Designed by Perkins Eastman, one of the world's leading architecture and design firms, the new TKTS booth echoes the top location of Father Duffy Square, a slender triangular park in Times Square. The TKTS booth combines structural integrity and innovative design, made possible by the latest advances in glass technology and the collective knowledge of the world's leading industry experts. The new TKTS booth is the most intricate and delicate glass structure ever built, a stunning urban sculpture with iconic proportions and forward-thinking ingenuity. The company's network of 13 international and domestic offices provides the global expertise needed to create elegant solutions to one of the most complex design challenges, inspired by the winners of international creative competitions
As New York's largest architectural firm, Perkins Eastman is excited about the opportunity to provide iconic permanent homes to landmark institutions in New York City. The new booth is a discount store for same-day tickets for Broadway and non-Broadway works, and is divided into two separate sections: the glass enclosure and structural supports, and the booth itself. While the structure evokes refined elegance, the intricacies of the design and construction are stunning. Carrying out construction in the congestion of Times Square is a logistical nightmare. To mitigate any potential impact on the project and speed up construction, the mechanical systems and the bodies of both were prefabricated, skid-mounted and put into place in a matter of hours. Located 450 feet below the times square, a geothermal system consisting of five wells supplies the radiant panels with a chilled or hot glycol solution and supports the air handling units inside the structure. The air handling system includes high-efficiency filtration, which improves indoor air quality for people inside the ticket booth and keeps the interior clean by reducing dust build-up on internal surfaces.
The Austrian-made triple laminated heat-tempered glass pedals are illuminated by red LED lights underneath the pedals. The pedals are staggered and spanned multiple stringers, providing lateral support for the structure. The red glass riser is removable for easy servicing of the light. At the end of these steps is a huge canopy that protects ticket buyers. 25 glass stringers, 28 feet long, spanning between glass load-bearing walls. The stringer consists of three double-layered laminated sections arranged according to the principle of "staggered splicing" to maximize strength and transparency, which minimizes stainless steel connections. The middle and north walls are constructed of 2-inch thick glass panels. The north wall panel is over 16 feet tall and 6 feet 10 inches wide.
Perkins Eastman's design was inspired by the winner of an international creative competition, Australian architecture firm Choi Ropiha. Design and construction team members also include: Dewhurst Macfarlane and Partners; Schaeffer Lewis, Engineer; DMJM Harris; d.Halle & Company; IG Innovative Glass; David Schuldiner & Co.; and Merifeld-Roberts. Williams Fellows & Architects, based in New York, designed the plaza.