New York Times Building Modified To Prevent Climbing

The New York Times announced it removed many of the horizontal ceramic rods that cover its headquarters in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday afternoon, a few hours after a man climbed up on the skyscraper. It was the third man to do so in the past few weeks.

The fifty-two store building is the creation of Italian architect Renzo Piano and it was inaugurated last year. After two men climbed it the same day, on June 5, the Times announced the building would not be modified in any way, but the third climber was enough to convince them that changes should be made.

As workers were unclipping the rods from their frames, Catherine Mathis, a Times spokeswoman, refused to give details about what was happening.

“We are not going to discuss the steps we have taken or may take to prevent a recurrence,” she said.

Michael Golden, the vice chairman of The New York Times Company, said he was preoccupied to find a solution that would not compromise the architecture.

“We’re going to sort this out within the design sensibility of the building,” he said, as the Times reports.