ash wednesday, west 16th street, nyc
ok, so maybe water towers aren't a sign of spring, but it was sunny today and i didn't have to bury my chin in my parka while i walked around--i could look up. that seemed like progress (spring forward, please).
i liked the look of these two together, along with the back stairs. i have more than a few watertower/back stairs photos, some better, others worse than this. but this was west 16th, today.
apart from admiring how they dot the cityscape, i didn't know much about the water towers or why in this 21st century they still necessarily exist. it turns out that because this town is built on shallow bedrock, with low natural water pressure, and our infrastructure is so old, we still need these tanks to get water above six stories. and there is now a regulation -- every building over 80 feet tall must have its own water reservoir.
and while modern steel models are being built, the preferred material is wood, often cedar; wood offers better insulation, and there's no fear of rusting. what's most amazing to me is that no sealants are used--based on barrel construction principles, the wood planks are held together by cables. as it's being filled, water seeps though, but as more water is added, the wood swells, eventually creating a tight seal.
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my erstwhile gym buddy, my friend sonya sklaroff has painted a beautiful water tower series; i love that i have seen the new york sky in those colors (even though today, it was plainly blue).
