Real estate heavyweights Steve Roth and Jared Kushner are currently working on a plan to redesign the 1957-era aluminum-clad 666 Fifth Ave. office tower into a 1,400-foot vertical mall, hotel and residential tower, New York Post reported.
The said project would be designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Zaha Hadid, who has already prepared a plan to restack the current 41-story building into a slender, super-tall hotel and residential tower, according to Arch20.
A significant part of the tower would have unobstructed views of Central Park due to the location of the structure.
Roth’s company, Vornado Realty Corp., a partner of the office portion, controls the building’s Fifth Avenue retail condominium, which they purchased from Kushner Companies, Carlyle and Crown Acquisitions in 2012 for $710 million.
“It is an extraordinary product and it’s a super location,” Roth said who is now developing the 950-foot-tall 220 Central Park South, which has sold over $1.6 billion, including a $200 million-plus penthouse.
Previously, the company has developed 731 Lexington Ave. and the luxury residential condominium at One Beacon Court on the full-block former Alexander’s site. Apart from that, they had redevelopment plans for the Hotel Pennsylvania and other areas around Penn Station.
"Given its proximity to Bergdorf and Saks and the Fifth Avenue address, it's a no-brainer," real estate expert Faith Hope Consolo said, according to Racked referring to the project. "New York is a retail rich city and we've now proven that vertical retail works in Manhattan."
Meanwhile, Kushner Cos. owns over 100 buildings in New York and is a major builder in New Jersey. It transformed the top of Puck Building into luxury penthouses and is also redeveloping portions of Dumbo, Gowanus and Williamsburg.
If the reimagined 666 Fifth plan will continue, Vornado could combine its retail and office assets into the tower. Sources said that the Zara store would be unaffected, while office tenants like Colliers International, would need to relocate.
