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The Empire State Building is about to get a big facelift
Photo credit: The Empire State Building is illuminated with cherry blossom colors April 29, 2012. (Getty)
The Empire State Building is about to get a makeover.
The iconic lights on the city's second-tallest building will soon get a complete overhaul, with all 400 lamps being replaced by 1,200 high-efficiency LED lights, The New York Times reported Monday.
The new lights will save the building an estimated 75% on its annual electricity costs, and the move to new lights - which cost several million dollars to install - will pay for itself in six years, the Times reported.
"What we'll be able to do by lighting the mast is incredibly cool," Anthony E. Malkin, president of Malkin Holdings, which partly owns the building, told the Times.
He added: "We'll maintain the traditional iconic international recognition that the Empire State Building has."
The new lights will offer a completely different view from the current setup, as they will be able to be changed immediately to a nearly limitless variety of color schemes and designs. The lights will last six times longer than the existing lamps, the Times reported.
The LED switch will reportedly be announced Wednesday. Representatives for the building didn't return calls for comment.
The 81-year-old skyscraper, which recently lost the title of city's tallest building to One World Trade Center, is undergoing a massive, three-year makeover designed to cut energy use, modernize office suites and attract tenants willing to shoulder higher rents.
(with Reuters)
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