A Site for More Eyes

For those who work in construction, attending a party in a raw shell of a building is nothing extraordinary. (Celebratory gatherings known as topping-off parties, held when the top floor of a building is completed, are apparently quite common in the building biz.) But one crowd's de rigueur is another's novelty.

Such was the case at a summer cocktail party held on an open, upper floor of the new condo development Riverhouse, co-hosted by Q Magazine, on Thursday night. A mixed crowd of 400 downtown denizens and Upper East- and West-siders sipped Moët champagne and Belvedere Vodka cocktails overlooking the Hudson.Growing out of a Q Magazine photo shoot at the foot of the construction site, the event aimed to lure a tony crowd to the far southwest location. "We wanted to attract people to show off the building," said J. Christopher Daly, president of the Sheldrake Organization Inc., the firm behind the development, noting the appeal of being on the water with unobstructed sunset views and a nice breeze off the river.

Those views were, if fact, the bulk of the visuals for the event. Other minimal touches included white benches, green carpet, lightbulbs caged in yellow plastic (the ones used to light the site under normal circumstances), and, of course, a display of the renderings of the completed project.

Practical concerns (namely safety issues) played a big part in planning the event. "My construction guys kept yelling at me, because it's a little dangerous," Daly said. Orange netting surrounded the floor's perimeter, and the elimination of the rough floor's irregularities and the presence of a team of 11 construction staffers ensured the well-being of the attendees.