Flushing Meadows Natatorium Olympics, but when NYC's bid was lost to London, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation proceeded to build the pool anyway. The result is an innovative building with 130-foot-high twin masts and a swooping roof form. The masts are an architectural feature extending up into the Queens skyline as well as the structural supports for the cable-stayed roof. This design provides the clear spans necessary to house an Olympic swimming pool along with an ice skating rink. The Flushing Meadows Natatorium was designed by Handel Architects in association with Kevin Hom Architects (formerly Kevin Hom +Andrew Goldman
Flushing Meadows Natatorium Architects). The 1939 and 1964 World’s Fair pavilions, which previously occupied the site, inspired the architects to design the canopy roof suspended above the natatorium and rink. The World’s Fair was a universal exposition showcasing various cultural exhibitions from all over the world. World’s fairs have become historic markers exemplifying commercial and industrial successes of various eras. The organizers of the 1939 World’s Fair boasted it was “the greatest exhibition ever held.” They referred to its vast size, the attractive symbolism of the Trylon and Perisphere, and most all for imagining a future after a decade of economic depression. Known