State Gives Green Light for 5 Times Square Conversion Into 1,250 Units

A state agency has given the green light for a major office-to-residential conversion in Times Square.

The Empire State Development (ESD) board of directors, which runs the state’s economic development corporation, voted Thursday to allow the transformation of the 38-story office tower at 5 Times Square into a mixed-use development with as many as 1,250 housing units, 313 of which will be permanently affordable. There will also be more than 37,000 square feet of retail space, according to an announcement.

“We took bold action to unlock major office-to-housing conversions in New York City, and transforming 5 Times Square is a prime example of how we’re getting it done,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement.

The confirmation of the project comes after Apollo Global Management, SL Green Realty and RXR — which co-own the property through a long-term leasehold with the city — filed plans in December to convert the 1.1 million-square-foot office building into a residential and commercial property with a new address of 592 Seventh Avenue, as Commercial Observer previously reported.

In addition to residential floors, the developers’ plans included coworking spaces, a party room, tenant recreation rooms and storage units, CO reported.

“Confronting a decades-long housing crisis requires creating new housing in every neighborhood at an accelerated pace — even here at the Crossroad[s] of the World in Times Square,” Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement.

The ESD’s Thursday vote also approved an amendment to the 42nd Street Development Project — the three-decade-long push from the city to revitalize a 13-acre section of the neighborhood which wrapped up in 2010 — that will enable the conversion of 5 Times Square, which currently sits at 77 percent vacant, the announcement said.

Construction on 5 Times Square — which is expected to create approximately 1,400 construction jobs and 830 permanent direct and indirect jobs — is set to begin during the third quarter of 2025, with the first phase anticipated to be completed in 2027, according to the announcement.

“The reimagining of 5 Times Square represents a transformative approach to New York’s housing and economic challenges,” Hope Knight, president and CEO of ESD, said in a statement.

“This project harnesses Times Square’s unmatched transit connections and commercial energy while addressing our critical housing needs, building upon our ongoing efforts to adapt underutilized commercial spaces for residential use in high-opportunity areas,” Knight added.

The converted 5 Times Square will mostly comprise studio apartments, with an average monthly rent of around $2,174, according to The New York Times, which first reported the news.

The conversion project joins several other office-to-residential developments underway in Manhattan, including Metro Loft Management and David Werner Real Estate Investment’s conversion of the former Pfizer headquarters into 1,602 apartments and Yellowstone Real Estate Investment’s plans to turn the 26-story office building at 1730 Broadway into 422 residential units.

Isabelle Durso can be reached at idurso@commercialobserver.com.