Pier 34 at Hudson River Park

Pier 34 serves as a crucial mechanical lung for the thousands of motorists driving through the Holland Tunnel every hour. Rising from the river is a monumental tower that houses massive industrial fans, which pull in fresh air from the surface and pump toxic vehicle exhaust out from deep beneath the Hudson River. When the tunnel opened in nineteen twenty-seven, this ventilation system was a revolutionary feat of engineering, as it was the first time experts successfully solved the problem of keeping a long underwater vehicular crossing safe from carbon monoxide poisoning. The architect Erling Owre designed these towers with a bold modernist aesthetic to ensure they stood out as landmarks along the waterfront, rather than just purely functional structures.