Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw was responsible for the building’s distinctive design and it is one of two extant works by him in New York City.

Like many of the two hundred works Shaw built during his career, mostly in the Midwest, it reflects his life-long interest in blending modern and traditional architectural features. Clad with mostly red brick and limestone, the 12story facade is distinguished by abstract, stylized ornament that suggests the influence of Elizabethan and Jacobean sources, the English Arts and Crafts movement, and the Vienna Secession. lthough the ground floor was substantially altered by the early 1950s, the upper stories retain most of their original materials and ornament. 

Following the sale of the building in 1928, the number of automobile-related tenants began to decline. Although the ground floor was substantially altered by the early 1950s, the upper stories retain most of their original materials and ornament.

Source:Emilio Gerra, Flickr-2009 NYCLPC Landmark Designation Report