154-540: 383 Madison Avenue , formerly known as the Bear Stearns Building , is a 755 ft (230 m), 47-story skyscraper in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City , New York, U.S. Built in 2002 for financial services firm Bear Stearns , it was designed by architect David Childs of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM). It housed Bear Stearns's world headquarters until 2008, when Bear collapsed and
308-574: A bearing capacity of 3,800 kPa (40 short ton/sq ft; 550 psi). The general contractors reinforced many of the Knapp Building's existing columns and added new footings where necessary. Additionally, a new footing was placed atop the utility tunnel. During the building's construction, the tracks under the site were closed temporarily. The contractors removed most of the track beds for storage, though one track remained in place. The contractors then installed new foundation walls. Each of
462-478: A facade of brick and terracotta . The skyscraper reaches 680 feet (210 m), with a 649-foot-tall (198 m) roof topped by a 31-foot (9.4 m) spire. The Chanin Building includes numerous setbacks to conform with the 1916 Zoning Resolution . The Chanin Building was constructed in 1927–1929 on the site of a warehouse, one of the last remaining undeveloped sites around Grand Central Terminal. Upon opening,
616-410: A string course above the third floor, paired windows in the intermediate floors, and single windows on the top stories. There were swags between the upper-story windows and a flat cornice atop the building. The roof of the Knapp Building contained a modernist two-story penthouse designed by I. M. Pei and William Lescaze in 1952. The penthouse's reception area alone occupied about one-third of
770-497: A "chain of ownership". Such a chain between Grand Central and 383 Madison Avenue no longer existed aboveground, since Penn Central had sold off the Biltmore and Roosevelt hotels, which would have connected the two sites. Travelstead and Penn Central claimed that there was a chain of ownership through the underground tracks, which Penn Central did own. City officials did not believe that underground property or railroad tracks were part of
924-465: A 70 ft (21 m) glass crown, which is illuminated at night. The glass crown consists of 30-to-70 ft-tall (9.1-to-21.3 m) panels, which can also reflect sunlight during the daytime. Childs described the crown as being made of "crinkled glass", which is laminated and rolled. About two-thirds of the building's foundation sits above two levels of Metro-North Railroad tracks just north of Grand Central Terminal , rather than being attached to
1078-521: A Saudi partner, the al-Babtain family. The developers hired SOM to design a replacement for the site. Initial plans reached up to 2,200,000 sq ft (200,000 m) and 140 stories, taller than Sears Tower , the tallest building in the world at the time. At the time, all leases at the Knapp Building were set to lapse in three years. For this project, First Boston arranged to buy at least 1.5 × 10 ^ sq ft (140,000 m) of air rights from Grand Central. By 1984, Travelstead planned to build
1232-585: A broadcast studio, and an employee fitness center. The auditorium and employee dining areas are within the lowest nine stories of the building. Floors 12 and 13 contain executive dining rooms. The offices also include multimedia rooms, electronic "data walls", and remote data centers. Each story also has three electrical closets and two telecom rooms. The interiors use 10,000 sq ft (930 m) of moldings, 37,000 sq ft (3,400 m) of terrazzo, 30,000 sq ft (2,800 m) of Maine granite, and ceilings made of medium-density fiberboard . When
1386-599: A bronze frieze depicts scenes of evolution, ranging from simple organisms to more complex animals and plants. A second terracotta frieze runs the whole length of the lower facade, presenting a dramatic collection of angular zigzags and curvy leaves. A bas-relief by Edward Trumbull , designed in the Art Deco style, wraps around the facade. The facade continues upward in relatively simple tones. The second and third floors include bronze-framed groups of triple-paned windows, with bronze Art Deco spandrel panels between
1540-500: A building trade convention's judges referred to as "America's finest bathroom". This bathroom was decorated in orange and white, and it contained etched-glass shower panels and brass fixtures. Irwin Chanin's 52nd-story offices were accessed through a set of wrought-iron gates designed by Chambellan. The gates are decorated with symbols of "the spirit of modern industry", such as cog wheels and coins. There were bronze vector grilles within
1694-457: A bulky square 45-story tower designed by Rouse & Goldstone . The brothers still had a reputation for being involved mostly in the theater industry. According to one author, when the Chanins started clearing the site in 1927, many members of the general public could not tell "whether the Chanins were builders or [...] theater-owners who had taken up building as a sideline." The warehouse itself
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#17328580707191848-407: A ceremony attended by Cayne, U.S. senator Chuck Schumer , and New York governor George Pataki . At the time, the building had 4,200 employees. The building had cost over $ 500 million to build, half of which was the cost of the equipment. As a tax-avoidance measure, the bank held a synthetic lease on the building, which was worth $ 570 million. Four of the seven trading floors were in operation when
2002-517: A chain of ownership, saying that, if such a chain was valid, air rights from Grand Central could be transferred up the Park Avenue line to the New York City border. Travelstead submitted a special-permit application and a draft environmental impact statement to the city government in 1986, but the city did not take any action on the matter for two years. Even as Travelstead continued to advocate for
2156-425: A circular elevator and a rounded staircase. The penthouse was topped by a small cylindrical tower, cantilevered from the core. Designed by David Childs of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) for defunct investment bank Bear Stearns , 383 Madison Avenue is 755 ft (230 m) tall with 47 floors. Turner Construction was the general contractor ; Jaros, Baum & Bolles and Robert Derector Associates were
2310-433: A college education or higher. The percentage of Midtown Manhattan students excelling in math rose from 61% in 2000 to 80% in 2011 and reading achievement increased from 66% to 68% during the same time period. Midtown Manhattan's rate of elementary school student absenteeism is lower than the rest of New York City. In Midtown Manhattan, 19% of elementary school students missed twenty or more days per school year , less than
2464-500: A dominant landmark in the midtown skyline upon its opening, the building had an open-air observation deck on the 54th floor. It was one of three open-air observatories in the city following World War II , the others being at 30 Rockefeller Plaza and at the Empire State Building , though there had been several other observation decks in the city prior to the war. The Chanin Building only charged 25 cents for admission, since it
2618-507: A low population of residents who are uninsured . In 2018, this population of uninsured residents was estimated to be 11%, slightly less than the citywide rate of 12%. The concentration of fine particulate matter , the deadliest type of air pollutant , in Midtown Manhattan is 0.0113 milligrams per cubic metre (1.13 × 10 oz/cu ft), more than the city average. Eleven percent of Midtown Manhattan residents are smokers , which
2772-419: A lower crime rate than in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 81.2% between 1990 and 2022. The precinct reported 8 murders, 23 rapes, 653 robberies, 502 felony assaults, 660 burglaries, 2,375 grand larcenies, and 68 grand larcenies auto in 2022. The main part of midtown Manhattan, between 34th and 59th Streets from Lexington Avenue to Eighth Avenue, is served by five fire stations of
2926-587: A major force in Midtown Manhattan's economy, and indeed the city's, as the total value of all New York City property was estimated at US$ 914.8 billion for the 2015 fiscal year . Manhattan has perennially been home to some of the nation's, as well as one of the world's, most marketable real estate, including the Time Warner Center , which had the highest-listed market value in the city in 2006 at US$ 1.1 billion, to be subsequently surpassed in October 2014 by
3080-458: A mass-transit access point covering 5,031 sq ft (467.4 m); and a "through-block connection" covering 5,706 sq ft (530.1 m). The through-block passageway connects 46th and 47th Streets along the eastern side of the building, providing access to Grand Central North from 46th Street. To comply with zoning regulations, there are also shops along the Madison Avenue side of
3234-567: A number of private languages and music centers (e.g. Berlitz , American Language Communication Center, New York Language Center, Swan Music School, and the New York Youth Symphony ). The La Scuola d'Italia Guglielmo Marconi Italian international school moved to West Midtown in 2016. The New York Public Library (NYPL) operates the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building (also the Main Branch),
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#17328580707193388-959: A program aimed at creating "a 24/7, live-work, mixed-use neighborhood" in Midtown South though the conversion of commercial and office space to residential, as part of an effort to create 20,000 new residences citywide in a decade. According to The Broadway League , shows on Broadway sold approximately US$ 1.54 billion worth of tickets in both the 2022–2023 and 2023–2024 seasons. Both seasons featured theater attendance of approximately 12.3 million each. Companies that used to have their headquarters in Midtown Manhattan include American Airlines , American Comics Group , American Overseas Airlines , Central Park Media , Eastern Air Lines , GoodTimes Entertainment , LJN , NewKidCo , Pan American World Airways , Philip Morris Companies (now Altria Group ), Trans Caribbean Airways , and Trans World Airlines . In 1997, Aer Lingus announced that it
3542-657: A reference branch at 476 Fifth Avenue. The four-story building, constructed in 1911, is known worldwide for its architecture and has several million items in its collections. There are also five circulating branches in Midtown: Two campuses of the City University of New York (CUNY)—the doctorate-granting CUNY Graduate Center and the Stella and Charles Guttman Community College —are located in Midtown, while Baruch College , also of
3696-609: A self-service and table-service restaurant opened in the basement. Through the Great Depression , leasing proceeded actively. The building's owners filed to reorganize the operations of the Lexington Avenue and 42nd Street Corporation, which operated the Chanin Building, in 1947. In subsequent years, the Chanin Building continued to attract tenants such as Guest Keen and Nettlefolds , a Howard Johnson's restaurant, and
3850-456: A seven-block area. Among those sites was 383 Madison Avenue, where Travelstead had to finalize his purchase of the air rights within a year of his State Supreme Court lawsuit being decided. In return, Penn Central and MTA proposed expanding the proposed district significantly. When the district was created that year, it covered 22 blocks. After the Supreme Court upheld the city's decision to deny
4004-460: A shorter tower of 50 to 70 stories, saying: "It's not clear to me that anybody wants to pay an $ 8, $ 10 or $ 12 premium to be in a very tall building." Subsequently, Travelstead hired Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF) to redesign the project. KPF created new plans for the building with assistance from structural engineer William LeMessurier . Travelstead proposed a tower of about 70 stories and over 1,000 ft (300 m). The building would have been one of
4158-507: A skyscraper that SL Green was constructing five blocks south. Though JPMorgan Chase considered the proposal, the two firms never entered into formal negotiations. In February 2018, JPMorgan Chase announced it would demolish 270 Park to make way for the JPMorgan Chase Tower on the same site, which would be almost twice as tall. During the project, JPMorgan moved its headquarters temporarily to 383 Madison Avenue. Deconstruction of 270 Park
4312-477: A usable floor area of 935,300 sq ft (86,890 m); including mechanical spaces, its total floor area is 1.2 × 10 ^ sq ft (110,000 m). G. Ware Travelstead , First Boston , and the al-Babtain family acquired the site in 1982 and tried to develop a building with more than 70 stories. That plan stalled after Travelstead could not acquire the required air rights from Grand Central Terminal. HRO International then proposed redeveloping
4466-467: Is 41% in Midtown Manhattan, compared to the boroughwide and citywide rates of 45% and 51% respectively. Based on this calculation, as of 2018 , Midtown Manhattan is considered to be high-income relative to the rest of the city and not gentrifying . Midtown Manhattan is patrolled by two precincts of the NYPD . Midtown North is patrolled by the 18th Precinct, located at 306 West 54th Street, while Midtown South
4620-447: Is a further setback at the 12th story, where the building shrinks to an octagon measuring 172 by 185 ft (52 by 56 m). The octagonal tower sets back again at the 18th story (numbered as floor 14), where the building rises straight to its crown. This design maximized the size of the perimeter wall, and it created eight corners for private offices on each story. The facade is made of granite with glass panels. The tower terminates at
4774-643: Is also growing in Midtown Manhattan based upon the city's strength in academic scientific research and public and commercial financial support. By mid-2014, Accelerator, a biotech investment firm, had raised more than US$ 30 million from investors , including Eli Lilly and Company , Pfizer , and Johnson & Johnson , for initial funding to create biotechnology startups at the Alexandria Center for Life Science, which encompasses more than 700,000 square feet (65,000 m ) on East 29th Street and promotes collaboration among scientists and entrepreneurs at
383 Madison Avenue - Misplaced Pages Continue
4928-525: Is at 122 East 42nd Street in the Midtown and Murray Hill neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City . It is bounded by Lexington Avenue to the east, 42nd Street to the north, and 41st Street to the south. The lot measures 125 feet (38 m) along 42nd Street, 175 feet (53 m) along 41st Street, and 197.5 feet (60.2 m) along Lexington Avenue. The building is assigned its own ZIP Code , 10168; it
5082-690: Is commonly defined to be 59th Street ; its southern boundary is less clear, and variously taken to be 34th Street , 23rd Street , or even 14th Street . Midtown spans the entire island of Manhattan along an east–west axis, bounded by the East River on its east and the Hudson River to its west. The Encyclopedia of New York City defines Midtown as extending from 34th Street to 59th Street and from 3rd Avenue to 8th Avenue. In addition to its central business district , Midtown Manhattan encompasses many neighborhoods, including Hell's Kitchen and Chelsea on
5236-546: Is considered to be the busiest transportation hub in the Western Hemisphere , servicing around 650,000 people per day. The Port Authority Bus Terminal , located at Eighth Avenue and 41st Street at the western edge of Midtown, is the city's main intercity bus terminal and the world's busiest bus station, serving 250,000 passengers on 7,000 buses each workday. The building opened in 1950 and had been designed to accommodate 60,000 daily passengers. A 2021 plan announced by
5390-507: Is diagonally across both streets. The Chanin Building was designed by Sloan & Robertson in the Art Deco style. Though the exterior contains a relatively muted design, the interior contains ample ornament. The building is 649 feet (198 m) tall to its roof, or 680 feet (210 m) tall when including its spire; it contains 56 stories. The Chanin Building's massing influenced that of other skyscrapers in New York City, including
5544-701: Is higher than the city's average of 87%. In 2018, 86% of residents described their health as "good", "very good", or "excellent", more than the city's average of 78%. For every supermarket in Midtown Manhattan, there are 11 bodegas . The nearest major hospitals are Mount Sinai West in Hell's Kitchen ; Beth Israel Medical Center in Stuyvesant Town ; the Bellevue Hospital Center and NYU Langone Medical Center in Kips Bay ; and NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital in
5698-496: Is higher than the median life expectancy of 81.2 for all New York City neighborhoods. Most inhabitants are adults: a plurality (45%) are between the ages of 25 and 44, while 22% are between 45 and 64, and 13% are 65 or older. The ratio of youth and college-aged residents was lower, at 7% and 12% respectively. As of 2017, the median household income in Community Districts 4 and 5 (including Chelsea and Hell's Kitchen )
5852-470: Is less than that of the city as a whole. The incarceration rate of 297 per 100,000 people is lower than that of the city as a whole. The 18th Precinct has a lower crime rate than it did in the 1990s, with crimes across all categories having decreased by 82.1% between 1990 and 2022. The precinct reported 1 murder, 22 rapes, 154 robberies, 185 felony assaults, 205 burglaries, 2,065 grand larcenies, and 116 grand larcenies auto in 2022. The 14th Precinct also has
6006-407: Is less than the city average of 14% of residents being smokers. In Midtown Manhattan, 10% of residents are obese , 5% are diabetic , and 18% have high blood pressure —compared to the citywide averages of 24%, 11%, and 28% respectively. In addition, 9% of children are obese, compared to the citywide average of 20%. Ninety-one percent of residents eat some fruits and vegetables every day, which
6160-496: Is located at 421 8th Avenue. The post office stopped 24-hour service in 2009 due to decreasing mail traffic. Midtown Manhattan generally has a higher rate of college-educated residents than the rest of the city as of 2018 . A majority of residents age 25 and older (78%) have a college education or higher, while 6% have less than a high school education and 17% are high school graduates or have some college education. By contrast, 64% of Manhattan residents and 43% of city residents have
6314-918: Is located in Midtown Manhattan. Haier operates its United States offices in the Haier Building at 1356 Broadway, formerly the headquarters of the Greenwich Savings Bank . Haier held the opening ceremony on March 4, 2002. Sumitomo Corporation operates its New York Office, the headquarters of the corporation's United States operations, at 600 Third Avenue, 10016 in the Murray Hill neighborhood. El Al 's North American headquarters are in Midtown. The Air France USA regional headquarters are in 125 West 55th Street in Midtown Manhattan. Hachette Book Group USA has its headquarters in 237 Park Avenue . In 1994 Alitalia considered moving its USA headquarters from Midtown to Lower Manhattan , but decided to keep
383 Madison Avenue - Misplaced Pages Continue
6468-466: Is made of granite with glass panels, and the tower is topped by a 70 ft (21 m) glass crown. To accommodate the railroad tracks under the site, the foundation and superstructure contain large sloped girders and trusses , and the elevators are placed on the west side of the building. The ground story also contains public spaces and an entrance to Grand Central Terminal . Above are seven trading floors, as well as office stories. The building has
6622-487: Is on the southwest corner of 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue , near Grand Central Terminal to the north and adjacent to 110 East 42nd Street to the west. The building is named for Irwin S. Chanin , its developer. The structure was designed in the Art Deco style by John Sloan and T. Markoe Robertson of the firm Sloan & Robertson, with the assistance of Chanin's architect Jacques Delamarre. It incorporates architectural sculpture by Rene Paul Chambellan , as well as
6776-1273: Is one of the world's leading financial centers. Midtown Manhattan is the one of the world's largest central business district , with 400 million square feet (37.2 million m ) of office space in 2018. Midtown contains the headquarters of major companies, including 4Kids Entertainment (formerly), Barnes & Noble , Bloomberg L.P. , Ernst & Young , Calvin Klein , Cantor Fitzgerald , CBS Corporation , Citigroup , Colgate-Palmolive , Cushman & Wakefield , DC Comics , Deloitte , Duane Reade , Estée Lauder Companies , Foot Locker , Frederator Studios , JPMorgan Chase , Hess Corporation , Kroll Inc. , L-3 Communications , Marsh & McLennan Companies , Marvel Entertainment , MetLife , MidOcean Partners , Morgan Stanley , Nasdaq, Inc. , NBCUniversal , The New York Times Company , NexCen Brands , Paramount Global , Pfizer , Polo Ralph Lauren , Saks Incorporated ( Saks Fifth Avenue ), The Sharper Image , Simon & Schuster , Six Flags , TBWA Worldwide , Thomson Reuters , Warner Bros. Discovery , Time Warner Cable , The Travelers Companies , and Univision Communications . The New York Institute of Finance
6930-482: Is part of 10001. Other areas between 14th and 34th Streets are covered by ZIP Codes 10003, 10009, 10010, and 10011, though these are generally not considered to be part of Midtown proper. There are also thirty-three ZIP Codes assigned to individual buildings or building complexes. The United States Postal Service operates six post offices in Midtown: The James A. Farley Station , the city's main post office,
7084-430: Is patrolled by the 14th Precinct, located at 357 West 35th Street. The precincts ranked 69th safest out of 69 patrol areas for per-capita crime in 2010. The high per-capita crime rate can be attributed to the low population of the area, as well as the high number of crimes committed against tourists. As of 2018 , with a non-fatal assault rate of 25 per 100,000 people, Midtown Manhattan's rate of violent crimes per capita
7238-409: Is the busiest transportation hub in the Western Hemisphere . Midtown Manhattan is the largest central business district in the world, and has been ranked as the densest central business district in the world in terms of employees, at 606,108 per square mile (234,020/km ). Midtown also ranks among the world's most expensive locations for real estate; Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan has commanded
7392-726: Is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan , serving as the city's primary central business district . Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Building , the Chrysler Building , the Hudson Yards Redevelopment Project , the headquarters of the United Nations , Grand Central Terminal , and Rockefeller Center , as well as several prominent tourist destinations, including Broadway , Times Square , and Koreatown . Penn Station in Midtown Manhattan
7546-590: The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad 's bus terminal, ticket offices, and waiting rooms. The office space included such tenants as the Kimberly-Clark paper company, Pan American Petroleum and Transport Company , and Fairchild Aircraft , while the Chanin company took all the space above the 50th floor. In addition, the Sterling National Bank took up much of the mezzanine space on the Lexington Avenue side, and
7700-554: The Barry Goldwater 1964 presidential campaign 's New York state headquarters. In addition, the building hosted U.S. Chess Championships . Despite this success, the Chanin Building faced some issues: its owners, along with those of the Nelson Tower and Century Apartments , were charged with real estate tax fraud in 1974. The Chanin Building's owners were estimated to have evaded $ 138,549 in real estate taxes. The Chanin Building
7854-659: The Grand Central North passageway system, which was completed in 1999. The Grand Central North entrance covers 707 ft (215 m). Above the Grand Central North entrance is a mosaic panel showing Manhattan's skyline before the World Trade Center was built. The panel is one of three that were commissioned by the Manhattan Savings Bank around 1950; they were initially installed above the entrance to
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#17328580707198008-629: The Ladies' Mile , along Fifth Avenue from 14th to 23rd Street; and the Tenderloin , from 23rd to 42nd Street and from Fifth Avenue to Seventh Avenue . Important streets and thoroughfares The border of Midtown Manhattan is nebulous and further confused by the fact that the term "Midtown Manhattan" can be used to refer either to a district or a group of neighborhoods and districts in Manhattan: Midtown Manhattan, along with Lower Manhattan ,
8162-569: The Metropolitan Life Insurance Company Tower . The Chanin Building had more floors than the Woolworth, despite being 112 feet (34 m) shorter. Though the Chanin Building was later surpassed in height by other buildings, including the adjacent 1,046-foot (319 m) Chrysler Building that opened a year later, Irwin Chanin was instead focused on attracting tenants with an "efficient, up-to-date" facility. Upon opening,
8316-616: The New York Central Building at 47th Street and Park Avenue, as well as the Grand Central Palace across 42nd Street from the present Chanin Building. By 1920, the area had become what The New York Times called "a great civic centre". One site that had yet to be redeveloped was the Manhattan Storage Warehouse, which was built in 1882 and still occupied the site of the Chanin Building. Irwin Chanin
8470-563: The New York City Fire Department (FDNY): The greater Midtown area between 14th Street and 59th Street contains seven additional fire stations. As of 2018 , preterm births and births to teenage mothers in Midtown Manhattan are lower than the city average. In Midtown Manhattan, there were 67 preterm births per 1,000 live births (compared to 87 per 1,000 citywide), and 4 births to teenage mothers per 1,000 live births (compared to 19.3 per 1,000 citywide). Midtown Manhattan has
8624-481: The New York City Subway 's Grand Central–42nd Street station . Also inside are 21 high speed passenger elevators, split up into three elevator banks, as well as one service elevator. When the building opened, the first floor, mezzanine, and second floor were used by banks and other commercial concerns. The storefronts opened both inward into the lobby and outward onto the sidewalk. The storefront windows in
8778-553: The Upper East Side . Midtown Manhattan is located within six primary ZIP Codes . West of Fifth Avenue, Midtown is located in 10018 between 34th and 41st Streets, 10036 between 41st and 48th Streets, and 10019 between 48th and 59th Streets. East of Fifth Avenue, Midtown is located in 10016 between 34th and 40th Streets, 10017 between 40th and 49th Streets, and 10022 between 49th and 59th Streets. The area southwest of Fifth Avenue and 34th Street, sometimes considered to be in Midtown,
8932-687: The Waldorf Astoria New York , which became the most expensive hotel ever sold after being purchased by the Anbang Insurance Group, based in China, for US$ 1.95 billion . In the same year, six of the top ten most expensive zip codes in the United States by median housing price were located in Manhattan, underscoring the borough's dominant position in the real estate market. When 450 Park Avenue
9086-538: The Wall and Hanover Building , 444 Madison Avenue , and 22 East 40th Street . The design was mostly the work of Rene Paul Chambellan and Jacques Delamarre . The former specialized in architectural sculpture in numerous styles, such as the Art Deco style, while the latter led the staff of the Chanin Company. The Chanin Building employs a series of setbacks that end in a "vigorous, toothed" pinnacle. Because of
9240-503: The " mise en scène for the romantic drama of American business." Paul Goldberger of The New York Times said that the Chanin Building was "one of the pre-eminent pieces of American Art Deco—a gracefully ornamented, 56-story slab". The fifth edition of the AIA Guide to New York City , published in 2010, characterized the Chanin Building as being "classic style, rather than stylish ephemera. Such distinguished self-improvement seems beyond
9394-430: The 12,000 sq ft (1,100 m) lower level. This penthouse included a 25 ft-wide (7.6 m) circular office on the lower level, used by William Zeckendorf of Webb & Knapp. Zeckendorf's office was covered in oak panels, and there was a private terrace adjacent to it. The offices of the firm's secretaries were arranged around the penthouse as well. On the upper level was a circular dining room accessed by
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#17328580707199548-594: The 14th through 17th stories (labeled as floors 10 through 13). The core of the upper stories is at the center of the site. Therefore, diagonal girders are installed within the mechanical levels to shift loads up to 42 ft (13 m) westward, between the upper and lower cores. The sloped girders measure up to 24 by 20 in (610 by 510 mm) across and can carry up to 22.2 × 10 ^ N (5,000,000 lb f ). The girders intersect at nodes, which each consist of several layers of 4 in-thick (10 cm) steel plates. Each node connects up to four girders. Above
9702-456: The 18th story, the columns at the perimeter of the octagonal tower are placed 30 ft (9.1 m) apart, creating a rigid moment frame. Each corner of the octagon has no columns. Additionally, the perimeter columns are not aligned with the steel frame below, which required the use of a double-height ring truss wall on the 18th and 19th stories to distribute loads to the lower stories. The 18th and 19th stories contain technological equipment for
9856-442: The 70-story plan, a scaled-down proposal called Scheme III was unveiled in 1987 (despite the name, there had been no Scheme II). This proposal called for a 48-story tower with a similar massing to KPF's 70-story proposal, though the pinnacle would contain multiple spires, evocative of Manhattan's older skyscrapers. The Knapp Building was empty by the late 1980s. Though Travelstead left First Boston in 1988, he continued to be involved in
10010-400: The Chanin Building was almost fully rented. The builders projected that by September 1, 1929, the building would be 70 percent rented, though the actual occupancy rate at that date was 92%. Furthermore, in 1930, The New York Times reported that 95 percent of the structure's 710,000 square feet (66,000 m ) was occupied by 9,000 workers. Initially, the lobby space was occupied by
10164-483: The Chanin Company's 52nd-story offices, contains abstract-patterned projecting ornamentation, with buttresses outside the 53rd floor. Originally, 212 artificial candles at the crown of the Chanin Building provided the equivalent of 30 million candlepower . These lights, meant to highlight the details of the building, were characteristic of the Art Deco style; on cloudless nights, they could be seen from more than 40 miles (64 km) away. They had been toned down by
10318-513: The Chanin Organization's offices. Decorated in black and silver, the auditorium had 200 seats across two levels. It also had a stage and projection booth, allowing the venue to be used for films, plays, concerts, and radio shows. In addition, tenants used the auditorium for meetings, and the space also held conferences and conventions. The floors above were originally the offices of the Chanin Organization, with an Art Deco restroom that
10472-664: The City University of New York, is located in Midtown South. Mercy College is situated at Herald Square . Pennsylvania Station and Grand Central Terminal are the two major railroad stations located in Midtown Manhattan. Penn Station serves Amtrak , NJ Transit , and the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), while Grand Central serves the Metro-North Railroad and also serves the LIRR at Grand Central Madison . Penn Station
10626-690: The Community Board's opposition, the New York City Planning Commission (CPC) also disapproved of the transfer that August. Travelstead then sued the city in the State Supreme Court. By late 1990, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) sought to buy Grand Central and build 383 Madison on First Boston's behalf, as MTA officials believed the agency could qualify for a zoning exemption. Under that plan,
10780-514: The Knapp Building. Each panel measured about 10 ft (3.0 m) wide. Before the mosaic panel was reinstalled in the Bear Stearns Building, it was restored and cleaned, and new mosaic pieces were fabricated to replace broken pieces. A new white background measuring 14 by 11 ft (4.3 by 3.4 m) was created and installed behind the skyline. There are also several recessed corner entrances totaling 1,300 sq ft (120 m);
10934-689: The MTA would have built a driveway in the tower's base, connecting to a new truck-loading dock within Grand Central. Meanwhile, the CPC had suggested creating a zoning subdistrict in November 1989, wherein Grand Central's 1.7 × 10 ^ sq ft (160,000 m) of air rights could be transferred to any building in the district. In 1991, the CPC issued a report on the proposed Grand Central Subdistrict, which would allow Penn Central to transfer air rights to any building in
11088-611: The Port Authority would spend $ 10 billion to expand capacity and modernize the facility. The New York City Subway and MTA Regional Bus Operations each operate several routes that go through Midtown. Additionally, the PATH train to New Jersey terminates at 33rd Street and Sixth Avenue in Midtown. Traffic congestion is common, especially for crosstown traffic. In 2011, a new system of traffic light control, known as "Midtown in Motion"
11242-607: The United Nations, and consulates-general accredited to the United States, in Midtown Manhattan. In addition, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office of the Republic of China ( Taiwan ) is in Midtown Manhattan. Chanin Building The Chanin Building ( / ˈ tʃ æ n ɪ n / CHAN -in ), also known as 122 East 42nd Street , is a 56-story office skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan in New York City . It
11396-433: The United States achieved completion in Midtown Manhattan, at a selling price of US$ 238 million, for a 24,000 square feet (2,200 m ) penthouse apartment overlooking Central Park at 220 Central Park South . The COVID-19 pandemic and hybrid work models have prompted consideration of commercial-to-residential conversion within the neighborhood's real estate sector. In August 2023, Mayor Eric Adams announced
11550-643: The West Side, and Murray Hill , Kips Bay , Turtle Bay , and Gramercy Park on the East Side. It is sometimes broken into "Midtown East" and "Midtown West", or north and south as in the New York City Police Department 's Midtown North and Midtown South precincts. Neighborhoods in the Midtown area include the following: Midtown is the original district in the United States to bear the name and included historical but now defunct neighborhoods such as
11704-474: The air rights to other developers; however, many potential development sites could not receive Grand Central's air rights because they were too far away. Manhattan Savings Bank was also looking to sell the Knapp Building at 383 Madison Avenue in the early 1980s. Developer G. Ware Travelstead , who led First Boston Real Estate, acquired the old building from Manhattan Savings Bank in October 1982 for $ 77.75 million. Travelstead and First Boston were joined by
11858-446: The air rights transfer in 1991, Travelstead appealed the decision. By then, office demand in New York City had decreased significantly, and 383 Madison Avenue was put on hold, along with several other large office projects citywide. First Boston removed Travelstead from the project in 1992, and the Knapp Building remained empty for over a decade. HRO International, led by British developer Howard Ronson, acquired an option in 1994 to buy
12012-450: The al-Babtain family in October 1996, hoping to develop a new tower next to its existing headquarters at 270 Park Avenue. Chase Bank ultimately canceled its plans in April 1997, supposedly after Chase CEO William B. Harrison Jr. failed to show up at a meeting with the al-Babtains. Despite this, observers expected that the planned building's proximity to Grand Central would attract a tenant before
12166-416: The bedrock itself. The columns of the building's substructure had to be arranged to avoid the tracks, which descended as much as 50 ft (15 m) beneath ground level. There is also a utility tunnel 15 ft (4.6 m) below the lower track level, which was built in the early 20th century, with unreinforced concrete walls measuring 3 to 10 in (76 to 254 mm) thick. The footing subgrade has
12320-496: The brightly illuminated hub of the Broadway Theater District , is a major center of the world's entertainment industry. Sixth Avenue also has the headquarters of three of the four major U.S. television networks . Midtown is part of Manhattan Community District 5 . It is patrolled by the 14th and 18th precincts of the New York City Police Department . Geographically, the northern boundary of Midtown Manhattan
12474-428: The building contains storefronts, with columns at each corner. Above the ground level, the corners of the building contain executive offices without any columns at the corners. This required the installation of slanted girders at each corner, as well as spandrel beams that connect opposing corners. The trading floors, which are immediately above the lobby and storefronts, contain fewer columns than usual, requiring that
12628-487: The building had opened, Bear Stearns became involved in the subprime mortgage crisis when two of its subprime hedge funds lost nearly all of their value. Following the hedge funds' collapse, Bear Stearns faced sudden bankruptcy in March 2008 during the financial crisis of 2007–2008 . JPMorgan Chase initially offered to buy Bear Stearns $ 2 a share, which would have valued the latter at $ 250 million. Real-estate experts estimated
12782-476: The building is primarily designed in the Art Deco style, the massing also exhibits design characteristics of the International Style . The lowest four stories occupy the entire land lot. Along the north elevation on 42nd Street and the south elevation on 41st Street, the entirety of the facade is set back at a uniform depth. The central bays of the eastern elevation on Lexington Avenue are set back at
12936-441: The building opened, providing space for 1,250 traders. The haberdasher Charles Tyrwhitt was among the building's original retail tenants. Due to security concerns following the attacks, Bear Stearns initially prohibited visitors from going to the upper floors unless they were accompanied by an employee. Cayne had liked the building's location because he could walk to it from his apartment 13 blocks away. In 2007, just five years after
13090-478: The building was almost fully rented, and it was the third-tallest building in New York City . Over the years, the upper floors have contained a movie theater, observation deck, and radio broadcast station, while the lower floors were used as offices and a bus terminal. The building was designated a New York City landmark in 1978, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. The building
13244-524: The building was being developed, the lowest portion of the building was to contain seven rectangular trading floors, which could accommodate 2,000 traders. As built, floors 3 through 11 served as Bear Stearns' trading floors. The trading floors originally spanned only four stories, two each for equity and fixed income departments. Each floor is 44,000 sq ft (4,100 m) and can fit 285 traders. The trading floors each contain about 23,000 sq ft (2,100 m) of usable space. The placement of
13398-494: The building was used as a transmission site for WQXR-FM starting on December 15, 1941, when it was relocated from Long Island City in Queens . In 1965, the transmitter was moved to the Empire State Building . The completion of the underground Grand Central Terminal in 1913 resulted in the rapid development of Terminal City, the area around Grand Central, as well as a corresponding increase in real-estate prices. Among these were
13552-407: The building's completion, architectural critic Matlack Price wrote in an Architectural Forum article that the building was "a splendid contribution to the architecture of all time", and that "The architects have not here compromised a fine vision either with major errors in scale or with minor trivialities." A promotional brochure, with artwork by Hugh Ferriss , described the Chanin Building as
13706-522: The building's office stories, which are ornamented with eight plaster reliefs of personified figures against a geometric pattern. Two of the reliefs symbolize achievement and success, while the other six depict physical and mental attributes by which those objectives are attained. The base of the building bears black Belgian marble around the storefront windows, which are each made of plate glass . These storefront windows correspond to two bays on upper stories, allowing for wide displays. Directly above,
13860-490: The building's value at $ 1.1 to $ 1.4 billion, so 383 Madison Avenue would have been worth five times as much as Bear Stearns itself. At the end of May 2008, JPMorgan Chase acquired Bear Stearns for $ 10 a share. Rather than sell 383 Madison Avenue, JPMorgan Chase planned to move its investment division there. The bank immediately started replacing Bear Stearns signage with a logo that resembled J.P. Morgan & Co., its predecessor investment bank. This allowed JPMorgan Chase to reduce
14014-406: The building's western elevation . To compensate for the offset core, the building's eastern elevation contains a Vierendeel truss with columns spaced every 10 ft (3.0 m). Above the double-height lobby are two trusses , each measuring 85 ft (26 m) long. These trusses support all of the upper floors while allowing the lobby to be designed as a column-free space. At ground level,
14168-407: The building. The lobby has a 28 ft-tall (8.5 m) ceiling with 24 ft-tall (7.3 m) pillars and a black security desk. The lobby has hosted Christmas parties, executive meetings, and even a wedding between employees. When it opened, the building contained 23 elevators; as of 2020, the building has 30 elevators. In addition, the building has a 450-seat auditorium, employee dining areas,
14322-401: The center and with nearby academic, medical, and research institutions. The New York City Economic Development Corporation 's Early Stage Life Sciences Funding Initiative and venture capital partners, including Celgene , General Electric Ventures, and Eli Lilly, committed a minimum of US$ 100 million to help launch 15 to 20 ventures in life sciences and biotechnology. Real estate is
14476-411: The citywide average of 20%. Additionally, 92% of high school students in Midtown Manhattan graduate on time, more than the citywide average of 75%. There are no public elementary or middle schools in Midtown. The New York City Department of Education operates the following public high schools in Midtown, serving grades 9–12: Private schools include The Beekman School , Rebecca School , and
14630-529: The completion of the JPMorgan Chase Tower on the Park Avenue site. 383 Madison Avenue is in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City . It occupies an entire city block bounded by Madison Avenue to the west, 47th Street to the north, Vanderbilt Avenue to the east, and 46th Street to the south. The land lot covers about 43,313 sq ft (4,023.9 m) with a frontage of 200.83 ft (61.21 m) on either avenue and 215.67 ft (65.74 m) on either street. Nearby buildings include
14784-401: The concrete foundation walls between the railroad tracks mandated that the trading floors be divided into bays , each measuring 42.5 ft (13.0 m) wide by 30 ft (9.1 m) long. By the 1980s, Grand Central Terminal had about 2 × 10 ^ sq ft (190,000 m) of unused air rights , which its owners (a subsidiary of the former Penn Central ) sought to sell off. Since
14938-473: The construction of hotels and apartment buildings at Tudor City , Sutton Place , and Lexington and Park Avenues. The first plan for a skyscraper at the Chanin Building site was made in 1925, when a developer proposed a 35-story skyscraper. The Chanins took over an existing 105-year leasehold for the land underneath the Manhattan Storage Warehouse in August 1926. The Chanin brothers initially planned to erect
15092-464: The construction process at any time. Cayne also oversaw many of the smaller details of the project, hiring an inspector to check all invoices, then firing the inspector because he could not collaborate with the contractors. In mid-2001, before the September 11 attacks , the bank reinstalled one of the Manhattan Savings Bank mosaics in its lobby. Despite the attacks, Bear Stearns began moving employees into
15246-483: The construction process. The erection of the frame was not without problems: in one incident, the boom of a construction derrick fell from the 20th floor, nearly splitting a truck in half, though no one was injured or killed. The steelwork was completed by that June, and as was tradition at the time, two gold rivets for the Chanin Building were driven into the frame on July 2 to mark this event. The building held its topping out ceremony in August 1928. The structure
15400-402: The developers could build "as-of-right" without additional zoning provisions, as well as 285,866 sq ft (26,557.8 m) of air rights from above the terminal. About 26 percent of the building is mechanical space, which does not count toward FAR calculations. This was allowed since 383 Madison Avenue's zoning district does not specify any height limit. Under normal zoning regulations,
15554-432: The end of the year. By mid-1997, Bear Stearns was again negotiating for the site with the al-Babtain family. That August, the bank agreed to develop a new headquarters at 383 Madison Avenue. In exchange, the mayoral administration of Rudy Giuliani agreed to give Bear Stearns up to $ 75 million in sales tax exemptions, on the condition that Bear Stearns maintain 5,800 employees and create 13,300 new jobs in New York City over
15708-414: The exterior to the core, diagonal beams would be installed at intervals of eight floors. There would have been trading floors made of concrete (corresponding to the first ten stories above ground), as well as a series of office stories capped by a shoulder truss. The top 20 stories would have been above the truss. To blend in with nearby buildings, the lower stories would have contained a granite facade, while
15862-497: The fifth story, while the outer bays continue upward without setting back. According to one writer, this made the Lexington Avenue elevation appear as a "giant medieval two-towered facade". The subsequent stories form a jagged "pyramid", with setbacks above the 17th, 30th, and 52nd stories. The Chanin Building is clad with buff brick , limestone , and terracotta . The facade also contains bronze, marble, and custom-designed colored glass ornament. There are three entrances to
16016-440: The first story, due to the presence of the tracks on the eastern portion of the site. Thus, the structural engineers placed the elevators, as well as the structural core of the lower stories, on the western portion of the site. This created large floor areas but also decreased the effectiveness of the building's lateral bracing . North and south of the lower core are 18 in-thick (46 cm) concrete shear walls , which run to
16170-423: The floors. Each grouping is separated by vertical piers made of limestone, topped by elaborate capitals . The fourth story is faced with ornate terracotta panels depicting plants, evoking the stylized forms common in the Art Deco style. There are buttresses on the fifth and sixth stories of the Lexington Avenue elevation's central bays, as well as at the corners of the 30th through 49th stories. The crown, above
16324-501: The high prices. HRO agreed in July 1994 to buy the site for $ 57 million; at the time, the tower was to be completed in 1996. HRO had intended to start clearing the site in 1995, after taking control. After First Boston postponed the sale, HRO pushed back the planned completion date to 1997. HRO ultimately never finalized its purchase. In January 1996, First Boston signed a contract to sell the land to Bear Stearns, whose lease at 245 Park Avenue
16478-549: The late twentieth century. The lights are no longer in use but remain in place. During the daytime, the building's crown appeared as a solid mass. The lobby is accessed by passageways from 42nd and 41st Streets, with a side entrance from Lexington Avenue. The lobby is decorated in a "modernistic" style themed around "The City of Opportunity". Eight bronze reliefs, designed by Chambellan, perch above ornate bronze radiator grilles. The grilles depict four categories of physical and mental life. The bronze ornamentation continues in
16632-454: The lease. Later the same year, a construction worker was killed when he was struck in the head by debris. By mid-1999, the building's structural steel was being constructed, and the building was planned to be complete in 2002. At the time, the city had a shortage of skilled construction workers. Due to the complexity of the site, Turner Construction hired 85 subcontractors (compared to 50 in comparable projects). Up to 1,500 workers were employed in
16786-412: The lobby are more ornate versions of those outside. The lobby originally contained a "palatial" bus terminal operated by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad . The terminal was outfitted with marble surfaces and also contained waiting rooms and ticket offices. Buses would pull onto a revolving turntable within the terminal, which received boarding passengers on one side and deposited alighting passengers on
16940-401: The main engineers, and Cantor Seinuk was the structural engineer. The building consists of an octagonal tower rising out of a rectangular base. The lowest nine stories occupy the entire site, measuring 212 by 200 ft (65 by 61 m). Above a setback on the ninth story, the cross section of the 10th and 11th stories is rectangular, measuring 185 by 196 ft (56 by 60 m). There
17094-544: The maximum FAR for any building on the tower's site was 15, but the developers received two bonuses of 20 percent each, bringing the FAR to 21.6. The developers had to include privately owned public space at the building's base for the first bonus, and they built a transit entrance for the second bonus. There is a set of escalators and a staircase near the northwest corner of the building, which contains an entrance to Grand Central Terminal. Work on this entrance began in 1997 as part of
17248-499: The nearby Graybar Building , Pershing Square Building , and 110 East 42nd Street, were hired to design the Chanin Building. Once the foundation had been laid, the first steel columns were installed in January 1928, with Irwin S. Chanin driving in the first rivet . The steel frame weighed an estimated 15,000 short tons (13,000 long tons) and was held together by 1.5 million rivets and 160,000 bolts. Crowds frequently stopped to observe
17402-510: The neighborhood was 64.1% (18,351) White , 4.6% (1,310) African American , 0.1% (34) Native American , 20.8% (5,942) Asian , 0% (8) Pacific Islander , 0.3% (92) from other races , and 2% (569) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race were 8.1% (2,324) of the population. The entirety of Community District 5, which comprises Midtown Manhattan, had 53,120 inhabitants as of NYC Health 's 2018 Community Health Profile, with an average life expectancy of 84.8 years. This
17556-420: The new building in October 2001. Near the building's completion, some of the wood in the crown developed mold after it was exposed to the rain. Though this problem was fixed, it led to a dispute between Cayne and his longtime associate Fred Wilpon ; due to defects in the quality of the work, Wilpon refused to authorize a $ 20 million discretionary bonus for Cayne. The crown was first illuminated on April 4, 2002, at
17710-438: The new concrete walls is 30 in (760 mm) thick and can carry loads of 55,160 kPa (576.0 short ton/sq ft; 8,000 psi). Steel grillages , measuring 4 to 17 ft (1.2 to 5.2 m) long by 18 ft (5.5 m) wide, are placed under the walls, distributing the loads to the bedrock. The superstructure of the first 18 stories is placed on an orthogonal grid. The elevator pits could not descend below
17864-461: The new plans as a symbol of the city's economic recovery. HRO intended for the building to be a speculative development . Ronson reportedly discussed with J.P. Morgan & Co. (a predecessor to JPMorgan Chase) and Swiss Re about anchoring the building. After half of the building was pre-leased, Ronson planned to apply for a $ 100 million construction loan. Ronson sought to charge rents of $ 50/sq ft ($ 540/m), but many prospective tenants balked at
18018-476: The next fifty years. The bank planned to move its headquarters and most of its 4,500 employees to the new building. The skyscraper was to have large trading floors to accommodate those functions. The developers acquired 285,800 sq ft (26,550 m) of air rights from Grand Central; they were the first developers to use air rights from the Grand Central subdistrict, which had just been created. The al-Babtain family agreed to hire Sterling Equities to develop
18172-427: The office. Chanin also decorated his offices with wrought brass and iron; etched glass; and several types of marbles, woods, and leathers. His reception room had complementary furniture and wall paneling, as well as recessed ceiling lamps. The reception room also contains illuminated panels depicting areas in which Chanin was an active developer, such as bridges, skyscrapers, Broadway theaters , and rapid transit. As
18326-701: The offices where they were at the last minute. Global Infrastructure Partners has an office in Midtown Manhattan. Silicon Alley , the common metonym for New York City's high tech sector, is based in Midtown South , specifically the Flatiron District . Prominent Silicon Alley companies in Midtown include AppNexus , Blue Apron , Gilt , Betterment , Oscar , SoFi , Rent the Runway , Warby Parker , and WeWork . The technology sector has been expanding across Midtown Manhattan since 2010. The biotechnology sector
18480-590: The old New York Mercantile Library and 400 Madison Avenue to the northwest; 270 Park Avenue to the north; 277 Park Avenue to the northeast; 245 Park Avenue to the east; the Helmsley Building and MetLife Building to the southeast; and the Roosevelt Hotel to the south. By the late 19th century, the Park Avenue railroad line ran in an open-cut in the middle of Park Avenue , one block east. The line
18634-409: The option on the air rights to the al-Babtains for a nominal fee , and the family stopped communicating with him. Afterward, Bear Stearns negotiated for space at another building instead. Ronson hoped to attract Morgan Guaranty to 383 Madison, but the company indicated in mid-1996 that it was no longer considering that site. Chase Bank , another predecessor of JPMorgan Chase, entered negotiations with
18788-463: The other. The coach terminal closed after the railroad discontinued all passenger service north of Baltimore in 1958. The third through 48th floors consist almost entirely of leasable office space, while the 49th and 50th floors contain the Chanin brothers' boardroom and offices. When completed, the 50th floor also had a small movie theater (known as the Chanin Auditorium), later converted into
18942-545: The pinnacles of the Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building , "this beacon is not dainty and is very bright." Herbert Muschamp of The New York Times , in describing SOM's work, said: "Skidmore specializes in period pastiche versions of Art Deco skyscrapers, like the new Bear, Stearns building in Midtown Manhattan." In 2010, the New York Daily News ranked 383 Madison as one of New York City's ten ugliest buildings. Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan
19096-465: The project. He sued the city in early 1988, and a State Supreme Court judge ruled that the city had to decide within 30 days on whether to allow the plans to proceed. A six-month public review process for the planned building began in April 1989. Travelstead encountered opposition in trying to transfer the air rights. Manhattan Community Board 5 voted unanimously to deny the transfer in June 1989. Following
19250-453: The property from First Boston. HRO planned a 24-story, $ 200 million building named Park Avenue Place, with 800,000 sq ft (74,000 m) of space. These included column-less spaces for trading floors and workstations; high ceilings; and an electrical supply that was twice that of older buildings. HRO planned to reuse the old building's foundations and also solicited tax breaks from the city government. The New York Times characterized
19404-463: The residential structures on Park Avenue during the 1950s and 1960s. The original building at 383 Madison Avenue was the Knapp Building , an office structure designed by Cross & Cross and built in 1923 for real estate firm Webb & Knapp . The limestone structure was 14 stories tall and contained 505,000 sq ft (46,900 m). The northern half of the building was erected first; it
19558-430: The site, but al-Babtain acquired full ownership in 1995 before HRO could obtain the lot. Bear Stearns agreed to develop the site in 1997 after several potential tenants declined to lease space there. Work started in 1999 and was completed in early 2002. When demolition of JPMorgan Chase's world headquarters at 270 Park Avenue commenced in 2019, the bank's headquarters was temporarily relocated to 383 Madison Avenue, pending
19712-460: The skyscraper for Bear Stearns, although Hines Interests ended up managing the development process. The demolition of the old Knapp Building began in May 1998, with the old Manhattan Savings Bank mosaics being removed from that building's facade for preservation. Bear Stearns signed a 99-year lease for the land beneath the building in August 1998. Bear Stearns would control the building for the duration of
19866-456: The space it occupied at other buildings. By 2014, JPMorgan Chase was looking to develop a new corporate campus in the Hudson Yards development, relocating from 270 Park and 383 Madison. The bank dropped its plans after failing to secure tax exemptions from the city and state governments. In 2016, SL Green Realty proposed that JPMorgan Chase swap 270 Park and 383 Madison with One Vanderbilt ,
20020-404: The tallest in New York City; it would have contained a floor area of 1,400,000 sq ft (130,000 m). The office floors were to be arranged in a cross, with columns in the building's core to avoid underground tracks at Grand Central Terminal. The below-ground structure would have been made of steel because a concrete foundation could not fit between the tracks. To redistribute loads from
20174-479: The tenants. In total, the superstructure has 18,000 short tons (16,000 long tons) of steel. The building has a total floor area of 1.2 × 10 ^ sq ft (110,000 m). The usable floor area covers only 935,300 sq ft (86,890 m), giving it a floor area ratio (FAR) of 21.6. At the time of the building's planning, this was the maximum FAR allowed in any building in New York City. This includes 650,000 sq ft (60,000 m) of space that
20328-468: The terminal was a city landmark, its owners could not use the air rights to expand the terminal. In Penn Central Transportation Co. v. New York City (1978), the United States Supreme Court had ruled that the city government had the right to designate the terminal as a landmark, even if the designation prevented Penn Central from using its air rights. Afterward, Penn Central planned to sell
20482-630: The upper stories be supported by complex trusses. On the trading floors, the easternmost 60 ft (18 m) and the westernmost 30 ft (9.1 m) of each story do not have columns. HVAC and mechanical equipment are placed on several intermediate stories, since there is not enough room in the basement. The building was designed to run for four days without exterior power through four 7,500 kW (10,100 hp) emergency electrical generators, its own steam turbines, and tanks that can store 109,000 US gal (410,000 L; 91,000 imp gal) of emergency water. The mechanical spaces are on
20636-417: The upper stories would have been made of metal and glass. The Royal Institute of British Architects lauded the proposal as one of the ten best designs in the 20th century. Architecture writer Ada Louise Huxtable derided it as "a ski-slide tower of Brobdignagian scale and bulk in what might be called Mesopotamian-Motorola style". By 1986, Travelstead planned to start work on its tower the next year. The site
20790-414: The varying widths of the surrounding streets, three separate groups of setbacks were mandated for each elevation of the facade as per the 1916 Zoning Resolution . This led critic Matlack Price to write the Chanin Building was "design[ed] in masses rather than in facades". The Chanin Building's massing was inspired by that of Eliel Saarinen's unbuilt proposal for Chicago's Tribune Tower . Though
20944-453: The waves on the floor, mailboxes, and elevator doors, extending the general Art Deco style from the outside inward. The lobby also contains other ornamentation such as terrazzo floors with bronze inlays, as well as tan marble walls. Originally, the floors had lozenge-shaped panels, but heavy pedestrian traffic wore down these panels over the years. Marble stairs lead to the basement where there are connections to Grand Central Terminal and
21098-509: The world's highest retail rents and is the most expensive shopping street in the world. Midtown Manhattan is the country's largest commercial, entertainment , and media center, and is also a growing financial and fintech center. Many of New York City's skyscrapers , including its tallest hotels and apartment towers , are located in Midtown Manhattan. The neighborhood hosts commuters and residents working in its offices, hotels, and retail establishments, tourists and students. Times Square,
21252-403: Was $ 101,981, though the median income in Midtown individually was $ 120,854. In 2018, an estimated 11% of Midtown Manhattan residents lived in poverty, compared to 14% in all of Manhattan and 20% in all of New York City. One in twenty residents (5%) were unemployed, compared to 7% in Manhattan and 9% in New York City. Rent burden, or the percentage of residents who have difficulty paying their rent,
21406-571: Was an American architect and real estate developer who designed several Art Deco towers and Broadway theaters. He and his brother Henry I. Chanin designed their first Manhattan buildings in 1924. They then built and operated a number of theaters and other structures related to the entertainment industry, including the Roxy Theatre and the Hotel Lincoln . Chanin believed the area around Grand Central Terminal had potential for growth because of
21560-503: Was announced, with the aim of reducing traffic congestion. Approximately 750,000 vehicles enter Midtown Manhattan on a fall business day. According to the 2011 Traffic Data Report for New York State, 777,527 vehicles a day went through select toll facilities into Manhattan. The New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division , First Department, is located at the Appellate Division Courthouse at 25th Street and Madison Avenue
21714-602: Was completed in 1900 by architect James Brown Lord , who used a third of the construction budget to decorate the building with statues and murals. The Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration operates its New York office on the 22nd floor at 135 West 50th Street . Several countries, including Algeria , Argentina , The Bahamas , China , Costa Rica , Germany , Ireland , Israel , Jamaica , Japan , Luxembourg , Mexico , Morocco , Saudi Arabia , Singapore , South Africa , South Korea , United Kingdom , and Ukraine , have Permanent Missions accredited to
21868-541: Was completed in mid-2021, and as of 2022 the new building was estimated to be completed in 2025. The building's design generally received mixed to negative reviews. Joseph Giovannini of New York said, "This is a building you wouldn't want to get anywhere near at a cocktail party. Dressed nearly head to toe in dour granite, and geometrically proper, it's stiff to the point of pass-out boredom." Giovannini summarized he building as being "lugubrious" and "predictable". Architectural critic Carter B. Horsley wrote that, compared to
22022-639: Was covered with the construction of Grand Central Terminal in the early 20th century, spurring development in the surrounding area, Terminal City . Among the developments were office buildings such as the Chanin Building , Bowery Savings Bank Building , and New York Central Building , as well as hotels like the Biltmore, Commodore , Waldorf Astoria , and Summit. By 1920, the area had become what The New York Times called "a great civic centre". Largely commercial International Style skyscrapers replaced many of
22176-518: Was declared complete on January 23, 1929, exactly one year after the first rivet had been driven into the building. It opened January 29 at an estimated cost of $ 12-14 million, with an informal opening attended by mayor Jimmy Walker . The Chanin Building thus became the first major skyscraper in Terminal City, and the third-tallest building in New York City behind the Woolworth Building and
22330-597: Was designated a city landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1978, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. By the 1990s, the building was owned by a syndicate headed by Stanley Stahl . Modern tenants include Apple Bank , of which Stahl was the only stockholder, as well as the International Rescue Committee , which had moved to the building in 1994. Shortly after
22484-535: Was difficult to clear, since its 5-foot-thick (1.5 m) walls had been designed to protect against "burglary, fire and assault". The process entailed clearing away 7,500 truck loads of brick, 1,000 of scrap metal, and 3,500 of loose earth. The official plans for the Chanin Building were filed with the New York City Department of Buildings in June 1927, at which point 60 percent of the warehouse had been demolished. Sloan & Robertson, architects of
22638-439: Was expiring. Ronson disputed the sale, claiming that he had already spent $ 8 to $ 10 million on the site. The next month, the al-Babtain family announced it would be buying First Boston's stake, taking full control of the site for $ 55 million. Bear Stearns CEO James Cayne had bought an option for $ 10 million worth of air rights from the site, leading the al-Babtains' lawyers to accuse Cayne of tortious interference . Cayne then sold
22792-516: Was moving its North American headquarters from Midtown to Melville , New York , in Suffolk County on Long Island . Based on data from the 2010 United States Census , the population of Midtown Manhattan was 28,630, a change of 2,823 (9.9%) from the 25,807 counted in 2000 . Covering an area of 692.81 acres (280.37 ha), the neighborhood had a population density of 41.3 inhabitants per acre (26,400/sq mi; 10,200/km ). The racial makeup of
22946-427: Was not as well known as the other two buildings with outdoor observatories. Over the years, several people have committed suicide by jumping off the 54th floor observation deck. In later years, other nearby buildings surpassed the Chanin Building in height (including the Chrysler Building , diagonally across Lexington Avenue and 42nd Street), and so the observation deck was closed in the mid-20th century. The top of
23100-601: Was one of 41 buildings in Manhattan that had their own ZIP Codes as of 2019 . The Chanin Building is part of the Terminal City area around Grand Central Terminal ; directly to the west are 110 East 42nd Street and the Pershing Square Building . The Grand Hyatt New York hotel is located across 42nd Street, while the Socony–Mobil Building is located across Lexington Avenue and the Chrysler Building
23254-506: Was only zoned for 650,000 sq ft (60,000 m) and Travelstead needed to purchase 800,000 sq ft (74,000 m) of air rights from Grand Central Terminal to attain his desired square footage. Without a zoning subdistrict across which air rights could be distributed, the terminal's air rights could typically only be transferred to adjacent sites with one exception. Penn Central could transfer air rights from Grand Central through adjacent buildings that it also owned, thus forming
23408-454: Was quickly rented, prompting Webb and Knapp to build the southern half in the same style. The Knapp Building then served as the headquarters of the Manhattan Savings Bank. By the 1980s, the building also contained offices for advertising firm BBDO and CBS Educational and Professional Publishing. The building occupied the entire block. The facade resembled a simplified classical palazzo . There were bronze-framed display windows at ground level,
23562-408: Was sold on July 2, 2007, for US$ 510 million, about US$ 1,589 per square foot (US$ 17,104/m ), it broke the barely month-old record for an American office building of US$ 1,476 per square foot (US$ 15,887/m ) based on the sale of 660 Madison Avenue . In 2014, Manhattan was home to six of the top ten zip codes in the United States by median housing price. In 2019, the most expensive home sale ever in
23716-468: Was sold to JPMorgan Chase . Since then, JPMorgan's investment banking division has occupied the building. 383 Madison Avenue occupies an entire city block bounded by Madison Avenue , 47th Street , Vanderbilt Avenue and 46th Street. The eastern two-thirds of the building is erected over two stories of tracks leading to the nearby Grand Central Terminal . Above the rectangular base, there are several setbacks tapering to an octagonal tower. The facade
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