Macy’s is pushing ahead with its plan to build an office tower above its iconic Herald Square store, and is now offering to put $235 million into improving the surrounding area as it seeks approval.
The company first floated the idea in 2019 of building an office tower at the flagship, releasing early renderings that showed a 1.5 million-square-foot skyscraper climbing 700 to 950 feet tall with a sky lobby.
Macy’s CEO Jeff Gennette said the company is ready to move forward with its proposal, which requires a land-use review by the city, Bloomberg News reported
Herald Square may soon see a 900-foot-tall FXCollaborative-designed skyscraper perched atop Macy’s historic Herald Square flagship store. The proposed scope of work also includes a $235 million investment in the surrounding neighborhood. The investment will fund upgrades to subway beneath Herald Square including upgraded access points, improved ADA-accessible elevators, and modernization of the existing outdoor public plaza. The project is expected to generate $269 million annually in new tax revenues for New York City and spark $4.29 billion in annual economic output. Plans for the skyscraper addition were announced in February 2020. Proposals include the construction of a 1.5-million-square-foot structure, primarily comprising office space, and a publicly accessible “Sky Lobby” with views of the surrounding neighborhood. Specific upgrades to the transit system include new entrances at Broadway and 34th Street leading into Penn Station, enhanced access points into the Herald Square station at 34th Street and at Greeley Square, as well as ADA-accessible elevators at Seventh Avenue, 35th Street, 34th Street, and Broadway. As of now, it is unclear when the project might break ground or be completed. When work begins, Macy’s Herald Square will remain open throughout all phases of construction.
If you look at at the rendering above it looks to be significantly taller than 1 Penn Plaza which stands at about 750 feet so my guess is this tower has to be much taller than 800 feet.
To be honest, I held a piece of paper up to my screen and followed the roof line to the right edge of 1 Penn Plaza. It doesn’t look significantly higher to me.