TF Cornerstone to Convert Manhattan Tower to Multifamily
The project is slated for completion in 2028.
TF Cornerstone will convert Tower 57, a 397,354-square-foot office tower in Manhattan, into a 350-unit multifamily property. Completion is slated for 2028, Commercial Observer reported.
The company will utilize New York’s 467-m program, which provides a partial tax exemption, and in return, 25 percent of the units will be reserved for future residents earning up to 80 percent of the area median income.
To kick off the project, TF Cornerstone signed a ground lease with the Wallace family. Cohen Brothers Realty previously held that contract; however, its plans for residential adaptive reuse had been rejected by the Wallaces, which then took control of the property last October.
Located at 135 E. 57th St., the 1988-built office property rises 32 stories in Manhattan’s Billionaires’ Row, within walking distance of Grand Central and Central Park.
The building features floorplates ranging between 5,700 and 14,000 square feet. Additionally, Tower 57’s architectural design, including 12-foot ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows, helps solve the problem of dark interiors common in office-to-residential conversions.
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Factoring in all these variables, as well as location, age and number of stories, Yardi Research Data places 135 E. 57th St.’s Conversion Feasibility Index at 88 out of 100, underlining the tower’s strong potential for residential redevelopment.
Yet, there were some Manhattan office properties—929 buildings encompassing 102.3 million square feet—scoring 90 or higher as of March, according to the data provider. The borough also had 585 buildings amounting to 180.8 million square feet with a score between 75 and 89.
Manhattan’s conversion pipeline grows
Manhattan’s office-to-multifamily pipeline grew 59 percent year-over-year as of February, reaching 8,310 units under construction, the same source shows. These projects are propelled by incentives such as the City of Yes and the 467-m tax bill.
Metro Loft Developers and David Werner Real Estate Investments are behind one such development, reimagining Pfizer’s former headquarters into a 1,602-unit community. Upon completion, it will be the biggest conversion project in the nation.
Last December, TF Cornerstone forged a $1 billion joint venture with Dune Real Estate Partners. The partnership targets conversion projects outside of Manhattan as well.
