VISIT 2009
Observation decks
The Empire State Building has one of the most popular outdoor observatories in the world, having been visited by over 110 million people. The 86th-floor observation deck offers impressive 360-degree views of the city. There is a second observation deck on the 102nd floor that is open to the public. It was closed in 1999, but reopened in November 2005. It is completely enclosed and much smaller than the first one; it may be closed on high-traffic days. Tourists may pay to visit the observation deck on the 86th floor and an additional amount on top of that for the 102nd floor. The line to enter the observation decks are stated on the building website "as legendary as the building itself" and for an extra fee tourists may skip to the front of the line.