Karli Edmondson
Posted: Thursday, August 26, 2010 11:07 am

A new 67-storey skyscraper, which will stand just two blocks away from the Empire State Building, has won the approval of New York authorities in spite of opposition.

The full city council supported the construction of the tower at a vote of 47-1.

15 Penn Plaza was opposed by Anthony Malkin who owns the Empire State Building. He argued the new tower would ruin the "uniqueness" of the city's skyline. He said: "This is not about banning tall buildings, but about preserving the very uniqueness of the New York City skyline."

Michael Bloomberg, New York's Mayor, said Manhattan should embrace new investments. He stated: "Anybody that builds a building in New York City changes its skyline. We don't have to run around to every other owner and apologize. One guy owns a building, and he'd like to have it be the only tall building. I'm sorry that's not the real world."

The Empire State Building, which relinquished it's title of the tallest building in New York City after the 9/11 attacks, was built in 1931 and stands at 1,250ft. The new skyscraper will be slightly shorter at 1,190ft tall, and is still in the planning stages.