Developers Break Ground at 7 Bryant Park

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Developers broke ground at 7 Bryant Park yesterday, with a consortium of public officials including Mayor Michael Bloomberg gathering to pitch the trophy office tower as a boon for the city.

Politicians are touting the planned 28-story, 470,000-square-foot steel and glass tower, slated for completion in the first quarter of 2015, as a magnet for good jobs, talent and companies.

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“The best days are still to come to Bryant Park – a place the city has worked hard to bring roaring back to life,” Mr. Bloomberg said at the ceremony, adding that the project will bring “more top-tier, cutting-edge commercial space, and more leading companies and their tax revenue to Midtown Manhattan.”

Rendering of 7 Bryant Park
Rendering of 7 Bryant Park

Turner Construction Company, the general contractor on the project, actually began construction on the building at the end of 2012 on behalf of the developers, a partnership between real estate firm Hines, Pacolet Milliken Enterprises, Inc. and institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

Located between West 39th and 40th streets, the LEED Gold Pre-certified property will feature a concave, hourglass façade and a stainless steel, disc-like canopy, 46 feet in diameter, to be suspended over its corner entrance at 40th Street.

“7 Bryant Park will create thousands of good-paying union jobs at a time when our economy needs it most,” said City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, in a statement. “I welcome this project to our city and look forward to its completion.”

Office space will feature 10-foot ceilings, full-height clear vision glass, two spacious outdoor terraces overlooking Bryant Park on the 10th floor and a potential top-floor penthouse­ with outdoor space and park views.

“We are privileged to develop a project of such distinguished design at this exceptional location, bringing a first-in-class office tower to the heart of Midtown Manhattan’s business district,” said Tommy Craig, senior managing director of Hines’ Tri-State operations, in a statement.  “This preeminent property will serve as a singular opportunity for a major tenant seeking both a significant branding presence and new technologies to create an efficient, modern and forward-thinking workplace.”

The building’s 90 feet of frontage on Avenue of the Americas is reserved for ground-floor retail space, with RKF’s Robert Futterman appointed as exclusive retail leasing agent.  CBRE (CBRE)’s Mary Ann Tighe will lead the marketing of the office space.