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Crown Building (Manhattan): Difference between revisions

Coordinates: 40°45′46″N 73°58′28″W / 40.762868°N 73.974554°W / 40.762868; -73.974554
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{{short description|Commercial building in Manhattan, New York}}
{{Short description|Mixed-use building in Manhattan, New York}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2024}}
{{Infobox building
{{Infobox building
| name = Crown Building
| name = Crown Building
| native_name =
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
| native_name_lang =
| former_names = Heckscher Building
| former_names = Heckscher Building, Genesco Building
| alternate_names =
| alternate_names = 730 Fifth Avenue
| status =
| status =
| image = Crown Building New York.jpg
| image = Crown Building New York.jpg
| image_alt =
| image_alt = The Crown Building as seen from the north in 2007
| image_size =
| image_size =
| location =
| caption = View of the Crown Building, 2007
| address = 730 Fifth Avenue
| location =
| location_country = United States
| address = 730 Fifth Avenue
| location_country = United States
| coordinates = {{coord|40.762868|-73.974554|display=it}}
| coordinates = {{coord|40.762868|-73.974554|display=it}}
| groundbreaking_date =
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| start_date =
| completion_date = 1921
| start_date = 1920
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| completion_date = 1921
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| demolition_date = <!-- or |destruction_date = -->
| demolition_date = <!-- or |destruction_date = -->
| architect =
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| architect = [[Charles D. Wetmore]]
| landlord = [[Vladislav Doronin]] (hotel), [[General Growth Properties]] and [[Brookfield Properties]] (retail)
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| architectural_style = [[French Renaissance architecture|French Renaissance]]
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| ren_cost = $1.45 billion
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| renovation_date = 2019–2022
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| height = {{Cvt|416|ft}}
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| hotel_chain = Aman
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| location_city = [[New York City]]
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| embedded = {{Designation list
| embed = yes
| designation1 = NYCL
| designation1_date = May 14, 2024<ref name="NYCL p. 1"/>
| designation1_number = 2678<ref name="NYCL p. 1">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=1}}</ref>
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The '''Crown Building''' is a historic 26-story, 416 foot mixed-use skyscraper at the southwest corner of [[57th Street (Manhattan)|57th Street]] and [[Fifth Avenue]] in the [[Midtown Manhattan]] neighborhood of [[New York City]]. The lower levels contain retail space, while the upper levels formerly housed offices, but were converted to the luxury '''Aman New York''' hotel and residences in 2022. Constructed as the '''Heckscher Building''' in 1921, the structure was designed by [[Warren and Wetmore]]. It was historically one of the most expensive retail and office space locations in the United States and the hotel has the highest base rate of any hotel in the city.
The '''Crown Building''' (formerly the '''Heckscher Building''' and '''Genesco Building''') is a 25-story, {{Convert|adj=mid|416|ft|m|-tall}} building at 730 [[Fifth Avenue]], on the southwest corner with [[57th Street (Manhattan)|57th Street]], in the [[Midtown Manhattan]] neighborhood of [[New York City]]. Constructed between 1920 and 1922 for the philanthropist [[August Heckscher]], the structure was designed by [[Warren and Wetmore]] as an office building. The lower levels contain retail space, while the upper levels were converted to the luxury '''Aman New York''' hotel and residences in 2022. The structure is a [[New York City designated landmark]].

The building's stepped, setback design was regulated by the [[1916 Zoning Resolution]]. Its exterior includes [[French Renaissance architecture|French Renaissance]] details and is divided into a nine-story base, a twelve-story shaft, and four-story octagonal pyramidal roof. The facade is largely made of limestone, with brick and [[Terracotta (architectural)|terracotta]] detailing, along with {{convert|1,363|oz}} of gold leaf. The lower stories include retail stores, while the upper stories originally contained offices before they were redesigned by Jean-Michel Gathy in the 2020s. The upper stories are split up into 22 [[condominium]] residences, 83 hotel rooms, and amenity spaces such as a spa and three restaurants. Over the years, the building has received commentary for its general shape and for the design of its roof.

August Heckscher acquired land for the building from 1913 to 1918. After the Heckscher Building was completed, it housed several businesses and art galleries, and it was also the [[Museum of Modern Art]]'s first home. Heckscher lost the building to [[foreclosure]] in 1938. Charles F. Noyes and Joseph Durst bought the building in 1946 before reselling it four years later. It was renamed the '''Genesco Building''' in 1964 and sold yet again in 1966. The structure was purchased in 1981 by Philippine dictator [[Ferdinand E. Marcos]], and the name was changed to the Crown Building in 1983, after its crown-like look when illuminated at night. The Crown Building was the focus of various lawsuits after the [[People Power Revolution|fall of the Marcos regime]], and in 1991, [[Bernard Spitzer]] and partners Marvin Winter and Jerome L. Greene acquired the building. In 2015, [[Michael Shvo]] and Russian billionaire [[Vladislav Doronin]] purchased the office portion of the building. OKO Group took over the upper stories, which were converted to hotel and residential use from 2019 to 2022.

== Site ==
The Crown Building is at 730 Fifth Avenue, at the southwest corner of [[Fifth Avenue]] and [[57th Street (Manhattan)|57th Street]], in the [[Midtown Manhattan]] neighborhood of [[New York City]].<ref name="AIA5 p. 337">{{harvnb|White|Willensky|Leadon|2010|ps=.|p=337}}</ref> The [[land lot]] is composed of a rectangular site at Fifth Avenue and 57th Street, as well as a connected site at 56th Street. The lot covers {{convert|26,360|ft2}}, with a [[frontage]] of {{convert|100|ft}} on Fifth Avenue and a depth of {{Convert|162.5|ft}} along 57th Street.<ref name="ZoLa">{{Cite web |title=730 5 Avenue, 10019 |url=https://zola.planning.nyc.gov/l/lot/1/1272/7503 |access-date=March 20, 2020 |publisher=[[New York City Department of City Planning]]}}{{Cbignore}}</ref> On the same block is the townhouse at [[17 West 56th Street]]. The [[712 Fifth Avenue]] skyscraper and the townhouses at [[10 West 56th Street|10]] and [[12 West 56th Street]] are on the block to the south, while the [[Bergdorf Goodman Building]] and [[Solow Building]] are immediately across 57th Street to the north. Other nearby buildings include [[3 East 57th Street]] to the northwest; the [[Tiffany & Co. flagship store]], [[Trump Tower]], and [[590 Madison Avenue]] to the east; and the [[Corning Glass Building]] to the southeast.<ref name="ZoLa" /><ref>{{harvnb|White|Willensky|Leadon|2010|ps=.|p=326}}</ref>

Fifth Avenue between [[42nd Street (Manhattan)|42nd Street]] and [[Central Park South]] (59th Street) was relatively undeveloped through the late 19th century.<ref name="NYCL-2327">{{cite web |date=June 23, 2009 |title=John Peirce Residence |url=http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/2327.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210610192640/http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/2327.pdf |archive-date=June 10, 2021 |access-date=April 28, 2021 |publisher=[[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]] |page=2 |url-status=live }}</ref> The surrounding area was once part of the common lands of the city of New York.<ref>{{cite web |last=Stokes |first=Isaac Newton Phelps |year=1915 |title=The iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498–1909 : compiled from original sources and illustrated by photo-intaglio reproductions of important maps, plans, views, and documents in public and private collections |url=https://archive.org/details/iconographyofman06stok |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120415060518/http://archive.org:80/details/iconographyofman06stok |archive-date=April 15, 2012 |page=67 |via=Internet Archive}}</ref> The [[Commissioners' Plan of 1811]] established Manhattan's [[Grid plan|street grid]] with lots measuring {{convert|100|ft}} deep and {{convert|25|ft}} wide.<ref>{{cite enc-nyc2|page=558}}</ref> Upscale residences were constructed around Fifth Avenue following the [[American Civil War]].<ref name="NYCL-2327" /><ref>{{harvnb|Stern|Mellins|Fishman|1999|ps=.|p=578}}</ref> These included two residences on Fifth Avenue and 57th Street: a mansion belonging to [[Frederic W. Stevens]] at the southwest corner, and the [[Cornelius Vanderbilt II House]] on the northwest corner.<ref name="NYCL p. 8">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=8}}</ref> By the 1900s, that section of Fifth Avenue was becoming a commercial area,<ref>{{cite magazine |date=April 6, 1907 |title=Mr. Edward Harriman... |url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_039_15.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116152948/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/pdf_files/ldpd_7031148_039_15.pdf |archive-date=January 16, 2021 |access-date=June 9, 2020 |journal=The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide |pages=296 |via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]] |volume=79 |number=2038}}</ref> and stores were also developed on 57th Street in the 1910s.<ref>{{cite news |date=March 28, 1915 |title=A Brilliant Future for 57th Street: to Be Great Store Centre Shopping Zone of the Highest Class Being Formed in Fifty-seventh Street—No Other Crosstown Thorough-fare in Manhattan Has More Promising Outlook |work=New-York Tribune |page=C1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|575358267}}}}</ref> After about 1921, art galleries started to supplant residences on 57th Street,<ref>{{cite news |date=January 13, 1929 |title='Shanty Land' Now Site of $125,000,000 New Construction: Skyscrapers and Shops Have Replaced Homes of 5,000 Squatters in 57th Street |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=D1 |id={{ProQuest|1111941344}}}}</ref> and other art galleries developed on the street in general.<ref>{{harvnb|Stern|Gilmartin|Mellins|1987|ps=.|p=357}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Russell |first=John |date=April 24, 1988 |title=Three Worlds of 57th Street; the World of Art |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/04/24/magazine/three-worlds-of-57th-street-the-world-of-art.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128060606/https://www.nytimes.com/1988/04/24/magazine/three-worlds-of-57th-street-the-world-of-art.html |archive-date=November 28, 2020 |access-date=November 20, 2020 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

The Crown Building is also near a former artistic hub around a two-block section of West 57th Street between [[Sixth Avenue]] and [[Broadway (Manhattan)|Broadway]]. The hub had been developed during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, after the opening of [[Carnegie Hall]] on [[Seventh Avenue (Manhattan)|Seventh Avenue]] in 1891.<ref name="NYCL-2297">{{cite web |date=December 16, 2008 |title=Society House of the American Society of Civil Engineers |url=http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/2297.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210823005513/http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/2297.pdf |archive-date=August 23, 2021 |access-date=December 13, 2020 |publisher=New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission |page=2}}</ref><ref>{{Cite fednyc|page=232}}</ref> The area contained several headquarters of organizations such as the [[American Fine Arts Society]], the [[Lotos Club]], and the [[218 West 57th Street|ASCE Society House]].<ref name="NYCL-2297" /> The Crown Building also had art-related tenants such as the [[Museum of Modern Art]] in the early 20th century.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gray |first=Christopher |date=August 9, 1998 |title=Streetscapes/The 1880 Sherwood Studios, Once at 57th and Sixth; Building That Was 'the Uptown Headquarters of Art' |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/08/09/realestate/streetscapes-1880-sherwood-studios-once-57th-sixth-building-that-was-uptown.html |access-date=June 19, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240619170410/https://www.nytimes.com/1998/08/09/realestate/streetscapes-1880-sherwood-studios-once-57th-sixth-building-that-was-uptown.html |url-status=live }}</ref> By the 21st century, the arts hub had largely been replaced with [[Billionaires' Row]], a series of luxury skyscrapers around the southern end of [[Central Park]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Scher |first=Robin |date=July 19, 2016 |title='Round 57th Street: New York's First Gallery District Continues (for Now) to Weather Endless Changes in the Art World |url=https://www.artnews.com/art-news/market/round-57th-street-new-yorks-first-gallery-district-continues-for-now-to-weather-endless-changes-in-the-art-world-6685/ |access-date=June 13, 2024 |website=ARTnews |archive-date=April 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411174157/https://www.artnews.com/art-news/market/round-57th-street-new-yorks-first-gallery-district-continues-for-now-to-weather-endless-changes-in-the-art-world-6685/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Previous buildings ===
[[File:Frederick W. Stevens House.jpg|alt=The Frederick W. Stevens House, which stood on the site before the Crown Building was built|left|thumb|The Frederic W. Stevens House, which stood on the site before the Crown Building was built]]Prior to the Crown Building's construction, the site at 728 Fifth Avenue was occupied by a marble townhouse belonging to the businessman [[Charles W. Morse]].<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1946a">{{cite news |date=January 16, 1946 |title=C.F. Noyes Gets Skyscraper for Grandchildren: In Partnership With Friend, Pays $5,000,000 for 26-Story Heckscher Building Heckscher Building |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=32 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1331242365}}}}</ref><ref name="NYCL p. 9">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=9}}</ref> The Morse family owned the house until it was sold at a [[foreclosure]] auction in 1910,<ref>{{Cite news |date=November 27, 1910 |title=Latest Dealings in Realty Field; The Charles W. Morse Fifth Avenue Residence Sold for Occupancy. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1910/11/27/archives/latest-dealings-in-realty-field-the-charles-w-morse-fifth-avenue.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> then acquired by the businessman [[Harry Payne Whitney]] in May 1911.<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 27, 1911 |title=Morse Mansion: Said to Have Been Purchased by Harry Payne Whitney |work=Cincinnati Enquirer |page=6 |id={{ProQuest|897522369}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=May 27, 1911 |title=Real Estate Field; Harry Payne Whitney Purchaser of Charles W. Morse House – Philip Lewisohn Buys Forty-first Street Plot in Rear of Mendelssohn Hall – Big Loft Deal – Large Sales in Brooklyn. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1911/05/27/archives/real-estate-field-harry-payne-whitney-purchaser-of-charles-w-morse.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616004031/https://www.nytimes.com/1911/05/27/archives/real-estate-field-harry-payne-whitney-purchaser-of-charles-w-morse.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Next door at 2 West 57th Street was a mansion built from 1875 to 1876 for the lawyer and banker [[Frederic W. Stevens]].<ref name="NYCL p. 8" /><ref name="Stern (1999) p. 635">{{harvnb|Stern|Mellins|Fishman|1999|ps=.|p=635}}</ref> The Stevens house, designed by [[George E. Harney]],<ref name="Stern (1999) p. 635" /> was smaller in scale compared to similar mansions along the avenue.<ref name="Stern (1999) p. 637">{{harvnb|Stern|Mellins|Fishman|1999|ps=.|p=637}}</ref> The Stevens house's interior was undistinguished, except for a ballroom imported from Belgium;<ref name="Stern (1999) p. 637" /> it also was acquired by the Whitney family by the 1910s.<ref name="NYCL p. 9" />

== Architecture ==
The Crown Building was designed by [[Charles D. Wetmore]] of [[Warren and Wetmore]] and was completed in 1921 as the Heckscher Building.<ref name="AIA5 p. 337" /><ref name="Horsley 1978" /><ref name="JewishSpitzers">{{cite news |last=Meir |first=Noam |date=December 7, 2014 |title=The Spitzers To Sell The Crown Building For $2 Billion |url=http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2014/12/07/the-spitzers-to-sell-the-crown-building-for-2-billion/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150919153126/http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2014/12/07/the-spitzers-to-sell-the-crown-building-for-2-billion/ |archive-date=September 19, 2015 |access-date=November 24, 2015 |work=Jewish Business News}}</ref> Wetmore had invested in the tower's construction along with the mining magnate [[August Heckscher]].<ref name="Horsley 1978">{{cite news |last1=Horsley |first1=Carter B. |date=December 10, 1978 |title='Tower of Trade,' A Gem of 1921 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/10/archives/tower-of-trade-a-gem-of-1921.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220827055450/https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/10/archives/tower-of-trade-a-gem-of-1921.html |archive-date=August 27, 2022 |access-date=August 27, 2022 |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref> The structure includes details in the [[French Renaissance architecture|French Renaissance]] style,<ref name="AF p. 151">{{harvnb|Architectural Forum|1921|ps=.|p=151}}</ref><ref name="nyt-1991-02-03" /> which had been selected because it was similar to the style used by the Cornelius Vanderbilt II Mansion nearby.<ref name="NYCL p. 12">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=12}}</ref><ref name="New-York Tribune 1920">{{Cite news |date=August 15, 1920 |title=Fifth Avenue Show House Abandoned in Plans for 57th Street Structure |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-tribune-fifth-avenue-show-house/149466047/ |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=New-York Tribune |pages=30 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616223853/https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-tribune-fifth-avenue-show-house/149466047/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Châteauesque]] decorations like salamanders were incorporated into the design.<ref name="NYCL p. 12" /> The Crown Building was one of the city's last skyscrapers to be completed before [[Art Deco architecture of New York City|Art Deco architecture in New York City]] gained popularity.<ref name="Horsley 1978" /> George Backer Inc. was the building's main contractor. Several other firms, including terracotta contractor [[New York Architectural Terra-Cotta Company|New York Architectural Terra-Cotta]] and marble contractor A. R. Zicha Marble Co., provided construction materials and mechanical systems.<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" />

=== Form and facade ===
The structure is 25 stories high,<ref name="CTBUH d396">{{cite web |title=Crown Building – The Skyscraper Center |url=https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/crown-building/9828 |access-date=June 21, 2024 |website=Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat |archive-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240621193519/https://www.skyscrapercenter.com/building/crown-building/9828 |url-status=live }}</ref> with a nine-story base, a twelve-story shaft, and four-story octagonal pyramidal roof.<ref name="NYCL p. 5">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=5}}</ref> The building was divided into stores and showrooms on the lower levels and offices on the upper floors.<ref name="Horsley 1978" /><ref name="Stern (1987) p. 590">{{harvnb|Stern|Gilmartin|Mellins|1987|ps=.|p=590}}</ref> In addition to the main structure on 57th Street and Fifth Avenue, there was a six-story annex facing 56th Street,<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922">{{Cite magazine |date=Feb 1922 |title=Heckscher Building, New York |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015086591768&seq=63 |magazine=Architecture and Building |page= |pages=17–18 |volume=54 |issue=2 |access-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625140734/https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015086591768&seq=63 |url-status=live }}</ref> which originally had its own entrance.<ref name="NYCL p. 12" /><ref name="New-York Tribune 1920" /> The annex measured {{convert|100|by|100|ft}} across, stood six stories high, and contained accommodations for employees who worked in the main structure.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1920" /> By 2021, the annex on 56th Street had been replaced with a glass structure.<ref>{{cite web |date=August 20, 2021 |title=Work Continues on Crown Building's Conversion Into Aman New York at 730 Fifth Avenue in Midtown, Manhattan |url=https://www.newyorkyimby.com/2021/08/work-continues-on-crown-buildings-conversion-into-aman-new-york-at-730-fifth-avenue-in-midtown-manhattan.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |website=New York YIMBY |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625140843/https://www.newyorkyimby.com/2021/08/work-continues-on-crown-buildings-conversion-into-aman-new-york-at-730-fifth-avenue-in-midtown-manhattan.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The Crown Building's [[massing]], or shape, was regulated by the [[1916 Zoning Resolution]].<ref name="Horsley 1978" /> There are three primary [[Setback (architecture)|setbacks]], at the 10th, 13th, and 21st stories.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1920" /><ref name="NYCL pp. 6–7" /> The building is set back a different distance from each of the surrounding streets,<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 590" /><ref name="NYCL p. 11" /> and different setbacks were required for each elevation, since 56th Street is narrower than either 57th Street or Fifth Avenue.<ref name="AF p. 151" /> The shaft is located toward the southern end of the site, near the center of the block,<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 590" /> and the setbacks on each side are complex and asymmetrical.<ref name="NYCL p. 11" /> In addition, when the Heckscher Building was completed, it could be seen from several miles north, across the nearby [[Central Park]].<ref name="AF p. 122">{{harvnb|Architectural Forum|1921|ps=.|p=122}}</ref> After the building was converted into a hotel and residential building in the 2020s, outdoor terraces and swimming pools were added to the setbacks.<ref name="Clarke 2017">{{cite news |last=Clarke |first=Katherine |date=October 13, 2017 |title=Mansion – High-Rise Living & Design: Condos Go Business Class – Developers are turning century-old New York office buildings into residential condos, hoping to dazzle buyers with a slice of history: Want to live in the Woolworth Building? |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/manhattans-skyscrapers-now-yours-to-call-home-1507816202 |access-date=June 14, 2024 |work=The Wall Street Journal |page=M.1 |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|1950294079}} |archive-date=September 28, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200928165428/https://www.wsj.com/articles/manhattans-skyscrapers-now-yours-to-call-home-1507816202 |url-status=live }}</ref> Some of the setbacks also have glass railings.<ref name="NYCL p. 7" />

The facade is made of [[limestone]], buff-colored brick, and cream-colored [[architectural terracotta]].<ref name="NYCL p. 5" /><ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /> The facade is decorated with {{convert|1,363|oz}} of 23-karat [[gold leaf]], which was added in the 1980s.<ref name="Clarke 2019" /><ref name="Daily News 1982">{{Cite news |date=December 23, 1982 |title=Seasons of gilt |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-seasons-of-gilt/149518623/ |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=Daily News |pages=111 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617195712/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-seasons-of-gilt/149518623/ |url-status=live }}</ref> According to a promotional brochure from the time, was the largest such application of gold leaf in a commercial building in the U.S.<ref name="Clarke 2019">{{cite news |last=Clarke |first=Katherine |date=June 13, 2019 |title=A Russian Billionaire's $1.3 Billion Bet on New York's Iconic Crown Building; Vladislav Doronin says three penthouses at his Aman-branded project have sold for more than $325 million, despite a sluggish market and an oversupply of luxury condos |work=The Wall Street Journal |page= |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|2712026838}}}}</ref> Terracotta [[relief]]s drew attention to each of the main setbacks, while copper [[spandrel]] panels with [[relief]]s were used to unite the windows on different stories.<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /><ref name="NYCL p. 11" /> When the building opened, the spandrel panels were coated in acid to turn them bright green.<ref name="AF p. 151" /><ref name="NYCL p. 11" /> The [[Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat]] lists the building as being {{convert|416|ft}} tall.<ref name="CTBUH d396" /> Originally, the building measured {{convert|410|ft}} tall from the ground to the tip of its [[weather vane]].<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" />

==== Base ====
[[File:5 Av Apr 2024 07.jpg|thumb|The 2nd through 4th stories. The windows on the 3rd story each span multiple bays, and there are cornices above the 2nd and 3rd stories.]]
The lowest nine stories are clad with [[Indiana limestone]].<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /><ref name="NYCL p. 6" /> There are [[cornice]]s above the 2nd, 3rd, and 8th stories, dividing the building's base horizontally into four segments.<ref name="NYCL p. 6">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=6}}</ref> At ground level, the northern facade along 57th Street measures {{Convert|162|ft}} across and is divided vertically into 18 bays, while the eastern facade on Fifth Avenue is {{Convert|100|ft}} across and is divided into 11 bays. The lowest two stories contain double-height storefronts divided by limestone [[pilaster]]s and topped by flat arches with small brackets and rounded corners.<ref name="NYCL p. 6" /> The storefronts were originally one story high, but their heights were increased at some point after 1983.<ref name="NYCL p. 7">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=7}}</ref> One of the storefronts (the [[Bulgari]] store at the corner of 57th Street and Fifth Avenue) has a mesh facade whose design is patterned after a 1930s bracelet clasp.<ref name="Moin 2017">{{cite web |last=Moin |first=David |date=October 5, 2017 |title=With Brio and a Nod to America, Bulgari Reopens on Fifth Avenue |url=https://wwd.com/business-news/retail/bulgari-ny-flagship-10999493/ |access-date=June 15, 2024 |website=WWD |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003645/https://wwd.com/business-news/retail/bulgari-ny-flagship-10999493/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The original main entrance was at the far left (south) end of the Fifth Avenue elevation; it contained four doors, flanked by columns and pilasters.<ref name="NYCL p. 12" />

Above the 2nd story, the northeast corner (facing 57th Street and Fifth Avenue) has a column with a spiraling pattern, which supports a pedestal with brackets atop the 8th story. For the most part, the windows on the 3rd through 9th stories are rectangular windows set within the limestone facade.<ref name="NYCL p. 6" /> After 1983, the third-story windows were widened to encompass several bays each.<ref name="NYCL p. 7" /> At the center of the Fifth Avenue and 57th Street [[elevation]]s of the facade, some of the windows have gilded spandrel panels with faces, leaves, and [[Fleur-de-lis|fleurs-de-lis]]. The cornice above the 9th floor is topped by a [[balustrade]] made of stone or terracotta, which in turn is decorated with [[salamander]] motifs.<ref name="NYCL p. 6" /> At the 9th story, there is a statue of a woman at the northeast corner.<ref name="NYCL p. 7" />

==== Shaft ====
Above the 9th story, the building is clad with brick and has terracotta trim.<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /><ref name="NYCL p. 6" /> The shaft is clad with custom bricks measuring {{convert|4|x|4|x|11.5|in}}.<ref name="AF p. 151" /><ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /> The 10th through 21st stories comprise the shaft, which is set back from the base. The shaft is clad with buff brick, except for curved masonry [[quoin]]s at each corner. The facade's eastern elevation faces Fifth Avenue. The main portion of the eastern elevation is six bays wide and has a setback above the 13th story; there are two additional bays to the south, which rise to a masonry [[pediment]] above the 15th story. The northern elevation is thirteen bays wide on the 10th through 13th stories; due to the setback on Fifth Avenue, this facade is ten bays wide on the 14th through 21st stories. The inner bays on the eastern and northern elevations have gilded spandrel panels similar to those in the base, while the outermost bay on either end has plain spandrels. Additionally, the 21st story has terracotta window frames.<ref name="NYCL p. 6" />[[File:Crown Building 2 (4674795529).jpg|thumb|The Crown Building's shaft viewed from the southeast. At left is the largely windowless south facade; at right is the east facade.]]
The southern and western elevations are partly obscured by other structures. The southern elevation has no windows, except on the 21st story and on its western portion.<ref name="NYCL pp. 6–7" /> This is because, at the time of the Heckscher Building's construction, the architects had anticipated that another building might be built directly to the south; for the same reason, the building's elevator banks are all clustered along the southern facade.<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 590" /> The western elevation has cornices, spandrel panels, terracotta frames, and some ventilation grilles.<ref name="NYCL pp. 6–7">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|pp=6–7}}</ref>

==== Roof ====
The gilded spandrel panels above the 22nd story are similar to the spandrel panels used in the base and shaft. On the 24th story, each bay is separated vertically by panels with rhombus motifs, and there are colonettes with spiral motifs at each corner. The 24th-story windows are topped by a horizontal row of [[corbel]]s. Above the southwest corner of the 24th story is a [[chimney]] with rhombus, [[Chevron (insignia)|chevron]], and [[salamander]] motifs. The 25th story is set back and contains several ornate [[dormer]] windows with pilasters, shell motifs, [[Cartouche (design)|cartouches]], and pediments.<ref name="NYCL p. 6" />

Above the 25th story rises a octagonal, pyramidal roof, which is painted green and is pierced by two stories of windows. The top of the pyramid includes ball, ring, and garland motifs.<ref name="NYCL p. 6" /> There was originally a "golden cock" atop the roof,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Noble |first=Hollister |date=February 8, 1925 |title=New York's Crown of Light; Color Impressionists Etch the New Skyline at Night in a Glorious Flood of Illumination |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1925/02/08/archives/new-yorks-crown-of-light-color-impressionists-etch-the-new-skyline.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617003723/https://www.nytimes.com/1925/02/08/archives/new-yorks-crown-of-light-color-impressionists-etch-the-new-skyline.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="The Manchester Guardian 1924" /> which was part of a weather vane.<ref name="nyt-1991-02-03" /><ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /> The figure weighed {{convert|450|lb}} and measured {{convert|10|by|8.5|ft}}. Immediately below the rooster, there was also a small observation deck with replicas of jewels.<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /> The weather vane was removed during World War II.<ref name="nyt-1991-02-03" />

=== Features ===
The building originally had {{Convert|35,000|ft2}} of retail space,<ref name="Edelson 2015 j746">{{cite web |last=Edelson |first=Sharon |date=January 5, 2015 |title=No Ebb Seen in Rising Real Estate Prices |url=https://wwd.com/business-news/real-estate/the-year-ahead-no-ebb-seen-in-rising-real-estate-prices-8088516/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Women's Wear Daily |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181701/https://wwd.com/business-news/real-estate/the-year-ahead-no-ebb-seen-in-rising-real-estate-prices-8088516/ |url-status=live }}</ref> as well as {{Convert|400000|ft2}} of office space.<ref name="Moses 2014" /> The lowest nine stories were originally used as showrooms and stores, and the upper stories had offices. There were 10 passenger elevators from the ground floor to the upper stories.<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /> By the 2020s, the lowest three stories were used as retail space, while the 4th floor and above were used as a hotel and residences.<ref name="Cheng 2022 q578">{{cite web |last=Cheng |first=Andria |date=September 7, 2022 |title=Aman Explores Sale of Luxury Hotel Property Within Iconic Manhattan Building |url=https://www.costar.com/article/141823066/aman-explores-sale-of-luxury-hotel-property-within-iconic-manhattan-building |access-date=June 21, 2024 |website=CoStar |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625140743/https://www.costar.com/article/141823066/aman-explores-sale-of-luxury-hotel-property-within-iconic-manhattan-building |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Base ====
Originally, the building's base contained numerous art galleries and showrooms.<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 362">{{harvnb|Stern|Gilmartin|Mellins|1987|ps=.|p=362}}</ref> In the basement were a shipping room and freight-handling facilities.<ref name="Women's Wear 1920">{{cite magazine |date=October 20, 1920 |title=57th Street To Have New 25-Story Building: Shops on Floors Above Street Level to 13th Story, to Be a Feature |magazine=Women's Wear |pages=31 |volume=21 |issue=93 |id={{ProQuest|1666193389}}}}</ref> At ground level was a T-shaped shopping arcade.<ref name="NYCL p. 12" /><ref name="AF p. 151" /><ref name="Women's Wear 1920" /> One leg of the arcade was flanked by small shops and ran from 57th to 56th Street, while another leg ran east to Fifth Avenue.<ref name="Women's Wear 1920" /><ref name="New-York Tribune 1920" /> The entrance vestibule from Fifth Avenue had bluestone floors, carved-limestone walls, and a pair of stained-glass windows. The arcades and elevator lobbies had black-and-gold marble walls with brass trim, while the floors were made of black Belgian marble tile with brass inserts. Eight of the building's passenger elevators were in the Fifth Avenue leg of the arcade, while the other two elevators were located in the annex, with a separate elevator vestibule. There were also display cases facing the elevators, in addition to a telephone stand.<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" />

==== Residences and hotel ====
Following the building's conversion to the Aman New York hotel in 2022, the building has contained 22 residential [[condominium]] apartments, in addition to 83 hotel suites.<ref name="Toronto Star 2022">{{Cite news |date=July 23, 2022 |title=East meets New York City: Aman New York is one of the city's most anticipated hotel openings |work=Toronto Star |page=H.7 |id={{ProQuest|2692988806}}}}</ref><ref name="Morris 2019">{{Cite web |last=Morris |first=Sebastian |date=November 15, 2019 |title=Historic Crown Building's Transformation Into Aman New York Revealed in New Renderings |url=https://newyorkyimby.com/2019/11/historic-crown-buildings-transformation-into-aman-new-york-revealed-in-new-renderings.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201105204650/https://newyorkyimby.com/2019/11/historic-crown-buildings-transformation-into-aman-new-york-revealed-in-new-renderings.html |archive-date=November 5, 2020 |access-date=January 3, 2021 |website=New York YIMBY |language=en-US}}</ref> The hotel and residences have separate entrances.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barron |first=James |date=September 14, 2022 |title=For the Very Rich, $3,200 a Night is a 'Prototypical' New York Experience |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/14/nyregion/for-the-very-rich-3200-a-night-is-a-prototypical-new-york-experience.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003645/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/14/nyregion/for-the-very-rich-3200-a-night-is-a-prototypical-new-york-experience.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Glass soundproofing is used throughout both the hotel and residences. The Aman New York's spaces are generally decorated in what one magazine described as "minimalist colors", although there are also gold-plated decorations, an allusion to the gold leaf on the facade.<ref name="Howarth 2022 j161">{{cite web |last=Howarth |first=Dan |date=September 17, 2022 |title=Denniston Architects converts 1920s skyscraper into Aman New York hotel |url=https://www.dezeen.com/2022/09/17/aman-new-york-hotel-denniston-architects/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Dezeen |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614232945/https://www.dezeen.com/2022/09/17/aman-new-york-hotel-denniston-architects/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The hotel suites were designed by [[Jean-Michel Gathy]].<ref name="Blumenthal 2023">{{cite web |last=Blumenthal |first=Betsy |date=October 3, 2023 |title=Aman New York: First In |url=https://www.cntraveler.com/hotels/new-york/aman-new-york |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Condé Nast Traveler |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614162453/https://www.cntraveler.com/hotels/new-york/aman-new-york |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Abrahams 2022 e320">{{cite web |last=Abrahams |first=Luke |date=March 7, 2022 |title=Inside the New Aman New York City |url=https://elitetraveler.com/travel/hotel-news/inside-the-new-aman-new-york-hotel |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Elite Traveler |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160945/https://elitetraveler.com/travel/hotel-news/inside-the-new-aman-new-york-hotel |url-status=live }}</ref> Each of the hotel rooms covers between {{convert|340|and|2,770|ft2|round=each}};<ref name="Fact Sheet">{{Cite web|title=Aman New York Fact Sheet|url=https://www.aman.com/sites/default/files/2022-05/Aman-New-York-Factsheet.pdf|publisher=Aman New York|access-date=June 21, 2024|page=3|archive-date=June 15, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615222337/https://www.aman.com/sites/default/files/2022-05/Aman-New-York-Factsheet.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>{{efn|Other sources cite a minimum area of {{convert|718|ft2}}<ref name="Blumenthal 2023" /> or {{convert|745|ft2}}.<ref name="nyt-2022-08-23" /> The four smallest suites are 340-square-foot studios that are attached to larger units; excluding these studios, the smallest room is 745 square feet.<ref name="Fact Sheet" />}} at the time of the building's conversion, even the smallest rooms were twice the average size of a [[studio apartment]] in Midtown.<ref>{{cite web |last=King |first=Rachel |date=December 31, 2022 |title=Inside Manhattan's best new luxury hotel: Aman New York |url=https://fortune.com/2022/12/31/inside-manhattans-best-new-luxury-hotel-aman-new-york/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Fortune |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160950/https://fortune.com/2022/12/31/inside-manhattans-best-new-luxury-hotel-aman-new-york/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Various woods are used for doors, floors, and other furniture, and steel, brass, and bronze are also used.<ref name="Howarth 2022 j161" /> The rooms have contemporary furniture, which is interspersed with the original Beaux-Arts interior decorations.<ref name="Abrahams 2022 e320" /> The hotel units have Japanese-inspired decorations,<ref name="Toronto Star 2022" /><ref name="Blumenthal 2023" /> including patterned stone floors, movable doors with rice paper panels,<ref name="Howarth 2022 j161" /> and large murals inspired by the 16th-century painting ''[[Shōrin-zu byōbu]]''.<ref name="Toronto Star 2022" /> The rooms have ceilings measuring {{Convert|11|ft}} high,<ref name="Blumenthal 2023" /> and all the rooms also have gas fireplaces and retractable TVs.<ref name="Blumenthal 2023" /><ref name="nyt-2022-08-23">{{Cite news |last=Murphy |first=Heather |date=August 23, 2022 |title=Serenity in Midtown, Starting at $3,200 a Night? Aman Is Betting on It. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/23/travel/aman-new-york.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=March 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230304185843/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/23/travel/aman-new-york.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Each suite has a bathroom with a large tub and shower.<ref name="Howarth 2022 j161" /><ref name="Abrahams 2022 e320" /> One of the larger suites is the Corner Suite, which covers {{convert|2,025|ft2}}.<ref name="Kachroo-Levine 2022 y293">{{cite web |last=Kachroo-Levine |first=Maya |date=August 16, 2022 |title=With a Garden Terrace, Underground Jazz Club, and Wildly Expensive Suites |url=https://www.travelandleisure.com/hotels-resorts/hotel-openings/aman-new-york-review |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Travel + Leisure |archive-date=February 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240216065740/https://www.travelandleisure.com/hotels-resorts/hotel-openings/aman-new-york-review |url-status=live }}</ref> The largest suites are the Aman suites on floors 11 and 12, which each have a kitchenette, a bar, and hidden compartments.<ref>{{cite web |last=Barsamian |first=Edward |date=April 24, 2024 |title=Inside the Top Suite of Three Key Aman New York |url=https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/article/travel/aman-new-york-inside-suite-three-michelin-key-hotel-award-distinction-travel-guide |access-date=June 15, 2024 |website=MICHELIN Guide |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625140734/https://guide.michelin.com/us/en/article/travel/aman-new-york-inside-suite-three-michelin-key-hotel-award-distinction-travel-guide |url-status=live }}</ref>

The residential condos are on floors 15 through 26.<ref name="nyt-2022-07-28">{{Cite news |last=Marino |first=Vivian |date=July 28, 2022 |title=A Pair of Co-ops Sold for $101 Million as the Market Returned to a Boil |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/realestate/top-nyc-real-estate-sales.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=May 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510190539/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/28/realestate/top-nyc-real-estate-sales.html |url-status=live }}</ref>{{efn|Also described as floors 15 through 30. The floor numbers do not correspond to the physical stories in the building.<ref name="Kachroo-Levine 2022 y293" />}} They have a combined area of {{Convert|95000|ft2}}, giving each residence an average area of {{Convert|4300|ft2}}.<ref name="New York YIMBY u860">{{cite web |date=September 20, 2020 |title=Work Progressing on Crown Building's Conversion Into Aman New York at 730 Fifth Avenue in Midtown |url=https://newyorkyimby.com/2020/09/work-progressing-on-crown-buildings-conversion-into-aman-new-york-at-730-fifth-avenue-in-midtown.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=New York YIMBY |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625140736/https://newyorkyimby.com/2020/09/work-progressing-on-crown-buildings-conversion-into-aman-new-york-at-730-fifth-avenue-in-midtown.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The largest residence in the building is a five-story penthouse that covers {{convert|14000|ft2}}; it has a full-floor master suite as well as a piano lounge, a gallery, two pools, two kitchens, four other bedrooms, and a game room.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Barger |first1=Kerry |last2=Solomont |first2=E.B. |date=November 15, 2017 |title=Revealed: Floor plans for Crown Building's $100M penthouse |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2017/11/15/revealed-floor-plans-for-crown-buildings-100m-penthouse/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |postscript=none |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160952/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2017/11/15/revealed-floor-plans-for-crown-buildings-100m-penthouse/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Nonko |first=Emily |date=November 16, 2017 |title=Peek at the floorplans for the Crown Building's $100M penthouse |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2017/11/16/16665218/crown-building-renvation-aman-hotel-penthouse |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Curbed NY |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160950/https://ny.curbed.com/2017/11/16/16665218/crown-building-renvation-aman-hotel-penthouse |url-status=live }}</ref> The five-bedroom, {{Convert|6300|ft2|adj=on}} Vana penthouse on floor 21<ref>{{cite web |last=Plitt |first=Amy |date=January 24, 2020 |title=Incredibly opulent penthouse at Midtown's landmarked Crown Building wants $59.5M |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2020/1/24/21079299/midtown-new-york-crown-building-condo-penthouse |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Curbed NY |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614232946/https://ny.curbed.com/2020/1/24/21079299/midtown-new-york-crown-building-condo-penthouse |url-status=live }}</ref> has a library and private theater.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Marino |first=Vivian |date=September 2, 2022 |title=Hugh Jackman Swaps West Village Home for Chelsea Penthouse |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/02/realestate/hugh-jackman-chelsea-penthouse-nyc.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=November 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231104201117/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/02/realestate/hugh-jackman-chelsea-penthouse-nyc.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Another large unit is the four-bedroom, {{convert|6700|ft2|adj=on}} Jala penthouse on floor 20,<ref>{{cite web |last=Cormack |first=Rachel |date=January 22, 2023 |title=This US$74 Million Penthouse Is the Most Expensive Home Sold in NYC This Year (So Far) |url=https://robbreport.hk/posts/penthouse-most-expensive-new-york-sale-1234697341 |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Robb Report |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614232945/https://robbreport.hk/posts/penthouse-most-expensive-new-york-sale-1234697341 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="nyt-2022-07-28" /> which has {{convert|3,750|ft2|0}} of outdoor terraces in addition to a pool.<ref name="nyt-2022-07-28" /> The other residences have varying numbers of bedrooms.<ref name="Rosenberg 2017 z920">{{cite web |last=Rosenberg |first=Zoe |date=October 27, 2017 |title=Crown Building's ultraluxury conversion will include $100M+, 5-story penthouse |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2017/10/27/16554670/crown-building-aman-new-york-condos |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Curbed NY |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160946/https://ny.curbed.com/2017/10/27/16554670/crown-building-aman-new-york-condos |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Amenity spaces ====
The hotel portion of the building has a spa and three restaurants.<ref name="Morris 2019" /> The spa covers {{convert|22,000|ft2|adj=}}<ref name="Rosenberg 2017 z920" /> or {{Convert|25000|ft2}},<ref name="Kim 2022 c394">{{cite web |last=Kim |first=Leena |date=September 1, 2022 |title=Aman New York Is Now Manhattan's Most Exclusive Club |url=https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/travel-guide/a40900980/aman-new-york-opening/ |access-date=June 15, 2024 |website=Town & Country |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616004030/https://www.townandcountrymag.com/leisure/travel-guide/a40900980/aman-new-york-opening/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and it spans across three stories.<ref name="Kachroo-Levine 2022 y293" /> The spa includes two "spa houses", as well as [[fire pit]]s around an indoor [[swimming pool]]<ref name="Rosenberg 2017 z920" /><ref name="Kachroo-Levine 2022 y293" /> that measures {{Convert|65|ft}} long.<ref name="Kachroo-Levine 2022 y293" /><ref name="Schama g276">{{cite web |last=Schama |first=Chloe |date=May 28, 2024 |title=Aman New York |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/aman-new-york-spa |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Vogue |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160950/https://www.vogue.com/article/aman-new-york-spa |url-status=live }}</ref> The two "spa houses" have various treatment rooms, pools, beds, and fireplaces, which can be rented out.<ref name="Toronto Star 2022" /> The swimming pool is hidden behind an unmarked wooden door.<ref name="Schama g276" /> There is a jazz club in the basement, the Aman Jazz Club,<ref name="Clarke 2019" /><ref name="Plitt q147" /> which is accessed through an annex on 56th Street.<ref>{{cite web |last=Taylor |first=Elise |date=August 29, 2022 |title=An Exclusive Look at Aman's Jazz Club, New York's Most Elevated Night Out |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/an-exclusive-look-at-amans-jazz-club-new-yorks-most-elevated-night-out |access-date=June 15, 2024 |website=Vogue |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615011701/https://www.vogue.com/article/an-exclusive-look-at-amans-jazz-club-new-yorks-most-elevated-night-out |url-status=live }}</ref> The hotel also has two restaurants: Nama, which serves Japanese cuisine, and Arva, which serves Mediterranean cuisine.<ref name="Clarke 2019" /><ref name="Plitt q147">{{cite web |last=Plitt |first=Amy |date=June 14, 2019 |title=New looks at Crown Building's ultraluxury condo conversion |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2019/6/14/18678619/midtown-new-york-crown-building-condo-conversion |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Curbed NY |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181702/https://ny.curbed.com/2019/6/14/18678619/midtown-new-york-crown-building-condo-conversion |url-status=live }}</ref>

Floor 14 has an atrium with sculptures designed by Peter Gentenaar.<ref name="Howarth 2022 j161" /> On the tenth story is the Garden Terrace, which occupies multiple exterior spaces<ref name="Blumenthal 2023" /> and includes a dining room, cigar bar, and drinking bar.<ref name="Rosenberg 2017 z920" /> The Garden Terrace covers {{Convert|7000|ft2}} and is covered by a retractable glass canopy.<ref name="Howarth 2022 j161" /><ref name="SCMP v106">{{cite web |date=May 6, 2024 |title=Inside the Aman Club, the most expensive private members' club in NYC |url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/lifestyle/travel-hotels/article/3261125/inside-aman-club-nycs-most-expensive-private-members-club-it-costs-us200000-just-join-you-may-find |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=South China Morning Post |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003645/https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/lifestyle/travel-hotels/article/3261125/inside-aman-club-nycs-most-expensive-private-members-club-it-costs-us200000-just-join-you-may-find |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Kim 2022 c394" /> Other amenity spaces in the hotel include a sky lobby, wine library, and piano bar.<ref name="Clarke 2019" /><ref name="Plitt q147" /> In addition, the hotel includes a private club called Aman Club.<ref name="Chaffin 2023">{{cite news |last=Chaffin |first=Joshua |date=September 7, 2023 |title=Manhattan's private clubs thrive in a new Gilded Age |url=https://www.ft.com/content/347c7b21-4c78-4f8b-8f63-07fc8218b27b |access-date=June 14, 2024 |work=Financial Times |id={{ProQuest|2862101817}} |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181701/https://www.ft.com/content/347c7b21-4c78-4f8b-8f63-07fc8218b27b |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="SCMP v106" /> The club is limited to 600 members whose identities are not publicized. Members were allowed to use the hotel's amenities, received discounted food at the restaurants, and had a private concierge.<ref name="SCMP v106" />


==History==
==History==
[[File:Bird's eye view of Heckscher Bldg. LCCN2004673286.jpg|thumb|left|Heckscher Building, 1921]]
The '''Heckscher Building''' was constructed by philanthropist [[August Heckscher]], who had built his fortune from zinc and Manhattan real estate. It was designed by [[Warren and Wetmore]] and completed in 1921.<ref name=JewishSpitzers>{{cite news|title=The Spitzers To Sell The Crown Building For $2 Billion|url=http://jewishbusinessnews.com/2014/12/07/the-spitzers-to-sell-the-crown-building-for-2-billion/|access-date=November 24, 2015|work=Jewish Business News|date=December 7, 2014}}</ref> Architect Charles A. Wetmore was an investing partner with Heckscher in the tower's construction.<ref name="auto1">{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1978/12/10/archives/tower-of-trade-a-gem-of-1921.html | title='Tower of Trade,' A Gem of 1921 | newspaper=The New York Times | date=December 10, 1978 | last1=Horsley | first1=Carter B.}}</ref> The building was one of New York's first major multi-use structures, with stores and showrooms on the lower levels and offices on the upper floors. It was also one of the first skyscrapers in the city whose stepped, setback design was regulated by the [[1916 Zoning Resolution]]. The resolution had been passed after the 1915 construction of the [[Equitable Building (Manhattan)|Equitable Building ]] in Lower Manhattan, whose towering, vertical sheer walls blocked sunlight to much of the surrounding neighborhood.<ref name="auto1" />


=== Heckscher ownership ===
The [[Museum of Modern Art]] opened in a rented six-room suite on the Heckscher Building's twelfth floor on November 8, 1929, just ten days after the [[Wall Street Crash of 1929]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/2009/momastarts/|title=MoMA Starts: An 80th Anniversary Exhibition|website=MoMA.org}}</ref> The museum remained there until 1932. When [[Rockefeller Center]] opened nearby in 1933, Heckscher blamed the developers for decreased demand at his building, and sued them for improper leasing methods. The suit never went to trial. However, Heckscher lost ownership of the building in 1938, after a four-year foreclosure process.<ref name="auto1" /> In 1946, Charles F. Noyes and Joseph Durst bought the building. They sold it to Kenneth S. Keyes in 1950. In 1964, it was renamed the '''Genesco Building''', when [[Genesco]], which owned [[Bonwit Teller]] across the street, became a major tenant.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/03/realestate/streetscapes-the-crown-building-a-1921-elegance-entangled-in-disputes.html | title=Streetscapes: The Crown Building; A 1921 Elegance Entangled in Disputes | newspaper=The New York Times | date=February 3, 1991 | last1=Gray | first1=Christopher}}</ref> In 1966, it was sold to Centurion Real Estate Inc..<ref name="auto1" />
What is now the Crown Building was developed by August Heckscher, who had built his fortune from mining and Manhattan real estate.<ref name="nyt-1991-02-03">{{Cite news |last=Gray |first=Christopher |date=February 3, 1991 |title=Streetscapes: The Crown Building; A 1921 Elegance Entangled in Disputes |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/03/realestate/streetscapes-the-crown-building-a-1921-elegance-entangled-in-disputes.html |access-date=June 15, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=August 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220827055450/https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/03/realestate/streetscapes-the-crown-building-a-1921-elegance-entangled-in-disputes.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="NYCL pp. 8–9">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|pp=8–9}}</ref> Heckscher actively mined commodities such as copper, coal, and zinc in the northeastern U.S. during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He began buying buildings in Manhattan in 1910, and he was also a philanthropist who supported museums such as the [[Heckscher Art Museum]] and [[El Museo del Barrio]].<ref name="NYCL pp. 8–9" /><ref name="nyt-2002-01-20">{{Cite news |last=Gray |first=Christopher |date=January 20, 2002 |title=Streetscapes/50 East 42nd Street; Ballet Dancer of a Building, Its Tower Lithe and Trim |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/20/realestate/streetscapes-50-east-42nd-street-ballet-dancer-building-its-tower-lithe-trim.html |access-date=June 19, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240619174100/https://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/20/realestate/streetscapes-50-east-42nd-street-ballet-dancer-building-its-tower-lithe-trim.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The ''Real Estate Record and Guide'' wrote in 1912 that Heckscher "has not invested largely in real estate hitherto as an individual" but owned at least two other Fifth Avenue properties.<ref name="The Real Estate Record: Real estate record and builders' guide 1912">{{cite magazine |date=December 21, 1912 |title=Mr. August Heckscher and His Purchase |url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/document.php?vol=ldpd_7031148_050&page=ldpd_7031148_050_00001484&no=2 |magazine=The Real Estate Record: Real estate record and builders' guide |pages=1158 |via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]] |volume=90 |number=2336 |access-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616010229/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/document.php?vol=ldpd_7031148_050&page=ldpd_7031148_050_00001484&no=2 |url-status=live }}</ref> Before Heckscher developed what is now the Crown Building, he had built another Heckscher Building at the intersection of [[Madison Avenue]] and [[42nd Street (Manhattan)|42nd Street]]; that building also had setbacks in its design, even though it predated the 1916 Zoning Resolution.<ref name="nyt-2002-01-20" />


==== Site acquisition ====
The structure was purchased in 1981 by then [[President of the Philippines]] [[Ferdinand E. Marcos]]. Marcos used international companies to purchase the building secretly, also obtaining help from Ralph and Joseph Bernstein as well as [[Adnan Khashoggi]].<ref name=NYTimesPhilippines>{{cite news|last1=Hylton|first1=Richard|title=Philippines Gains Little In Marcos Building Sale|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/10/nyregion/philippines-gains-little-in-marcos-building-sale.html|access-date=November 24, 2015|work=The New York Times|date=February 10, 1991}}</ref> The name was changed to the '''Crown Building''' in 1983, after its crown-like look when illuminated at night.<ref name=JewishSpitzers/>
[[File:Bird's eye view of Heckscher Bldg. LCCN2004673286.jpg|thumb|Heckscher Building, 1921]]In December 1912, the 734 Fifth Avenue Company bought the Morse and Stevens–Whitney houses<ref>{{cite news |date=December 16, 1912 |title=Whitney Sale Starts Real Estate "Fever": Lets Down Bars for Rush of Business to That Section of Fifth Avenue Rare Chance, Say Experts Oelrichs House Next to Be Sold, It is Reported—speculators Worried by Hidden River |work=New-York Tribune |page=11 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|575002429}}}}</ref><ref name="The Real Estate Record: Real estate record and builders' guide 1912" /> and immediately began tearing down the houses to make way for a commercial building.<ref>{{cite news |date=December 14, 1912 |title=W. C. Whitney House to Be Torn Down: High Board Fence Will Soon Surround Site of Fifth Avenue Mansion |work=New-York Tribune |page=18 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|575027462}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=December 14, 1912 |title=The Real Estate Field; Old Whitney Mansion to be Torn Down in Next Two Months – Apartment House Investments – Greenwich Village Deals – Active Bronx and Suburban Markets. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1912/12/14/archives/the-real-estate-field-old-whitney-mansion-to-be-torn-down-in-next.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616004030/https://www.nytimes.com/1912/12/14/archives/the-real-estate-field-old-whitney-mansion-to-be-torn-down-in-next.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Heckscher told his broker not to publicize the fact that he was buying the structure,<ref name="New-York Tribune 1923">{{cite news |date=August 5, 1923 |title=Industrialist Is Putting His Millions Into Gilt-Edge Real Estate; Holds Eleven Big Structures Valued at From $30,000,000 to $35,000,000 |work=New-York Tribune |page=C1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1237337842}}}}</ref> but the ''Real Estate Record and Guide'' reported that Heckscher was involved with the 734 Fifth Avenue Company.<ref name="The Real Estate Record: Real estate record and builders' guide 1912" /> The ''New-York Tribune'' wrote that Heckscher was "highly incensed" that his secret purchase had been announced publicly, since he had wanted to give the Whitney mansion to his wife as a surprise gift.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1923" /> Heckscher was recorded as the property's owner by January 1913.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1913">{{cite news |date=July 12, 1913 |title=Taxpayer for Whitney's Old Home |work=New-York Tribune |page=14 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|575140993}}}}</ref> That July, Heckscher hired H. Edwards Ficken to build a three-story commercial building on the site.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1913" /><ref name="nyt-1913-07-12">{{Cite news |date=July 12, 1913 |title=The Real Estate Field; August Heckscher to Build Three-story Taxpayer on the Old Whitney Corner – Big Sixth Avenue Lease – Bronx Hospital Buys Building Plot – Suburban Deals. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1913/07/12/archives/the-real-estate-field-august-heckscher-to-build-threestory-taxpayer.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616010225/https://www.nytimes.com/1913/07/12/archives/the-real-estate-field-august-heckscher-to-build-threestory-taxpayer.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The structure included stores on the ground story, offices on the second, and galleries on the third.<ref name="nyt-1913-07-12" />


Heckscher bought James Roosevelt's residence at 3 West 57th Street, and two other houses at 3–5 West 56th Street, in late 1913.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=November 8, 1913 |title=The Week's Real Estate News |url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/document.php?vol=ldpd_7031148_052&page=ldpd_7031148_052_00001018&no=3 |magazine=The Real Estate Record: Real estate record and builders' guide |pages=862 |via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]] |volume=92 |postscript=none |number=2382 |access-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616013216/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/document.php?vol=ldpd_7031148_052&page=ldpd_7031148_052_00001018&no=3 |url-status=live }}; {{Cite news |date=November 6, 1913 |title=The Real Estate Field; Big Purchase by August Heckscher in Fifty-seventh Street Adjoining His Fifth Avenue Corner ;- Riverside Drive Corner Sold for Apartment ;- Deals in Harlem ;- Good Bronx Market. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1913/11/06/archives/the-real-estate-field-big-purchase-by-august-heckscher-in.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616013212/https://www.nytimes.com/1913/11/06/archives/the-real-estate-field-big-purchase-by-august-heckscher-in.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In November 1915, Heckscher acquired the adjacent properties at 7 West 56th Street and 6–8 West 57th Street from the estate of J. S. Kennedy.<ref>{{cite news |date=November 16, 1915 |title=Heckscher Buys Kennedy Site; Property Adjoins His Corner Parcel at 57th St. And Fifth Av. |work=New-York Tribune |page=6 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|575465588}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=November 16, 1915 |title=The Real Estate Field; August Heckscher Buys Kennedy Estate Property on Fifthy-seventh Street ;- $115,000 for Small Park Avenue Corner ;- Harlem-Bronx Trade ;- $200,000 Westchester Estate Sold. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1915/11/16/archives/the-real-estate-field-august-heckscher-buys-kennedy-estate-property.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616010225/https://www.nytimes.com/1915/11/16/archives/the-real-estate-field-august-heckscher-buys-kennedy-estate-property.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The site was quickly resold to Michael Dreicer,<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 10, 1915 |title=The Real Estate Field.; Michael Dreicer Purchases Former Kennedy Property in Fifty-seventh Street From August Heckscher ;- West End Apartment Site Deal ;- Big Bronx Sale on Concourse ;- Country Sale. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1915/12/10/archives/the-real-estate-field-michael-dreicer-purchases-former-kennedy.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616010224/https://www.nytimes.com/1915/12/10/archives/the-real-estate-field-michael-dreicer-purchases-former-kennedy.html |url-status=live }}</ref> who built a structure on the 57th Street lots.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 31, 1921 |title=Influenced Beauty on Fifth Avenue; Michael Dreicer Set an Example for Commercially Attractive Buildings |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1921/07/31/archives/influenced-beauty-on-fifth-avenue-michael-dreicer-set-an-example.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616223853/https://www.nytimes.com/1921/07/31/archives/influenced-beauty-on-fifth-avenue-michael-dreicer-set-an-example.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Heckscher bought back 7 and 9 West 56th Street from Dreicer in February 1918.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=February 9, 1918 |title=August Heckscher Adds to Holdings |url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/document.php?vol=ldpd_7031148_061&page=ldpd_7031148_061_00000510&no=1 |magazine=The Real Estate Record: Real estate record and builders' guide |pages=172 |via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]] |volume=101 |postscript=none |number=2604 |access-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616013215/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/document.php?vol=ldpd_7031148_061&page=ldpd_7031148_061_00000510&no=1 |url-status=live }}; {{Cite news |date=February 4, 1918 |title=Heckscher Buys Again |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-herald-heckscher-buys-again/149453579/ |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=New York Herald |pages=12 |postscript=none |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616205626/https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-herald-heckscher-buys-again/149453579/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite news |date=February 3, 1918 |title=Fifth Avenue Plot Sold |work=New-York Tribune |page=5 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|575805388}}}}</ref> Heckscher formed a [[holding company]] called Anahma Realty, which was named after his yacht, though work was delayed likely due to the [[Spanish flu]].<ref>{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|pp=9–10}}</ref>
The Crown Building was the focus of various lawsuits after the fall of the Marcos regime.<ref name=NYTimesPhilippines/> Numerous parties, including the Philippine government, claimed rights to it. Lawsuits claimed that Marcos entered into various agreements for the building or purchased it with money that was not his.<ref name=NYTimesPhilippines/> The parties involved agreed to sell the building and split the proceeds in excess of the $89 million mortgage.<ref name=NYTimesPhilippines/>


==== Development ====
In 1991, [[Bernard Spitzer]] and partners Marvin Winter and Jerome L. Greene acquired the building for $93.6 million. After Spitzer's death in 2014, his son, former [[Governor of New York]] [[Eliot Spitzer]], and the Winter family the property.<ref name=NYDnewsspitz>{{cite news|last1=Clarke|first1=Katherine|title=The Son Also Rises|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/spitzer-empire-play-luv-guv-calls-shots-article-1.2222256|access-date=November 23, 2015|work=New York Daily News|date=May 15, 2015}}</ref> The building was scheduled for auction in late 2014, but [[Jeff Sutton (real estate developer)|Jeff Sutton]]'s Wharton Properties and [[Sandeep Mathrani]]’s [[General Growth Properties]] stepped in prior to the auction and purchased the building<ref name=NYPostGGP>{{cite news|last1=Welss|first1=Lois|title=GGP & Sutton grab Crown Building for $1.75B+|url=https://nypost.com/2014/12/18/ggps-sutton-grabs-crown-building-for-1-75b/|access-date=November 24, 2015|work=New York Post|date=December 18, 2014}}</ref> for $1.75 billion, one of the largest deals in New York City real estate history. The purchase price included both the 400,000 square-foot office portion of the tower and {{convert|35000|sqft}} of retail space on the ground floor of the building.<ref name=NYPostGGP/>
George Backer leased the corner of 57th Street and Fifth Avenue for 21 years, along with the adjacent Kennedy property on 56th Street, from Heckscher in 1919.<ref name="nyt-1919-12-21">{{Cite news |date=December 21, 1919 |title=30-story Building for Upper 5th Av.; Vanderbilt and Huntington Mansions at 57th Street Will Be Overshadowed |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1919/12/21/archives/30story-building-for-upper-5th-av-vanderbilt-and-huntington.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616004029/https://www.nytimes.com/1919/12/21/archives/30story-building-for-upper-5th-av-vanderbilt-and-huntington.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="New-York Tribune 1919">{{cite news |date=December 21, 1919 |title=Two Giant Structures and Palatial Theater, Valued at $15,000,000, for 5th Ave. |work=New-York Tribune |page=A8 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|576155078}}}}</ref> The L-shaped site wrapped around [[Joseph Duveen, 1st Baron Duveen|Joseph Duveen]]'s art dealership on 56th Street.<ref name="nyt-1919-12-21" /> Backer then announced plans for a 30-story building on the site, which would have cost $6 million and would have included offices, apartments, a theater, and some stores. Warren and Wetmore were hired as the architects.<ref name="nyt-1919-12-21" /><ref name="New-York Tribune 1919" /> As planned, there would have been only one setback;<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 359">{{harvnb|Stern|Gilmartin|Mellins|1987|ps=.|p=359}}</ref> the base would have risen {{Convert|125|ft}} above ground, while the shaft would have ascended another {{Convert|325|ft}}.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1920a">{{cite news |date=February 15, 1920 |title=Giant Structure for 5th Ave. and 57th St. Corner Marks Future Development of Avenue of Avenues |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-tribune-giant-structure-for-5th/149410678/ |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=New-York Tribune |page=A10 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|576187407}} |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616004030/https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-tribune-giant-structure-for-5th/149410678/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The lower stories would have contained eight stories of showrooms and commercial stores, and the apartments and offices would have been located above. There would also have been an enclosed [[shopping arcade]] leading from 57th Street and from Fifth Avenue. The arcade would have led to a 900-seat, ten-story theater on 56th Street.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1920a" />


Hughes & Hammond placed a $4.5 million mortgage loan on the building's site in February 1920, which at the time was one of the largest real-estate loans ever placed on a property in New York City.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=February 14, 1920 |title=August Heckscher Adds to Holdings |url=https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/document.php?vol=ldpd_7031148_065&page=ldpd_7031148_065_00000985&no=4 |magazine=The Real Estate Record: Real estate record and builders' guide |pages=207 |via=[[Columbia University|columbia.edu]] |volume=105 |postscript=none |number=7 |access-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616205629/https://rerecord.library.columbia.edu/document.php?vol=ldpd_7031148_065&page=ldpd_7031148_065_00000985&no=4 |url-status=live }}; {{Cite news |date=February 3, 1920 |title=$4,500,000 Building Loan; Capital Secured to Erect Fifth Avenue's Tallest Building. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1920/02/03/archives/4500000-building-loan-capital-secured-to-erect-fifth-avenues.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616205625/https://www.nytimes.com/1920/02/03/archives/4500000-building-loan-capital-secured-to-erect-fifth-avenues.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The Heckscher Building was to be the first tall building along the Midtown segment of Fifth Avenue,<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 359" /> and its theater would have been the first [[Broadway theater]] along this same segment.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1920a" /> Insurance companies objected to the original plans, and the [[New York City Department of Buildings]] refused to approve the theater.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1920" /><ref name="NYCL p. 10">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=10}}</ref> That August, Wetmore reduced the building's overall height to 25 stories,<ref name="New-York Tribune 1920" /><ref name="nyt-1920-08-15">{{Cite news |date=August 15, 1920 |title=Building Plan Revised.; Height of Heckscher Building Reduced and Theatre Abandoned. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1920/08/15/archives/building-plan-revised-height-of-heckscher-building-reduced-and.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616205626/https://www.nytimes.com/1920/08/15/archives/building-plan-revised-height-of-heckscher-building-reduced-and.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and the apartments and theater were removed from the plans.<ref name="Women's Wear 1920" /><ref name="nyt-1920-08-15" /> The building was to be used purely as a commercial and office structure, without any manufacturing.<ref name="New-York Tribune 1920" /> The three-story structure on the site had been demolished by October 1920.<ref name="Women's Wear 1920" /><ref name="NYCL p. 10" /> By then, the first 13 stories were planned to be used as shops (with showrooms on floors 2 through 9), while the 14th through 25th stories were to be used as offices.<ref name="Women's Wear 1920" />
In 2015, [[Michael Shvo]] and Russian billionaire [[Vladislav Doronin]] purchased the office portion of the building for $500 million.<ref name=RdealCrown>{{cite news|title=Shvo, Amanresorts buy non-retail piece of Crown Building for $500M|url=http://therealdeal.com/blog/2015/04/07/shvo-amanresorts-buy-most-of-the-crown-building-for-475m/|access-date=November 12, 2015|work=The Real Deal|date=April 7, 2015}}</ref> Shvo and Doronin announced plans to convert and redevelop their portion of the Crown Building into a luxury hotel and residences.<ref name=RdealCrown/><ref>{{cite news|last1=Weiss|first1=Lois|title=Two buyers splitting up top of Crown Building|url=https://nypost.com/2015/04/06/two-buyers-splitting-up-top-of-crown-building/|access-date=November 12, 2015|work=New York Post|date=April 6, 2015}}</ref> General Growth Properties and Wharton Properties retained the retail portion of the building.


At the time of the building's development, Heckscher believed that the building was "the ultimate location for the exclusive shopping center of New York" because businesses would not relocate north of [[59th Street (Manhattan)|59th Street]] in great numbers.<ref>{{cite news |date=May 20, 1928 |title=New York to Have Small Addition of Rue de la Paix: French Trade Center Forming in Fifth Ave. Blocks, Between 57th, 59th Sts |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=D2 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1113379443}}}}</ref> Backer's construction company built the Heckscher Building,<ref name="Architecture and Building 1922" /><ref name="New-York Tribune 1921">{{cite news |date=May 15, 1921 |title=Business of George Backer, Who Gave City $100,000,000 Worth of Buildings; Will Be Carried On By Associates: Company Will Be Formed by Samuel Levy, Copartner and Attorney, to Continue Uncompleted Work of the Late Builder; William Backer, Who Will Graduate as an Engineer From Cornell Next Month, Will Take Up Affairs of His Father |work=New-York Tribune |page=A15 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|576436642}}}}</ref> while Heckscher had a one-third ownership stake in the building.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1950">{{cite news |date=November 5, 1950 |title=Florida Agent Buys 25-Story 5 th Av. Tower: Keyes, of Miami, Takes Heckscher Building at 57th St. Corner |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=C1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1335548364}}}}</ref><!--The Prudential Insurance Company loaned Heckscher $2.5 million in May 1921; the building already had two mortgages worth a combined $2 million.<ref>{{Cite news|date=May 13, 1921|title=Operator Resells No. 710 Broadway|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-herald-operator-resells-no-710/149507829/|access-date=June 17, 2024|work=New York Herald|pages=23}}</ref>--> After Backer's death in May 1921,<ref name="NYCL p. 9" /><ref name="New-York Tribune 1921" /> the executor of his estate, Samuel Levy, completed the structure.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1950" /> By mid-1921, the Heckscher Building's rental agents [[Cushman & Wakefield]] were looking to attract retail tenants to the building.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=August 5, 1921 |title=Daily Retailing: Plan To Group Shops In New Heckscher Building: Owners Expect to Have Here an Exclusive Buying Center for Women's Apparel—Objects D'Art and Other Goods Will Give New Impetus to Development of Upper Fifth Avenue |magazine=Women's Wear |pages=48 |volume=23 |issue=30 |id={{ProQuest|1665938902}}}}</ref> Although media from August 1921 advertised the building as being ready for occupancy by the beginning of September, the building was still reportedly not complete in January 1922.<ref name="NYCL p. 11">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=11}}</ref> The structure was ultimately finished in 1922.<ref name="Roche x713" /><ref name="Gannon 2024 y894" />
[[Milan]]-based luxury menswear brand [[Ermenegildo Zegna]] announced in March 2016 that it would lease {{convert|1500|sqft}} of ground-floor space and {{convert|7500|sqft}} on the second floor, at roughly $4,000 per square foot, totaling $150 million over the 10 years of the lease.<ref name”DANIELLE BALBI”>{{Cite web|date=March 3, 2016|title=Another High-End Retailer to Call the Crown Building Home|url=https://commercialobserver.com/2016/03/another-high-end-retailer-to-call-the-crown-building-home/|access-date=January 3, 2021|website=Commercial Observer|language=en-US}}</ref> Chief Executive Ermenegildo “Gildo” Zegna directly negotiated the lease with retail co-owner and deal-maker Jeff Sutton.<ref name="Lois Weiss">{{Cite web|last=Weiss|first=Lois|date=March 2, 2016|title=Gildo Zegna gets luxurious flagship store inside Crown Building|url=https://nypost.com/2016/03/02/gildo-zegna-gets-luxurious-flagship-store-inside-crown-building/|access-date=January 3, 2021|website=New York Post|language=en-US}}</ref> The new [[Peter Marino]]-designed space opened on February 13, 2019.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Zargani|first=Luisa|date=February 13, 2019|title=Ermenegildo Zegna Flagship Opens in New York|url=https://wwd.com/menswear-news/mens-retail-business/ermenegildo-zegna-flagship-opens-in-new-york-1203023055/|access-date=January 3, 2021|website=WWD|language=en-US}}</ref>


==== Early years ====
In 2019, the $1.45 Billion<ref name="auto">{{cite news | url=https://www.ft.com/content/b1956a5f-6492-43a4-8aa6-dbdf6492ec9d | title=Inside New York's newest — and most expensive — hotel | newspaper=Financial Times | date=August 25, 2022}}</ref> conversion work on the upper levels was begun by Doronin's [[OKO Group]], funded in part by a $750 million loan.<ref>{{Cite web|date=October 1, 2019|title=Crown Building Construction Loan|url=https://therealdeal.com/2019/10/01/doronin-lands-750m-construction-loan-for-crown-building-conversion/|access-date=January 3, 2021|website=The Real Deal New York|language=en-US}}</ref> The lower levels remained retail, while the rest of the building was converted to the luxury Aman New York hotel & residences, operated by Doronin's [[Aman Resorts]]. The hotel portion, on floors 7-14, contains 83 rooms, three restaurants and a spa. The residential portion, on floors 15-30, consists of 22 condominiums.<ref>{{Cite web|date=November 15, 2019|title=Historic Crown Building's Transformation Into Aman New York Revealed in New Renderings|url=https://newyorkyimby.com/2019/11/historic-crown-buildings-transformation-into-aman-new-york-revealed-in-new-renderings.html|access-date=January 3, 2021|website=New York YIMBY|language=en-US}}</ref> The first units became available in early 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2021-04-30|title=High-End Residences in New York City are Bringing Hotel Life Home|url=https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/when-your-hotel-is-also-your-home|access-date=2021-07-22|website=Architectural Digest|language=en-US}}</ref> The hotel opened on August 11, 2022.<ref name="auto" /> Rooms start at $3200 a night, nearly triple the rate of its nearby competitors - [[The St. Regis New York|The St. Regis]], [[Carlyle Hotel|The Carlyle]] and [[Plaza Hotel|The Plaza]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.hospitalitynet.org/external/4112141.html | title=Serenity in Midtown, Starting at $3,200 a Night? Aman is Betting on It}}</ref>
[[File:5 Av Apr 2024 16.jpg|thumb|The Crown Building's shaft seen from Fifth Avenue]]
The building's base originally contained numerous art galleries and showrooms.<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 362" /> Linen store Mosse Inc. was the first retail tenant, signing a lease in January 1922.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=January 4, 1922 |title=Mosse To Move To Heckscher Bldg.: First to Lease Retail Space in New Structure—-To Move About Feb. 1 |magazine=Women's Wear |pages=48 |volume=24 |issue=2 |id={{ProQuest|1666234247}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=January 4, 1922 |title=Commercial Leases; Fisk Building Store Leased for Term at $1,000,000. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1922/01/04/archives/commercial-leases-fisk-building-store-leased-for-term-at-1000000.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616223854/https://www.nytimes.com/1922/01/04/archives/commercial-leases-fisk-building-store-leased-for-term-at-1000000.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Tenants with full floors in the building included upholstery and decoration distributor Stroheim & Romann,<ref>{{cite news |date=January 15, 1922 |title=Entire Floor in Heckscher Bldg for Decorative Art: "Finest in America." Say Sire heim Romann. Who Will Occupy Space |work=New-York Tribune |page=A10 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|576557534}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=January 15, 1922 |title=Upholsterers in Lease; Removal to Heckscher Building Shows Trade Centre Change. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1922/01/15/archives/upholsterers-in-lease-removal-to-heckscher-building-shows-trade.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616223854/https://www.nytimes.com/1922/01/15/archives/upholsterers-in-lease-removal-to-heckscher-building-shows-trade.html |url-status=live }}</ref> the [[Consolidated Cigar]] Company,<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 21, 1922 |title=Commercial Leases; Consolidated Cigar Corporation Will Move to Heckscher Building. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1922/02/21/archives/commercial-leases-consolidated-cigar-corporation-will-move-to.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616223853/https://www.nytimes.com/1922/02/21/archives/commercial-leases-consolidated-cigar-corporation-will-move-to.html |url-status=live }}</ref> stockbroker J. P. Benkard & Co.,<ref>{{cite news |date=December 22, 1922 |title=Stock Exchange Brokers Get Space in Heckscher Building |work=New-York Tribune |page=20 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|576737006}}}}</ref> and oil refiner Cosden & Co.<ref>{{cite news |date=July 7, 1922 |title=Oil Refiners Lease Floor In Heckscher Building |work=New-York Tribune |page=20 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|576662877}}}}</ref> ''Women's Wear'' wrote that the building's completion coincided with the increasing concentration of businesses along 57th Street,<ref>{{cite magazine |date=November 20, 1922 |title=57th Street Taking Place As New Business District: Growth Has Been Almost Over Night Seen as Rich Mine for Retailers — Heckscher Bldg. Among New Structures |magazine=Women's Wear |pages=33 |volume=25 |issue=118 |id={{ProQuest|1666220197}}}}</ref> while the ''New York Herald Tribune'' wrote that its construction accelerated the street's commercial redevelopment.<ref>{{cite news |date=April 27, 1941 |title=August Heckscher Dies at 92; Benefactor of Poor Children: German Immigrant Was Minn Executive, Financier and a Leading New York Real Estate Owner; Gave Parks and $5,000,000 Building Characteristic Scene From the Life of a Philanthropist |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1248452974}}}}</ref> In any case, the building was nearly fully occupied in October 1923,<ref name="NYCL p. 11" /> and fashion store Joseph's leased the building's last available storefront in October 1924.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=October 27, 1924 |title=Joseph's To Be Located On 57th Street: Lease 30,000 Square Feet On 15-Year Lease — Expect To Occupy By Jan. 1, 1925. |magazine=Women's Wear |pages=1 |volume=29 |issue=100 |id={{ProQuest|1676935689}}}}</ref> Other early tenants with large amounts of space included jewelers Udall & Ballou<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 2, 1923 |title=Leases on Fifth Avenue; Jewelers in Long-Term Lease for Fifty-Seventh Street Corner. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1923/05/02/archives/leases-on-fifth-avenue-jewelers-in-longterm-lease-for-fiftyseventh.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616235046/https://www.nytimes.com/1923/05/02/archives/leases-on-fifth-avenue-jewelers-in-longterm-lease-for-fiftyseventh.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and the Hadley-Leon apparel store.<ref>{{cite magazine |date=January 8, 1924 |title=Hadley-Leon Shop, Smartly Decorated, Has Formal Opening: Comprehensive Stock Includes Airy Evening Types Of Chiffon And Lace—Interesting Cottons For Daytime |magazine=Women's Wear |pages=3 |volume=28 |issue=6 |id={{ProQuest|1676647833}}}}</ref> Harry Payne Whitney offered $7 million to buy the building in 1926, though Heckscher declined.<ref>{{cite news |date=December 9, 1934 |title=Heckscher Refused 7 Million for Building |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=I1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1221540895}}}}</ref> Instead, Heckscher refinanced the building in 1930 with a $4.5 million mortgage loan, replacing the previous mortgages.<ref>{{cite news |date=June 5, 1930 |title=Real Estate Transactions in City and Suburbs: Heckscher Gets $4,500,000 on His Building Loan Covers 25-Story Structure Erected Ninety {{sic|nolink=y}} Years Ago at 5th Ave., 57th St. |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=40 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1113293259}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=June 5, 1930 |title=Heckscher Building in 5th Av. Financed by $4,500,000 Loan |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1930/06/05/archives/heckscher-building-in-5th-av-financed-by-4500000-loan.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617003724/https://www.nytimes.com/1930/06/05/archives/heckscher-building-in-5th-av-financed-by-4500000-loan.html |url-status=live }}</ref>


The [[Museum of Modern Art]] moved into a six-room gallery on the Heckscher Building's twelfth floor in November 1929;<ref>{{cite news |date=November 7, 1929 |title=New Modern Art Museum Opens Exhibit Today: First Showing of Paintings in Heckscher Building Galleries L. by Invitation Admit Public Tomorrow Patrons Lend Works by Cezanne Gauguin. Seurat |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=48 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1111742689}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=November 7, 1929 |title=Shows Modern Art Here Tomorrow; New Museum in the Heckscher Building to Hold Private Exhibition Today |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1929/11/07/archives/shows-modern-art-here-tomorrow-new-museum-in-the-heckscher-building.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616235046/https://www.nytimes.com/1929/11/07/archives/shows-modern-art-here-tomorrow-new-museum-in-the-heckscher-building.html |url-status=live }}</ref> it was MoMA's first-ever location.<ref name="Rotham 2014 775">{{cite magazine |last=Rothman |first=Lily |date=November 7, 2014 |title=The Museum of Modern Art, Then and Now |url=https://time.com/3559798/moma-history/ |access-date=June 16, 2024 |magazine=TIME |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616235047/https://time.com/3559798/moma-history/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Among the notable exhibitions that MoMA hosted at the building was the ''Modern Architecture: International Exhibition'',<ref name="Roche x713">{{cite web |last=Roche |first=Daniel Jonas |date=May 14, 2024 |title=Landmarks Preservation Commission designates the Heckscher Building, a French Renaissance tower by Warren & Wetmore from 1922 |url=https://www.archpaper.com/2024/05/landmarks-preservation-commission-designates-heckscher-building/ |access-date=June 15, 2024 |website=The Architect's Newspaper |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615011703/https://www.archpaper.com/2024/05/landmarks-preservation-commission-designates-heckscher-building/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Jewell |first=Edward Alden |date=February 9, 1932 |title=Modern Architecture Shown. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1932/02/09/archives/modern-architecture-shown.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617003723/https://www.nytimes.com/1932/02/09/archives/modern-architecture-shown.html |url-status=live }}</ref> in which curators [[Henry-Russell Hitchcock]] and [[Philip Johnson]] popularized the term [[International Style]].<ref>{{cite web |date=August 2, 2013 |title=AD Classics: Modern Architecture International Exhibition / Philip Johnson and Henry-Russell Hitchcock |url=https://www.archdaily.com/409918/ad-classics-modern-architecture-international-exhibition-philip-johnson-and-henry-russell-hitchcock |access-date=June 15, 2024 |website=ArchDaily |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625140736/https://www.archdaily.com/409918/ad-classics-modern-architecture-international-exhibition-philip-johnson-and-henry-russell-hitchcock |url-status=live }}</ref> MoMA also displayed work from other artists, such as [[Vincent van Gogh]], [[Paul Cézanne]], [[Georges Seurat]], and [[Paul Gauguin]], at the Heckscher Building.<ref name="Roche x713" /> In the same building, the Mexican artist [[Diego Rivera]] had rented a studio where, in 1931, he created works for a MoMA exhibition.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Bender |first=Courtney |date=2021 |title=Mrs. Rockefeller's Exquisite Corpse |journal=Comparative Studies in Society and History |volume=63 |issue=4 |pages=788–789 |doi=10.1017/S0010417521000244 |issn=0010-4175}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=December 22, 1931 |title=Rivera Paintings To Be Exhibited Privately Today: 5 Large Frescoes Featured in Showing of Mexican's Art at Modern Museum Public Opening Tomorrow 148 Works Included in Unusual One-Man Display |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=15 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1114239905}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=November 15, 1931 |title=Rivera Here, Ready for Painting Show; Noted Mexican Artist Worked En Route on 5 Canvases Needed for Exhibit |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1931/11/15/archives/rivera-here-ready-for-painting-show-noted-mexican-artist-worked-en.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617003723/https://www.nytimes.com/1931/11/15/archives/rivera-here-ready-for-painting-show-noted-mexican-artist-worked-en.html |url-status=live }}</ref> MoMA remained at the Heckscher Building until 1932,<ref name="Horsley 1978" /><ref name="Rotham 2014 775" /> when it moved to [[53rd Street (Manhattan)|53rd Street]].<ref>{{cite news |date=January 21, 1932 |title=W. 53d St. Building Is Leased as Home Of Modern Museum: 5-Story Structure To Be Occupied by May 1; Move Is Part of Bliss Plan |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=17 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1114848138}}}}</ref> During the 1930s, other tenants with large amounts of space included womenswear company Nelson-Hickson Inc.,<ref>{{Cite news |date=August 3, 1932 |title=Large Space Leased by Fifth Av. Store; Nelson-Hickson Firm to Move to Heckscher Building – Other Business Rentals. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1932/08/03/archives/large-space-leased-by-fifth-av-store-nelsonhkkson-firm-to-move-to.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617003723/https://www.nytimes.com/1932/08/03/archives/large-space-leased-by-fifth-av-store-nelsonhkkson-firm-to-move-to.html |url-status=live }}</ref> linen retailers William Coulson & Sons,<ref>{{cite news |date=November 25, 1932 |title=173-Year-Old Concern Rents Fifth Av. Space: William Coulson & Sons Will Locate in Heckscher Building on Fifth Ave |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=28 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1114732911}}}}</ref> antiques dealer Symons Inc.,<ref>{{cite news |date=January 9, 1934 |title=Antique Dealer Adds to Space On 5th Avenue: Symons Organization Takes Large Additional Unit in Heckscher Building |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=34 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1222204369}}}}</ref> film studio [[Universal Pictures]],<ref>{{cite news |date=April 22, 1935 |title=Real Estate: Jewel Dealer Leases Space In 48th Street Universal Pictures Rents Penthouse in the Annex of 730 Fifth Avenue |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=29 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1242903472}}}}</ref> and camera maker E. Leitz Inc.<ref>{{cite news |date=January 14, 1937 |title=Camera Makers Move to Larger Midtown Space: E. Leitz, Inc., Takes 15,000 Square Feet in Heckscher Building; Other Leases |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=37 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1223003218}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=January 14, 1937 |title=Camera Firm Rents Floor in Fifth Av.; E. Leitz, Inc., Takes Quarters in Heckscher Building—Printers Lease Space in Brooklyn. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1937/01/14/archives/camera-firm-rents-floor-in-fifth-av-e-leitz-inc-takes-quarters-in.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617180015/https://www.nytimes.com/1937/01/14/archives/camera-firm-rents-floor-in-fifth-av-e-leitz-inc-takes-quarters-in.html |url-status=live }}</ref> There was also a four-room exhibition studio for Studio Guild Galleries,<ref>{{cite magazine |date=September 13, 1937 |title=Exhibition: New York Club Pays Rent and Pleases Artists |magazine=Newsweek |pages=25 |volume=10 |issue=11 |id={{ProQuest|1882519616}}}}</ref> in addition to a [[contract bridge]] club<ref>{{cite news |date=March 28, 1934 |title=New Bridge Club Rents in Midtown: Shepard Barclay Heads Group to Occupy Floors in the Heckscher Building. |work=The New York Times |page=42 |issn=0362-4331 |id={{ProQuest|101045255}}}}</ref> and a luncheon club.<ref>{{cite news |date=February 26, 1939 |title=New Luncheon Club Rents on 5th Avenue |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=C1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1243147141}}}}</ref>
==Current retail tenants==

*[[Bulgari]]
With the [[construction of Rockefeller Center]] nearby in the 1930s, Heckscher blamed [[Rockefeller Center]]'s developers for decreased demand at his building.<ref name="nyt-1934-12-05">{{Cite news |date=December 5, 1934 |title=Sues to Foreclose Heckscher Corner; City Bank Asks Sale of 5th Av. and 57th St. Building for $84,320 Unpaid Taxes |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1934/12/05/archives/sues-to-foreclose-heckscher-corner-city-bank-asks-sale-of-5th-av.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616184517/https://www.nytimes.com/1934/12/05/archives/sues-to-foreclose-heckscher-corner-city-bank-asks-sale-of-5th-av.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=January 11, 1934 |title=Heckscher Suit Asks 10 Million Of Rockefeller: Cites Unfair Competition; Calls Midlown Center a Frankenstein Monster |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1242834815}}}}</ref> Heckscher sued Rockefeller Center's developers for $10 million in January 1934, claiming that the developers took over the tenants' old leases at below [[market rate]] or paid tenants to disregard or cancel the leases at their old buildings.<ref>{{cite news |date=January 11, 1934 |title=Heckscher Suit Asks 10 Million Of Rockefeller: Cites Unfair Competition; Calls Midlown Center a Frankenstein Monster |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1242834815}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |last=Warren |first=Carl |date=January 13, 1934 |title=Another Lease Spurs Attack on Radio City |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-another-lease-spurs-attack-on/149508541/ |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=Daily News |pages=5 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617180018/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-another-lease-spurs-attack-on/149508541/ |url-status=live }}</ref> No [[trial]] was ever held for the lawsuit,<ref name="Horsley 1978" /> and in December 1934, the [[City Bank-Farmers Trust Company]] filed to foreclose on the building's mortgage.<ref name="nyt-1934-12-05" /><ref>{{cite news |date=December 5, 1934 |title=Foreclosure Suit Is Filed Over Heckscher Building |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=35 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1221537228}}}}</ref> The Heckscher Building was offered for sale at a foreclosure auction in early July 1938,<ref>{{cite news |date=July 3, 1938 |title=Heckscher Building Goes On the Block This Week |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=C1 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1243160808}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=July 3, 1938 |title=Heckscher Building Offered at Auction; Fifth Avenue Skyscraper in Forced Sale This Week |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1938/07/03/archives/heckscher-building-offered-at-auction-fifth-avenue-skyscraper-in.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616184519/https://www.nytimes.com/1938/07/03/archives/heckscher-building-offered-at-auction-fifth-avenue-skyscraper-in.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and City Bank Farmers Trust paid $4.25 million for the structure that month.<ref>{{cite news |date=July 7, 1938 |title=Heckscher Building Sold On Bid of $4,250,000 |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=33 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1251471588}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=July 3, 1938 |title=Heckscher Building Offered at Auction; Fifth Avenue Skyscraper in Forced Sale This Week |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1938/07/03/archives/heckscher-building-offered-at-auction-fifth-avenue-skyscraper-in.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616184519/https://www.nytimes.com/1938/07/03/archives/heckscher-building-offered-at-auction-fifth-avenue-skyscraper-in.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
*[[Ermenegildo Zegna]]

*[[Mikimoto Kōkichi#Mikimoto Pearl Company|Mikimoto]]
=== Mid-20th century ===
[[File:5 Av Apr 2024 31.jpg|thumb|Stores along the 57th Street side of the Crown Building]]
During the 1940s, space in the building was leased to tenants such as dressmaker Wilma Gowns,<ref>{{cite news |date=July 25, 1940 |title=Gown Concern Rents Big Store In 57th Street: Wilma Organization to Pay a Minimum of $225,000 for Plaza Zone Space |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=31 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1247797307}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=July 25, 1940 |title=Dress Firm Goes to Fifth Avenue; Takes Shop and Mezzanine in Heckscher Building for Ten Years |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1940/07/25/archives/dress-firm-goes-to-fifth-avenue-takes-shop-and-mezzanine-in.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617180017/https://www.nytimes.com/1940/07/25/archives/dress-firm-goes-to-fifth-avenue-takes-shop-and-mezzanine-in.html |url-status=live }}</ref> perfume seller Parfums Charbert,<ref>{{cite news |date=April 18, 1944 |title=Parfums Charbert Rents Heckscher Building Space |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=30 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1282891126}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=April 14, 1944 |title=4 Floors Leased by Jewish Board |work=The New York Times |page=32 |issn=0362-4331 |id={{ProQuest|106789649}}}}</ref> and the Motion Picture Sales Corporation.<ref>{{cite news |date=May 18, 1949 |title=Film Concern Leases: New Sales Organization Takes Floor in 730 Fifth Avenue |work=The New York Times |page=48 |issn=0362-4331 |id={{ProQuest|105992672}}}}</ref> In addition, the building's weather vane was removed in 1942 to provide scrap metal for World War II.<ref name="nyt-1991-02-03" /> In January 1946, Charles F. Noyes and a partner agreed to buy the building as an investment for Noyes's family.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1946a" /><ref name="nyt-1946-01-16">{{Cite news |last=Cooper |first=Lee E. |date=January 16, 1946 |title=Noyes Investing Interests Get 25-Story Heckscher Building; Big Office Structure on Fifth Avenue Is Reported to Have an Annual Rent Roll of About $700,000 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/16/archives/noyes-investing-interests-get-25story-heckscher-building-big-office.html |access-date=June 15, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616004030/https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/16/archives/noyes-investing-interests-get-25story-heckscher-building-big-office.html |url-status=live }}</ref> At the time, the structure was earning $700,000 in rent per year and was valued at $4.875 million for tax purposes.<ref name="nyt-1946-01-16" /> The sale was finalized the next month. Noyes gave his ownership stake to his daughter, whom media sources referred to as "Mrs. Duncan M. Findlay", and the developer [[Joseph Durst]] was revealed as Noyes's partner.<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 14, 1946 |title=5th Ave. Title Passed; Deed Shows Noyes Paid $5,000,000 for Heckscher Building |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1946/02/14/archives/5th-ave-title-passed-deed-shows-noyes-paid-5000000-for-heckscher.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617180015/https://www.nytimes.com/1946/02/14/archives/5th-ave-title-passed-deed-shows-noyes-paid-5000000-for-heckscher.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1946">{{cite news |date=February 8, 1946 |title=Joseph Durst Mystery Man in Heckscher Deal: Fanner of Charles Noyes in Purchase of 25-Story Building, 5th Av., 57th St |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=23 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1284547354}}}}</ref> The ''Herald Tribune'' wrote that Durst had urged Noyes to buy the building after several other developers had expressed interest in the building,<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1946" /> and that Noyes had rejected an outside offer of $5 million for the building.<ref>{{cite news |date=February 3, 1946 |title=Profit Offered For Heckselier Sale Contract: "Cannot Break My Promise to Grandchildren, "Noyes Says in Refusing Fortune |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=C8 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1267891293}}}}</ref>

Durst and Duncan Findlay received a $4.15 million mortgage loan for the building in mid-1949.<ref>{{cite news |date=August 10, 1949 |title=Loan of $4,150,000 on 5th Ave. Corner |work=The New York Times |page=39 |issn=0362-4331 |id={{ProQuest|105749592}}}}</ref> The Durst and Findlay families sold the building in November 1950 to Kenneth S. Keyes, who represented two anonymous Cuban investors.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1950" /> The buyers paid $1.965 million in cash and took over the building's existing $4.01 million mortgage.<ref>{{cite news |date=January 9, 1951 |title=Transfers and Financing |work=New York Herald Tribune |page=33 |issn=1941-0646 |id={{ProQuest|1318530376}}}}</ref> By then, the building's tenants paid about $1 million in annual rent and occupied about {{convert|300,000|ft2}} of office space.<ref name="New York Herald Tribune 1950" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Cooper |first=Lee E. |date=November 5, 1950 |title=Heckscher Tower on 5th Ave. Goes to Havana Buyers; Findlay and Durst Families Sell 25-Story Office Skyscraper on 57th Street Corner |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1950/11/05/archives/heckscher-tower-on-5th-ave-goes-to-havana-buyers-findlay-and-durst.html |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616184517/https://www.nytimes.com/1950/11/05/archives/heckscher-tower-on-5th-ave-goes-to-havana-buyers-findlay-and-durst.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Further space was leased in the 1950s and 1960s to tenants such as specialty shop Blackton-Fifth Avenue Ltd.,<ref>{{cite magazine |date=February 23, 1951 |title=Corsets – Brassieres: To Open Newest Blackton Unit |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=42 |volume=82 |issue=38 |id={{ProQuest|1522629719}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=March 17, 1950 |title=Apparel Shop Gets Two 5th Ave. Stores |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1950/03/17/archives/apparel-shop-gets-two-5th-ave-stores.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617190238/https://www.nytimes.com/1950/03/17/archives/apparel-shop-gets-two-5th-ave-stores.html |url-status=live }}</ref> the U.S. Senate campaign offices of [[Herbert Lehman]],<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 4, 1950 |title=Lehman Party Today; Candidate to Open Offices at 730 Fifth Avenue |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1950/10/04/archives/lehman-party-today-candidate-to-open-offices-at-730-fifth-avenue.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617190238/https://www.nytimes.com/1950/10/04/archives/lehman-party-today-candidate-to-open-offices-at-730-fifth-avenue.html |url-status=live }}</ref> talent agency Mercury Artists,<ref>{{cite magazine |date=May 23, 1953 |title=Night Clubs-Vaude: Mercury Has Lush Set-Up At 730 5th |magazine=The Billboard |pages=19 |volume=65 |issue=21 |id={{ProQuest|1040278078}}}}</ref> paint company Martin-Senour,<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 21, 1959 |title=Space is Leased Top Paint Maker; Martin-Senour to Be Tenant in 730 Fifth Ave. – Carton Company Takes Floor |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1959/12/21/archives/space-is-leased-top-paint-maker-martinsenour-to-be-tenant-in-730.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617190239/https://www.nytimes.com/1959/12/21/archives/space-is-leased-top-paint-maker-martinsenour-to-be-tenant-in-730.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and cosmetic and perfume company Lanvin-Charles of the Ritz.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 7, 1964 |title=Big Space Taken at 730 Fifth Ave; Lanvin - Charles of the Ritz to Consolidate Offices |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1964/07/07/archives/big-space-taken-at-730-fifth-ave-lanvin-charles-of-the-ritz-to.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 13, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240613073552/https://www.nytimes.com/1964/07/07/archives/big-space-taken-at-730-fifth-ave-lanvin-charles-of-the-ritz-to.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The building was renamed the '''Genesco Building''' in 1964, when [[Genesco]] became a major tenant.<ref name="nyt-1991-02-03" /><ref name="NYCL p. 14">{{harvnb|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024|ps=.|p=14}}</ref> At the time, Genesco owned an I. Miller shoe store at the base and the [[Bonwit Teller]] department store across the street.<ref name="NYCL p. 14" /> In 1966, the building was sold to Centurion Real Estate Inc.<ref name="Horsley 1978" /><ref name="NYCL p. 14" /> [[Paul Goldberger]] of ''The New York Times'' wrote in the 1970s that the base of the Genesco Building contained a wooden tent which housed the I. Miller store.<ref name="nyt-1976-09-24">{{Cite news |last=Goldberger |first=Paul |date=September 24, 1976 |title=Metropolitan Baedeker |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1976/09/24/archives/metropolitan-baedeker-strolling-elegant-57th-street.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617190238/https://www.nytimes.com/1976/09/24/archives/metropolitan-baedeker-strolling-elegant-57th-street.html |url-status=live }}</ref> By the late 1970s, Centurion reported that the building was nearly fully occupied.<ref name="Horsley 1978" />

=== Marcos ownership ===

==== Acquisition, renovation, and new tenants ====
[[File:5_Av_Apr_2024_98.jpg|alt=The Crown Building as seen from one block north. 712 Fifth Avenue is in the background, and the Bergdorf Goodman Building is in the foreground.|thumb|The Crown Building as seen from one block north. [[712 Fifth Avenue]] is in the background, and the [[Bergdorf Goodman Building]] is in the foreground.]]
The Genesco Building at 730 Fifth Avenue was sold in September 1981 to Ralph and Joseph Bernstein of the New York Land Company, which was initially reported to be representing an anonymous Canadian investment group.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barmash |first=Isadore |date=July 15, 1982 |title=Herald Sq. Korvettes Store to Be Mall |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/15/business/herald-sq-korvettes-store-to-be-mall.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617195716/https://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/15/business/herald-sq-korvettes-store-to-be-mall.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The real buyer was [[Imelda Marcos]], the wife of Philippine dictator [[Ferdinand Marcos]], who purchased it through a Dutch Antillean company named Lastura Corp. N.V.<ref name="nyt-1986-03-21">{{Cite news |last=Perlez |first=Jane |date=March 21, 1986 |title=Marcos Linked to Four Manhattan Sites |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/21/world/marcos-linked-to-four-manhattan-sites.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=July 21, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200721084146/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/21/world/marcos-linked-to-four-manhattan-sites.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Lastura, in turn, was owned by a Panamanian shell company.<ref name="nyt-1991-01-13">{{Cite news |last=Dunlap |first=David W. |date=January 13, 1991 |title=Commercial Property: The Bernstein Brothers; A Tangled Tale of Americas Towers and the Crown |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/01/13/realestate/commercial-property-bernstein-brothers-tangled-tale-americas-towers-crown.html |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=November 14, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131114134628/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/01/13/realestate/commercial-property-bernstein-brothers-tangled-tale-americas-towers-crown.html |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Efn|The owner of the Lastura Corporation has been variously cited as Trade & Commodities S.A., Paneles Porcelanizados S.A., and Yewell Compagnie Immobiliere S.A.<ref name="nyt-1991-01-13" /> Lastura itself was subsequently renamed the Canadian Land Company, then Crown Building N.V.<ref name="nyt-1991-01-13" /><ref name="Filipino Reporter 1994" />}} In a subsequent criminal case, one witness testified that Ferdinand Marcos was initially reluctant to buy the building, but relented after his wife tearfully pleaded for him to purchase it.<ref>{{cite news |last=Moses |first=Paul |date=April 10, 1990 |title=Banker: Imelda's Tears Did Trick |work=Newsday |page=17 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|2122298155}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |last=Wolff |first=Craig |date=April 10, 1990 |title=Marcos Said to Have Wept for Gift Of Skyscraper From Her Husband |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/10/nyregion/marcos-said-to-have-wept-for-gift-of-skyscraper-from-her-husband.html |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625140842/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/04/10/nyregion/marcos-said-to-have-wept-for-gift-of-skyscraper-from-her-husband.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The acquisition cost $51 million.<ref>{{cite news |last=Waldman |first=Myron S. |date=April 10, 1986 |title=The Marcos Bite of Big Apple: Marcoses' Manhattan Millions Real-estate dealers reveal holdings of Philippines' ex-first family |work=Newsday |page=1 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|1645363045}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=November 20, 1985 |title=Where is the Wealth? U. S. Holdings Are Cited |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/11/20/world/where-is-the-wealth-us-holdings-are-cited.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617202612/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/11/20/world/where-is-the-wealth-us-holdings-are-cited.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="wp-1986-03-30" /><ref name="Moritz 1986">{{Cite news |last=Moritz |first=Owen |date=February 27, 1986 |title=Marcos unloading land |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-marcos-unloading-land/149529050/ |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=Daily News |pages=103 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617220147/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-marcos-unloading-land/149529050/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Joseph Bernstein was designated as the trustee for Lastura Corp. N.V.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bivins |first=Larry |date=March 21, 1986 |title=Mister New York |work=Newsday |page=4 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|285269172}} }}</ref><ref name="nyt-1986-03-21" /> According to later testimony from Bernstein, the Marcoses had obtained a loan to purchase the Crown Building, including $34 million from [[BNP Paribas]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Pasztor |first=Andy |date=April 10, 1986 |title=New York Developers Apparently Link Marcos, Wife to Property in Manhattan |work=The Wall Street Journal |page=B1 |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|397957646}}}}</ref> Marcos also received a $30 million loan from [[Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas]], the Philippines Central Bank;<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gerth |first=Jeff |date=March 9, 1986 |title=Manila Has Data on Marcos Holdings |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/09/world/manila-has-data-on-marcos-holdings.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617220145/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/09/world/manila-has-data-on-marcos-holdings.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Carey 1986">{{Cite news |last=Carey |first=Pete |date=March 11, 1986 |title=Ferdy's 30M scheme |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-ferdys-30m-scheme/149528206/ |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=Daily News |pages=299 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617220147/https://www.newspapers.com/article/daily-news-ferdys-30m-scheme/149528206/ |url-status=live }}</ref> he allegedly forced an associate to submit a fraudulent loan application to the bank.<ref name="Carey 1986" />

The Genesco Building was renamed the '''Crown Building''' in 1983, after its crown-like look when illuminated at night.<ref name="JewishSpitzers" /> New York Land subsequently spent $15 million on redecorating the building,<ref name="Selvin 1989">{{cite news |last=Selvin |first=Barbara W. |date=November 6, 1989 |title=Commercial Real Estate Marcos Sales Tough Task to Master |work=Newsday |page=2 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278166916}}}}</ref><ref name="Lipman 1986" /> and it paid another $70 million to buy and renovate a [[Korvettes]] storefront in the building.<ref name="Lipman 1986">{{cite news |last=Lipman |first=Joanne |date=March 6, 1986 |title=The Landlord's Lot Is Not an Easy One; Ask the Marcoses – Minding New York Property And Its Hired Managers Is Difficult From Manila |work=The Wall Street Journal |page=1 |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|398034533}}}}</ref> The new owners added 23-karat gold leaf to the building's facade,<ref name="Daily News 1982" /><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Carmody |first1=Deirdre |last2=Haberman |first2=Clyde |date=September 22, 1982 |title=New York Day by Day |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/09/22/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-169416.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617195712/https://www.nytimes.com/1982/09/22/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-169416.html |url-status=live }}</ref> reportedly to compete with the decorations on the nearby Trump Tower.<ref name="Moritz 1986" /> New York Land hired lighting designer [[Douglas Leigh]] to renovate the building's exterior lighting.<ref>{{cite news |last=Guenther |first=Robert |date=March 21, 1984 |title=Landlord's Unusual Response To Rent Controls Stirs Fight |work=The Wall Street Journal |page=1 |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|397839076}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |last=Fowler |first=Glenn |date=January 5, 1983 |title=Landmark At 40 Wall Is Sold; |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/01/05/business/landmark-at-40-wall-is-sold.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=July 31, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150731054925/http://www.nytimes.com/1983/01/05/business/landmark-at-40-wall-is-sold.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Leigh also added floodlights atop the Tiffany, Manufacturers Hanover, and Bergdorf Goodman buildings, at the other three corners of the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street, to match the Crown Building's lights.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rodriguez |first=Robert F. |date=May 15, 1983 |title=Nightlights |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-times-nightlights/149518375/ |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The Daily Times |pages=168, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-times-nightlights/149518415/ 170], [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-times-nightlights/149518450/ 171], [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-times-nightlights/149518495/ 173], [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-times-nightlights/149518521/ 179] |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617195710/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-times-nightlights/149518375/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="nyt-1983-01-19">{{Cite news |last1=Herman |first1=Robin |last2=Johnston |first2=Laurie |date=January 19, 1983 |title=New York Day by Day |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/01/19/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-174985.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617195713/https://www.nytimes.com/1983/01/19/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-174985.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The new lights atop all four buildings were activated in January 1983,<ref name="nyt-1983-01-19" /> though local businesses complained about the brightness and glare created by the other three buildings' lights.<ref>{{cite news |last=Goldberger |first=Paul |date=March 4, 1983 |title=For Some, Lights on a 5th Avenue Corner Are an Irritation |work=The New York Times |page=C28 |issn=0362-4331 |id={{ProQuest|122292597}}}}</ref> New York Land funded the installation of a large illuminated snowflake-shaped object above Fifth Avenue and 57th Street,<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Anderson |first1=Susan Heller |last2=Bird |first2=David |date=January 3, 1986 |title=New York Day by Day; Durable Flake |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/03/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-durable-flake.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625141345/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/03/nyregion/new-york-day-by-day-durable-flake.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and they upgraded the elevators as well.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goncharoff |first=Katya |date=July 24, 1983 |title=New Hope for Those Impatient With Elevator Service |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/07/24/realestate/new-hope-for-those-impatient-with-elevator-service.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617195709/https://www.nytimes.com/1983/07/24/realestate/new-hope-for-those-impatient-with-elevator-service.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

During the 1980s, a group of 38 art galleries leased the building's second and third floors.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brenson |first=Michael |date=May 20, 1983 |title=Art People; City's art policeman. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/05/20/arts/art-people-city-s-art-policeman.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617195713/https://www.nytimes.com/1983/05/20/arts/art-people-city-s-art-policeman.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Other new tenants during that decade included a store for [[Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A.]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kennedy |first=Shawn G. |date=August 26, 1984 |title=New Signs of Old Glamour on Fifth Ave. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/08/26/realestate/new-signs-of-old-glamour-on-fifth-ave.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210614200723/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/08/26/realestate/new-signs-of-old-glamour-on-fifth-ave.html |url-status=live }}</ref> a temporary construction office for [[Donald Trump]],<ref name="Lipman 1986" /> the headquarters of fashion brand [[Pierre Cardin (brand)|Pierre Cardin]],<ref>{{cite magazine |date=March 7, 1986 |title=Cardin U.S.A. Moving Into Crown Building |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=13 |volume=151 |issue=46 |id={{ProQuest|1445599430}}}}</ref> and a jewelry gallery.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Behen |first=Madonna |date=December 1, 1989 |title=Artium Opens Gallery Of Jewelry In Manhattan |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=10 |volume=158 |issue=104 |id={{ProQuest|1445589400}}}}</ref> New York Land also wanted to market the office space to large firms, so it paid some of the smaller tenants to move out.<ref name="Lipman 1986" /> Shoe companies opened showrooms within the building, and retail space was being rented for about {{Convert|500|$/ft2}} by the late 1980s, making it among the world's most expensive retail space.<ref name="Selvin 1989" /> Among the retail tenants at that time were [[Bulgari]] and [[Sharper Image]].<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Moin |first=David |date=February 13, 1989 |title=57th And Fifth: The Street Is Paved With Gold: The Gilding Of 57th And Fifth |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=1, 4, 5 |volume=151 |issue=30 |id={{ProQuest|1445726384}}}}</ref> Also during that decade, preservationists had proposed designating the Crown Building as a contributing property to a planned historic district along the midtown section of Fifth Avenue. The historic district was never created.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Shepard |first=Joan |date=February 13, 1985 |title=Developers' lust decried |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/79056117/developers-lust-decried/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210606171341/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/79056117/developers-lust-decried/ |archive-date=June 6, 2021 |access-date=June 6, 2021 |work=New York Daily News |pages=119}}</ref>

==== Attempted sales ====
In August 1985, opposition politicians in the [[National Assembly of the Philippines]] submitted a complaint in an unsuccessful attempt to impeach Marcos; the complaint alleged that Imelda Marcos had bought the Crown Building in 1981.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lohr |first=Steve |date=August 14, 1985 |title=Marcos Allies Bar Impeachment Bill |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/14/world/marcos-allies-bar-impeachment-bill.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625141346/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/14/world/marcos-allies-bar-impeachment-bill.html |url-status=live }}</ref> A [[United States House of Representatives]] committee found that the Bernsteins had been working on behalf of Marcos,<ref>{{Cite news |date=January 24, 1986 |title=Lawyer: Marcos Ownership Implied |pages=16 |work=Newsday |via=newspapers.com |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100187001/lawyer-marcos-ownership-implied/ |access-date=April 21, 2022 |archive-date=April 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220421182252/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100187001/lawyer-marcos-ownership-implied/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Gerth |first=Jeff |date=January 16, 1986 |title=U.S. Panel Links a Banker to Marcos |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/16/world/us-panel-links-a-banker-to-marcos.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220421183252/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/16/world/us-panel-links-a-banker-to-marcos.html |archive-date=April 21, 2022 |access-date=April 21, 2022 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> who had intended the building and several others as a gift for his wife [[Imelda Marcos|Imelda]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gerth |first=Jeff |date=January 30, 1986 |title=4 New York Buildings Called Marcos Gifts to Wife |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/30/world/4-new-york-buildings-called-marcos-gifts-to-wife.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220421183253/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/01/30/world/4-new-york-buildings-called-marcos-gifts-to-wife.html |archive-date=April 21, 2022 |access-date=April 21, 2022 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>{{efn|Marcos was also found to have purchased several other New York City buildings; see [[Overseas landholdings of the Marcos family]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Perlez |first=Jane |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/06/world/manila-under-aquino-lawyers-joust-manhattan-manila-wins-round-with-marcos-new.html |title=Manila Under Aquino: Lawyers Joust in Manhattan; Manila Wins Round with Marcos in New York Court |date=March 6, 1986 |work=The New York Times |access-date=April 29, 2020 |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524184933/http://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/06/world/manila-under-aquino-lawyers-joust-manhattan-manila-wins-round-with-marcos-new.html |archive-date=May 24, 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>}} ''The Washington Post'' reported that in coded cables between the Marcos family and their alleged "front" in Manhattan, Gliceria Tantoco, the Crown Building was referred to using the code word "Ferragamo".<ref name="wp-1986-03-30">{{Cite news |last=Russakoff |first=Dale |date=March 30, 1986 |title=The Philippines: Anatomy of a Looting |language=en-US |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1986/03/30/the-philippines-anatomy-of-a-looting/620251dc-cffe-46f3-be40-a248f501882c/ |access-date=October 15, 2021 |issn=0190-8286 |archive-date=August 25, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200825214557/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1986/03/30/the-philippines-anatomy-of-a-looting/620251dc-cffe-46f3-be40-a248f501882c/ |url-status=live}}</ref> By February 1986, the Crown Building and three other buildings reportedly owned by the Marcoses were being placed for sale.<ref name="Moritz 1986" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Gerth |first=Jeff |date=February 22, 1986 |title=4 New York Buildings Linked to Marcos Up for Sale |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/02/22/world/4-new-york-buildings-linked-to-marcos-up-for-sale.html |access-date=December 27, 2022 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=December 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221228033208/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/02/22/world/4-new-york-buildings-linked-to-marcos-up-for-sale.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Around that time, the Bernsteins were contemplating paying $250 million for the Crown Building and two of the other buildings.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bivins |first=Larry |date=February 28, 1986 |title=Bernstein Brothers: Killer B's |work=Newsday |page=3 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|285254349}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |last=Lipman |first=Joanne |date=February 25, 1986 |title=Three Buildings Linked to Marcos May Change Hands: Option Calls for Purchase Of New York Properties At Price of $2 |work=The Wall Street Journal |page=2 |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|135113247}}}}</ref> The Bernsteins alleged that they paid $235 million for the Crown Building, Herald Center, and [[40 Wall Street]],<ref name="Grant 1989" /><ref name="Berkowitz 1989">{{cite news |last1=Berkowitz |first1=Harry |last2=Selvin |first2=Barbara W. |date=February 22, 1989 |title=Marcos Properties on Block Manila 'auctions' city sites |work=Newsday |page=7 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278075383}}}}</ref> but the Philippine government claimed that the sale was never finalized.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Moses |first=Paul |date=February 15, 1988 |title='Pot of Gold' Steeped in Intrigue |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-pot-of-gold-steeped-in-intrigu/149547228/ |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=Newsday |pages=7 |archive-date=June 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618022224/https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-pot-of-gold-steeped-in-intrigu/149547228/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Saudi arms dealer [[Adnan Khashoggi]] also claimed to be involved with the building's purchase;<ref>{{Cite news |last=Perlez |first=Jane |date=December 11, 1986 |title=Marcos and Manhattan Property Case: Enter Saudi Billionaire |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/11/world/marcos-and-manhattan-property-case-enter-saudi-billionaire.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617220144/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/11/world/marcos-and-manhattan-property-case-enter-saudi-billionaire.html |url-status=live }}</ref> he asserted that he had owned the building for several years before the Bernsteins' alleged purchase.<ref name="Grant 1989" /><ref name="Berkowitz 1989" />

After Marcos was forced out of office, the administration of his successor [[Corazon Aquino]] froze Marcos's assets within U.S. banking channels in March 1986.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rosenfeld |first=Neill S. |date=March 4, 1986 |title=Marcos' NY Properties Frozen By State Court at Aquino Behest |work=Newsday |page=5 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|285295278}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |last=Pace |first=Eric |date=March 4, 1986 |title=Marcos Holdings Frozen by Judge |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/04/world/marcos-holdings-frozen-by-judge.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524184057/http://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/04/world/marcos-holdings-frozen-by-judge.html |archive-date=May 24, 2015 |access-date=April 29, 2020 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> As a result, the building's tax bills went unpaid.<ref>{{Cite news |date=May 19, 1987 |title=Court Widens Discrimination Ban |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100187704/court-widens-discrimination-ban/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220421182252/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100187704/court-widens-discrimination-ban/ |archive-date=April 21, 2022 |access-date=April 21, 2022 |work=Newsday |pages=9, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100187672/ 27] |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> A lawyer alleged that the building's value was declining under the Bernsteins' management.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bivins |first=Larry |date=April 19, 1986 |title=Value of 3 Holdings Said to Be Dropping |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-value-of-3-holdings-said-to-be-d/149527942/ |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=Newsday |pages=6 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617220145/https://www.newspapers.com/article/newsday-value-of-3-holdings-said-to-be-d/149527942/ |url-status=live }}</ref> After a U.S. circuit court ruled to block the sale of the Marcos properties in November 1986, Aquino's administration filed a lawsuit against the Marcos estate to obtain [[Title (property)|title]] to the buildings.<ref>{{cite news |date=December 30, 1986 |title=Manila Sues for Title to Marcos' N.Y. Properties |work=Los Angeles Times |page=5 |id={{ProQuest|292531084}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |date=December 30, 1986 |title=Manila Seeks Possession of 4 Manhattan Buildings |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/30/world/manila-seeks-possession-of-4-manhattan-buildings.html |access-date=December 27, 2022 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=December 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221228033207/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/12/30/world/manila-seeks-possession-of-4-manhattan-buildings.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Security Pacific Bank]] held one of the building's mortgage loans, which was worth either $60 million<ref name="nyt-1989-11-08">{{Cite news |last=Barmash |first=Isadore |date=November 8, 1989 |title=Retail Mall on 34th St. Set for Auction Today |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/11/08/business/retail-mall-on-34th-st-set-for-auction-today.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625141245/https://www.nytimes.com/1989/11/08/business/retail-mall-on-34th-st-set-for-auction-today.html |url-status=live }}</ref> or $76 million by 1989.<ref name="The New York Times 1989" /> Two additional mortgages, totaling $39 million, were held by Mabari, a Liechtenstein foundation originally operated by Khashoggi.<ref name="nyt-1991-01-13" /> The Marcoses defaulted on the Security Pacific loan in 1987,<ref>{{cite news |last=Schatz |first=Robin |date=March 2, 1987 |title=A World of Trouble At Herald Center |work=Newsday |page=1 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|285387533}}}}</ref> and the loan had been foreclosed upon by the following year.<ref>{{Cite news |date=July 13, 1988 |title=Giuliani Reportedly Seeks to Indict Marcos |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-buffalo-news-giuliani-reportedly-see/149547562/ |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The Buffalo News |pages=3 |agency=The Associated Press |archive-date=June 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618025011/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-buffalo-news-giuliani-reportedly-see/149547562/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Federal judge [[Pierre N. Leval]] ruled in 1988 that the building could be sold at a foreclosure auction.<ref name="nyt-1989-11-08" /> The first through third floors, which were leased to I. Miller and then re-leased to Bulgari, were exempted from the foreclosure auction because I. Miller's lease had been negotiated long before the Marcoses obtained the building.<ref name="nyt-1991-01-13" />

The Crown Building's disposition was unresolved for several years<ref name="Clarke 2019" /><ref name="Hylton 1991">{{cite news |last1=Hylton |first1=Richard |date=February 10, 1991 |title=Philippines Gains Little In Marcos Building Sale |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/10/nyregion/philippines-gains-little-in-marcos-building-sale.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306230338/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/10/nyregion/philippines-gains-little-in-marcos-building-sale.html |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |access-date=November 24, 2015 |work=The New York Times}}</ref> because the Philippine government, the Bernsteins, and Khashoggi each claimed ownership over it.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lowenstein |first=Roger |date=November 17, 1988 |title=Khashoggi Loses Round in Claim To 3 Marcos-Related Properties |work=The Wall Street Journal |page=1 |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|398066249}}}}</ref> The Aquino administration attempted in early 1989 to sell the four Marcos properties to [[Morris Bailey]] for $398 million, over the objections of the Bernsteins and Khashoggi.<ref name="Grant 1989">{{cite magazine |last=Grant |first=Peter |date=May 1, 1989 |title=New Twists in Battle for Marcos' Spoils |magazine=Crain's New York Business |page=23 |volume=5 |issue=18 |id={{ProQuest|219147299}}}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Barsky |first=Neil |date=February 22, 1989 |title=Philippines Sets Sale of Buildings Marcos Owned |work=Wall Street Journal |page=1 |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|398089675}}}}</ref> Khashoggi was also accused of helping the Marcoses hide their stakes in their buildings,<ref>{{cite news |last=Moses |first=Paul |date=May 10, 1990 |title=Bank VP: Marcos Didn't Repay $16M |work=Newsday |page= |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278266847}}}}</ref> although he was acquitted of all racketeering charges in relation to the properties.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wolff |first=Craig |date=July 3, 1990 |title=The Marcos Verdict; Marcos Is Cleared of All Charges In Racketeering and Fraud Case |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/03/nyregion/marcos-verdict-marcos-cleared-all-charges-racketeering-fraud-case.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200222144020/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/03/nyregion/marcos-verdict-marcos-cleared-all-charges-racketeering-fraud-case.html |archive-date=February 22, 2020 |access-date=December 28, 2022 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> By late 1989, Leval was planning a foreclosure auction for the building, setting the minimum bid at $125 million.<ref name="The New York Times 1989">{{Cite news |date=August 20, 1989 |title=Marcos Holdings Shedding Web of Intrigue |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/08/20/realestate/marcos-holdings-shedding-web-of-intrigue.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200427070252/https://www.nytimes.com/1989/08/20/realestate/marcos-holdings-shedding-web-of-intrigue.html |archive-date=April 27, 2020 |access-date=April 29, 2020 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Selvin |first=Barbara |date=October 12, 1989 |title=Bankruptcy in Curacao Muddles Marcos Parcels |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100187633/bankruptcy-in-curacao-muddles-marcos/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220421182253/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/100187633/bankruptcy-in-curacao-muddles-marcos/ |archive-date=April 21, 2022 |access-date=April 21, 2022 |work=Newsday |pages=57 |via=newspapers.com}}</ref> The auction was originally scheduled for that October,<ref name="nyt-1989-11-08" /><ref>{{cite news |last=Selvin |first=Barbara W. |date=October 19, 1989 |title=Hot Properties City Architect Has Designs on Hungary |work=Newsday |page=57 |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278132642}}}}</ref> but it was rescheduled eight times due to uncertainty over who owned the structure.<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1991">{{cite news |date=February 9, 1991 |title=Bidding is weak at Marcos sale |work=Chicago Tribune |page=1 |issn=1085-6706 |id={{ProQuest|283033105}} |agency=Reuters}}</ref> An unidentified buyer offered $120 million for the building the following year.<ref name="The Wall Street Journal 1991">{{cite news |date=February 11, 1991 |title=New York Crown Building Auctioned at $93.6 Million |work=The Wall Street Journal |page=B5A |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|398215049}}}}</ref>

=== Spitzer, Winter, and Greene ownership ===
The Aquino administration, Khashoggi, and the Bernsteins settled their conflicting claims to the building in late 1990, agreeing to split the profits after the building was sold and the mortgage was paid off.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pacelle |first=Mitchell |date=February 8, 1991 |title=Crown Building's Auction May Define Extent of New York Real Estate Decline |work=The Wall Street Journal |page=B7C |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|135537286}}}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Moses |first=Paul |date=December 21, 1990 |title=Philippines Gets Share In Marcos Site Profits |work=Newsday |page= |issn=2574-5298 |id={{ProQuest|278263801}} |postscript=none}}; {{Cite news |last=Dunlap |first=David W. |date=December 21, 1990 |title=Partnership Ends Feud Over Marcos Property |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/12/21/nyregion/partnership-ends-feud-over-marcos-property.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=April 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220420222229/https://www.nytimes.com/1990/12/21/nyregion/partnership-ends-feud-over-marcos-property.html |url-status=live }}</ref> By then, the building was half-empty.<ref name="nyt-1991-01-13" /> There had been few attempts to attract new tenants or maintain the building during the late 1980s, and its largest tenant had moved out.<ref name="The New York Times 1989" /> The Crown Building was ultimately sold in February 1991 to real-estate developers [[Bernard Spitzer]], Marvin Winter, and Jerome L. Greene for $93.6 million, only a few thousand dollars above Security Pacific's bid.<ref name="The Wall Street Journal 1991" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hylton |first=Richard D. |date=February 10, 1991 |title=Philippines Gains Little In Marcos Building Sale |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/10/nyregion/philippines-gains-little-in-marcos-building-sale.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306230338/http://www.nytimes.com/1991/02/10/nyregion/philippines-gains-little-in-marcos-building-sale.html |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |access-date=June 14, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> After the $89 million mortgage and various taxes were paid off, comparatively little remained;<ref name="Hylton 1991" /><ref name="Chicago Tribune 1991" /> the Philippine government received about $3,000 in total.<ref name="Filipino Reporter 1994">{{Cite news |date=March 24, 1994 |title=NY taxmen go after a third Philippine bldg. |work=Filipino Reporter |page=1 |id={{ProQuest|367959174}}}}</ref> To attract tenants, Spitzer and his partners subdivided the interior space and advertised the building's location, design, and floor areas;<ref>{{Cite news |last=Garbarine |first=Rachelle |date=August 28, 1991 |title=Real Estate; Small Offices Lure Tenants In Midtown |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/08/28/business/real-estate-small-offices-lure-tenants-in-midtown.html |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=August 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210813020352/https://www.nytimes.com/1991/08/28/business/real-estate-small-offices-lure-tenants-in-midtown.html |url-status=live }}</ref> they had managed to lease 10 percent of the empty space by the end of 1991.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Oser |first=Alan S. |date=December 15, 1991 |title=Perspectives: The Spitzer Outlook; On Alert for Sites As the Cycles Turn |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/15/realestate/perspectives-the-spitzer-outlook-on-alert-for-sites-as-the-cycles-turn.html |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618025015/https://www.nytimes.com/1991/12/15/realestate/perspectives-the-spitzer-outlook-on-alert-for-sites-as-the-cycles-turn.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The building was 80 percent occupied by 1993, with foreign companies comprising many of the new tenants.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Dunlap |first=David W. |date=January 24, 1993 |title=Commercial Property: Fifth Avenue; Doldrums? Not Along Fifth Ave. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/01/24/realestate/commercial-property-fifth-avenue-doldrums-not-along-fifth-ave.html |access-date=June 19, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240619003454/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/01/24/realestate/commercial-property-fifth-avenue-doldrums-not-along-fifth-ave.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The building's occupants during the 1990s included fashion designer [[Louis Féraud]],<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Moin |first=David |date=March 14, 1990 |title=Retailing: A Feraud Showcase on 56th |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=26 |volume=159 |issue=51 |id={{ProQuest|1498747748}}}}</ref> fashion designer [[Laura Biagiotti]],<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Costin |first=Glynis |date=July 8, 1992 |title=Sergio Valente To Open In Biagiotti's Boutique |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=2 |volume=164 |issue=5 |id={{ProQuest|1445710328}}}}</ref> art gallery [[Kennedy Galleries]],<ref name="nyt-1994-09-04">{{Cite news |last=Deutsch |first=Claudia H. |date=September 4, 1994 |title=Commercial Property/The Art World; Galleries, Off Critical List, Opening or Expanding |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/04/realestate/commercial-property-art-world-galleries-off-critical-list-opening-expanding.html |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=April 11, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210411045635/https://www.nytimes.com/1994/09/04/realestate/commercial-property-art-world-galleries-off-critical-list-opening-expanding.html |url-status=live }}</ref> fashion showroom Falmola,<ref>{{cite magazine |date=September 2, 1998 |title=Falmola's New Showroom |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=35 |volume=176 |issue=45 |id={{ProQuest|1445651748}}}}</ref> antique dealer [[Israel Sack]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Vogel |first=Carol |date=April 2, 1993 |title=The Art Market |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/02/arts/the-art-market.html |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618031051/https://www.nytimes.com/1993/04/02/arts/the-art-market.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and watch company [[Piaget SA]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rothstein |first=Mervyn |date=March 20, 1996 |title=Real Estate;A new agency of New York City is moving into the International Design Center in Long Island City. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/20/business/real-estate-new-agency-new-york-city-moving-into-international-design-center.html |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618031050/https://www.nytimes.com/1996/03/20/business/real-estate-new-agency-new-york-city-moving-into-international-design-center.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Luxury goods store [[Bruno Magli]] leased the penthouse,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Schiro |first=Anne-Marie |date=August 11, 1992 |title=Patterns |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/08/11/news/patterns-426092.html |access-date=June 18, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 18, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240618031050/https://www.nytimes.com/1992/08/11/news/patterns-426092.html |url-status=live }}</ref> while other office space was occupied by fashion firm [[Mondo (Italian company)|Mondo Inc.]],<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rothstein |first=Mervyn |date=February 27, 1997 |title=Italian Dressing |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1997/02/27/nyregion/italian-dressing.html |access-date=June 19, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240619170409/https://www.nytimes.com/1997/02/27/nyregion/italian-dressing.html |url-status=live }}</ref> lifestyle magazine ''[[Playboy]]'',<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Haughney |first=Christine |date=August 23, 2004 |title=Up for staying put |magazine=Crain's New York Business |page=3 |volume=20 |issue=34 |id={{ProQuest|219169177}}}}</ref> and hotel chain [[Sun International]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Pristin |first=Terry |date=February 24, 1998 |title=Metro Business; New York Office for Sun |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/24/nyregion/metro-business-new-york-office-for-sun.html |access-date=June 19, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240619021151/https://www.nytimes.com/1998/02/24/nyregion/metro-business-new-york-office-for-sun.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Despite the owners' initial failure to attract art-gallery owners to the building, by the mid-1990s the Crown Building was in high demand among art galleries.<ref name="nyt-1994-09-04" /> An executive for the building's leasing agent, [[Cushman & Wakefield]], said that they wanted to lease the space to high-end tenants.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Deutsch |first=Claudia H. |date=July 30, 1995 |title=Commercial Property/Fifth Avenue in the 50's; As Troubles Ebb, It's Becoming The Avenue Again |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/30/realestate/commercial-property-fifth-avenue-50-s-troubles-ebb-it-s-becoming-avenue-again.html |access-date=June 19, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 25, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210625041023/https://www.nytimes.com/1995/07/30/realestate/commercial-property-fifth-avenue-50-s-troubles-ebb-it-s-becoming-avenue-again.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The owners also leased out some prebuilt office space in the building.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Walsh |first=Mark |date=April 21, 1997 |title=The return of the instant office |magazine=Crain's New York Business |page=32 |volume=13 |issue=16 |id={{ProQuest|219128532}}}}</ref>

During the 2000s, the building gained tenants such as a [[Smythson]] stationery store,<ref>{{cite magazine |date=September 17, 2001 |title=Findings |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=10 |volume= |issue= |id={{ProQuest|231154194}}}}</ref> a [[Vidal Sassoon]] fashion salon,<ref>{{cite magazine |date=November 10, 2000 |title=Vidal Sassoon Aims For Harmony |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=10 |volume=180 |issue=90 |id={{ProQuest|1434239858}}}}</ref> a Gilan jewelry showroom,<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Karimzadeh |first=Marc |date=December 22, 2003 |title=Accessories Report: Two Jewel Boxes Charm Manhattan: Gilan |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=11 |volume=186 |issue=128 |id={{ProQuest|1434269044}}}}</ref> and the headquarters of the Nina Footwear Corporation (which had acquired I. Miller).<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wilson |first=Claire |date=August 26, 2007 |title=At Headquarters, Shoes Are the Showcase |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/26/realestate/commercial/26sqft.html |access-date=June 21, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240621191406/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/26/realestate/commercial/26sqft.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In addition, the building had a [[coworking]] space.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Golden |first=John |date=June 11, 2007 |title=A 'suite' deal |magazine=Westchester County Business Journal |page=1 |volume=46 |issue=24 |id={{ProQuest|200320378}}}}</ref> After Spitzer's son [[Eliot Spitzer]] resigned as the [[governor of New York]], Eliot had an office at the Crown Building.<ref>{{cite news |last=Feiden |first=Douglas |date=Aug 11, 2013 |title=Pushing Buttons in the Family Business; Eliot Spitzer Steers Roughly $1 Billion Portfolio While Actively Seeking New Employment |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/pushing-buttons-in-the-family-business-1376268474 |work=The Wall Street Journal |page= |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|1419253620}} |access-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625141246/https://www.wsj.com/articles/pushing-buttons-in-the-family-business-1376268474 |url-status=live }}</ref> When Bernard Spitzer died in 2014, Eliot continued to operate the building alongside the Winter family.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Clarke|first1=Katherine|title=The Son Also Rises|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/spitzer-empire-play-luv-guv-calls-shots-article-1.2222256|access-date=November 23, 2015|work=New York Daily News|date=May 15, 2015|archive-date=October 25, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151025074413/http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/spitzer-empire-play-luv-guv-calls-shots-article-1.2222256|url-status=live}}</ref>

=== Redevelopment ===

==== Sales ====
[[File:Über allem weht stets das Sternenbanner... - panoramio.jpg|thumb|Seen from Fifth Avenue]]
In December 2014, Eliot Spitzer and the Winters began looking to sell the building for at least $1.8 billion.<ref>{{cite web |last=Katz |first=Rayna |date=December 5, 2014 |title=Crown Building Is on the Block |url=https://www.globest.com/2014/12/05/crown-building-is-on-the-block/?slreturn=20240614115830 |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=GlobeSt |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160951/https://www.globest.com/2014/12/05/crown-building-is-on-the-block/?slreturn=20240614115830 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Jeff Sutton (real estate developer)|Jeff Sutton]]'s Wharton Properties and [[Sandeep Mathrani]]'s [[General Growth Properties]] purchased the building for about $1.75 billion that month,{{Efn|The price has also been cited as $1.77 billion<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bagli |first=Charles V. |date=June 15, 2015 |title=Spitzer Charges Into His Family's Real Estate Business |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/16/nyregion/spitzer-charging-into-his-familys-real-estate-business.html |access-date=June 19, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=April 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407044254/https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/16/nyregion/spitzer-charging-into-his-familys-real-estate-business.html |url-status=live }}</ref> or $1.78 billion.<ref name="Willis 2015 a999" />}} including both the office space and the lower-story retail space.<ref name="Moses 2014">{{Cite web |last=Moses |first=Claire |date=December 19, 2014 |title=Crown Building Sale |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2014/12/19/sutton-and-ggps-1-75b-crown-building-buy-sets-world-record/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160954/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2014/12/19/sutton-and-ggps-1-75b-crown-building-buy-sets-world-record/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Levitt b271">{{cite web |last=Levitt |first=David M. |date=December 18, 2014 |title=General Growth Said to Buy NYC's Crown Building With Partner |url=https://wwd.com/feature/general-growth-said-to-buy-nycs-crown-building-with-partner-8081550-2094740/?sub_action=logged_in |access-date=June 17, 2024 |website=WWD |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160953/https://wwd.com/feature/general-growth-said-to-buy-nycs-crown-building-with-partner-8081550-2094740/?sub_action=logged_in |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Bloomberg o093">{{cite web |date=December 18, 2014 |title=Manhattan Fifth Avenue Tower Said to Sell for $1.75 Billion |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-12-18/general-growth-said-to-buy-nyc-s-crown-building-with-partner |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Bloomberg |archive-date=September 28, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928193626/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-12-18/general-growth-said-to-buy-nyc-s-crown-building-with-partner |url-status=live }}</ref> The sale price of {{convert|4,490|$/ft2}} made the Crown Building the world's costliest office building per square foot at the time.<ref name="Bubny 2014">{{cite web |last=Bubny |first=Paul |date=December 21, 2014 |title=Crown Building Sale Sets Record |url=https://www.globest.com/2014/12/21/crown-building-sale-sets-record/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=GlobeSt |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160950/https://www.globest.com/2014/12/21/crown-building-sale-sets-record/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Clarke |first=Katherine |date=May 15, 2015 |title=He's a Big Deal Again an Empire's in Play as Spitzer Calls the Shots |work=New York Daily News |page=1 |issn=2692-1251 |id={{ProQuest|1680982883}}}}</ref> Though the sale was one of the largest deals in New York City real estate history,<ref name="Moses 2014" /><ref name="Levitt b271" /><ref name="Bloomberg o093" /> one observer predicted that the retail space alone was worth more than the price paid for the whole structure.<ref name="Edelson 2015 j746" /> The retail tenants, [[Bulgari]], [[Zegna]], and [[Kokichi Mikimoto|K. Mikimoto & Co]], were paying less than the [[market rate]], though most of the tenants' leases expired in seven years or less.<ref name="Bloomberg o093" /><ref name="Bubny 2014" /> In addition, the office space was occupied by companies such as private-equity firm [[Apollo Global Management]] and investment manager [[Kohlberg Kravis Roberts]].<ref name="Bubny 2014" />

Wharton and General Growth finalized their purchase in April 2015.<ref name="Willis 2015 a999">{{cite web |last=Willis |first=Haisten |date=April 23, 2015 |title=The Crown Building in New York Sells for $1.78B |url=https://rebusinessonline.com/the-crown-building-in-new-york-sells-for-1-78b/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=REBusinessOnline |postscript=none |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625141250/https://rebusinessonline.com/the-crown-building-in-new-york-sells-for-1-78b/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Gross |first=Max |date=April 20, 2015 |title=Sutton Closes on Crown Building and Inks Deal for Aman Hotel |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2015/04/sutton-closes-on-crown-building-and-inks-deal-for-aman-hotel/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Commercial Observer }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Clarke |first=Katherine |date=April 30, 2015 |title=Eliot Spitzer's real estate biz sets world record with $1.78B sale of Midtown office gem |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/2015/04/30/eliot-spitzers-real-estate-biz-sets-world-record-with-178b-sale-of-midtown-office-gem/ |access-date=June 19, 2024 |website=New York Daily News |archive-date=June 19, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240619174100/https://www.nydailynews.com/2015/04/30/eliot-spitzers-real-estate-biz-sets-world-record-with-178b-sale-of-midtown-office-gem/ |url-status=live }}</ref> That month, developer [[Michael Shvo]] and Russian billionaire [[Vladislav Doronin]] purchased the top 21 stories for about $500 million.<ref name="Willis 2015 a999" /><ref name="Pomorski 2022 c477" /> Shvo and Doronin beat out several other large bidders, including the [[Blackstone Group]], [[the Carlyle Group]], and [[LVMH]].<ref name="Pomorski 2022 c477" /> Shvo and Doronin announced plans to convert and redevelop their portion of the Crown Building into the Aman New York, a luxury hotel and residences.<ref>{{cite news |date=April 7, 2015 |title=Shvo, Aman Resorts buy non-retail piece of Crown Building for $500M |url=http://therealdeal.com/blog/2015/04/07/shvo-amanresorts-buy-most-of-the-crown-building-for-475m/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151101033217/http://therealdeal.com/blog/2015/04/07/shvo-amanresorts-buy-most-of-the-crown-building-for-475m/ |archive-date=November 1, 2015 |access-date=November 12, 2015 |work=The Real Deal}}</ref> The hotel and residences would be operated by Doronin's [[Aman Resorts]]<ref name="Morris 2019" /> and would be the third Aman resort located in a city.<ref name="Pomorski 2022 c477">{{cite web |last=Pomorski |first=Chris |date=October 17, 2022 |title=The Billionaire Behind New York's Most Luxe Hotel |url=https://www.curbed.com/2022/10/aman-new-york-vladislav-doronin.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Curbed |archive-date=February 28, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240228060916/https://www.curbed.com/2022/10/aman-new-york-vladislav-doronin.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Some of the building's office tenants began leaving after the sale was announced,<ref>{{cite web |last=Baird-Remba |first=Rebecca |date=March 21, 2018 |title=Investment Firm Abandons Crown Building for New 57th Street Offices |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2018/03/industrial-investment-firm-abandons-crown-building-for-new-west-57th-street-offices/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Commercial Observer |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181702/https://commercialobserver.com/2018/03/industrial-investment-firm-abandons-crown-building-for-new-west-57th-street-offices/ |url-status=live }}</ref> while other tenants, including several art galleries, were forced out of the office space against their wishes.<ref>{{cite news |last=Pogrebin |first=Robin |date=April 7, 2016 |title=Art May Clash With Commerce in the Crown Building |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/08/arts/design/art-may-clash-with-commerce-in-the-crown-building.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 21, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220621172145/https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/08/arts/design/art-may-clash-with-commerce-in-the-crown-building.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Wharton and General Growth also evicted tenants on the lower stories so these areas could be converted to retail space.<ref name="r623">{{cite web |last=Stulberg |first=Ariel |date=June 1, 2016 |title=Sutton, GGP buy ICM Partners out of Crown Building sublease |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2016/06/01/sutton-ggp-buy-icm-partners-out-of-crown-building-sublease/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181707/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2016/06/01/sutton-ggp-buy-icm-partners-out-of-crown-building-sublease/ |url-status=live }}</ref> They leased out two of the building's storefronts at rates that greatly exceeded the area's {{Convert|3324|$/ft2}} average.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Edelson |first=Sharon |date=July 17, 2017 |title=For Rent: Have rents peaked? Is the worst over or will there be more pain? A correction is seen as bringing stability to the market |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=1, 6–7 |volume= |issue= |id={{ProQuest|2196329026}}}}</ref> Bulgari signed a new lease in late 2015, reducing its space to {{convert|3675|ft2}},<ref>{{cite web |last=Guerre |first=Liam La |date=November 10, 2015 |title=Bulgari Shrinking With New Lease in the Crown Building |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2015/11/bulgari-shrinking-with-new-lease-in-the-crown-building/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Commercial Observer |postscript=none |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181703/https://commercialobserver.com/2015/11/bulgari-shrinking-with-new-lease-in-the-crown-building/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last1=Mashayekhi |first1=Rey |last2=Pincus |first2=Adam |date=November 10, 2015 |title=730 Fifth Avenue |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2015/11/10/bulgaris-730-fifth-lease-sets-new-nyc-retail-record/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614163956/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2015/11/10/bulgaris-730-fifth-lease-sets-new-nyc-retail-record/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and Zegna leased {{convert|9000|sqft}} on the first and second floors in March 2016.<ref>{{cite web |last=Balbi |first=Danielle |date=March 3, 2016 |title=Another High-End Retailer to Call the Crown Building Home |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2016/03/another-high-end-retailer-to-call-the-crown-building-home/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Commercial Observer |postscript=none |archive-date=November 26, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126211726/https://commercialobserver.com/2016/03/another-high-end-retailer-to-call-the-crown-building-home/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Stulberg |first=Ariel |date=March 2, 2016 |title=730 Fifth Avenue |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2016/03/02/zegna-to-open-flagship-store-at-the-crown-building/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181705/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2016/03/02/zegna-to-open-flagship-store-at-the-crown-building/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The last non-retail tenant in the base, [[ICM Partners]], moved out in June 2016.<ref name="r623" />

==== Hotel conversion ====
Mikimoto renovated its {{convert|1800|ft2|adj=on}} store at the building in 2016.<ref>{{cite web |last=Garced |first=Kristi |date=November 10, 2016 |title=Mikimoto Revamps Flagship, Launches Gem Book |url=https://wwd.com/feature/mikimoto-flagship-gem-book-pearl-10697875/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=WWD |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181701/https://wwd.com/feature/mikimoto-flagship-gem-book-pearl-10697875/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Shvo and Doronin submitted a condominium offering plan to the [[New York Attorney General]]'s office that November.<ref>{{cite web |last=Bockmann |first=Rich |date=November 23, 2016 |title=Shvo, Doronin moving forward with Crown Building conversion |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2016/11/23/shvo-doronin-moving-forward-with-crown-building-conversion/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181705/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2016/11/23/shvo-doronin-moving-forward-with-crown-building-conversion/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Rosenberg 2016 d532">{{cite web |last=Rosenberg |first=Zoe |date=November 23, 2016 |title=Midtown's Crown Building will indeed get "ultraluxury" condos, hotel |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2016/11/23/13734024/crown-building-residential-conversion-plans-nyc |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Curbed NY |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160951/https://ny.curbed.com/2016/11/23/13734024/crown-building-residential-conversion-plans-nyc |url-status=live }}</ref> Early plans called for 79 hotel rooms on the 4th through 9th stories; three floors of amenity space; and 26 residential condos above the 11th story.<ref name="Rosenberg 2016 d532" /><ref>{{cite web |date=December 7, 2016 |title=Shvo Files Plans to Convert Crown Building to Condominiums and Hotel at 730 Fifth Avenue |url=https://newyorkyimby.com/2016/12/shvo-files-plans-to-convert-crown-building-to-condominiums-and-hotel-at-730-fifth-avenue.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=New York YIMBY |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181702/https://newyorkyimby.com/2016/12/shvo-files-plans-to-convert-crown-building-to-condominiums-and-hotel-at-730-fifth-avenue.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The terms of the Aman New York's condo offering allowed the developers to rent out some of the apartments as hotel rooms.<ref name="Hughes 2022 e751">{{cite web |last=Hughes |first=C. J. |date=August 30, 2022 |title=Despite a sleepy summer for luxury sales, closings on condos at the Aman New York appear strong |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/residential-real-estate/despite-sleepy-summer-luxury-sales-closings-condos-aman-new-york-appear |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Crain's New York Business |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614183203/https://www.crainsnewyork.com/residential-real-estate/despite-sleepy-summer-luxury-sales-closings-condos-aman-new-york-appear |url-status=live }}</ref> Following allegations of corruption against Shvo,<ref name="Pomorski 2022 c477" /> he was ousted as one of the hotel's developers by September 2017, although Shvo still owned a partial stake in the project.<ref>{{cite web |last=Solomont |first=E.B. |date=September 19, 2017 |title=Shvo no longer co-developer of Crown Building conversion: OKO |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2017/09/19/shvo-no-longer-co-developer-of-crown-building-conversion-oko/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal}}</ref> Doronin estimated that the penthouse apartment would be sold for $100 million, while the other units would be sold for at least $4 million.<ref name="Rosenberg 2017 z920" /><ref>{{cite web |last=Tarmy |first=James |date=October 26, 2017 |title=Aman Resorts Is Bringing $50 Million Condos to NYC |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-26/aman-resorts-coming-to-new-york-with-multimillion-dollar-condos |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Bloomberg.com |archive-date=August 14, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210814080144/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-26/aman-resorts-coming-to-new-york-with-multimillion-dollar-condos |url-status=live }}</ref> Doronin also planned to add large terraces and outdoor pools to the setbacks.<ref name="Clarke 2017" /> The Crown Building's Bulgari store opened in October 2017 following a renovation designed by [[Peter Marino]].<ref name="Moin 2017" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Schneier |first=Matthew |date=October 24, 2017 |title=Bulgari Reopens Fifth Avenue Flagship Store |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/24/fashion/bulgari-reopens-fifth-avenue-flagship-store.html |access-date=June 15, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003645/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/24/fashion/bulgari-reopens-fifth-avenue-flagship-store.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In March 2018, a buyer offered $180 million for the Aman's penthouse, making it one of the highest-priced residential sales in the U.S.<ref>{{cite web |last=Solomont |first=E.B. |date=March 15, 2018 |title=Crown Building penthouse in contract for whopping $180M |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2018/03/15/crown-building-penthouse-in-contract-for-whopping-180m-sources/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160957/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2018/03/15/crown-building-penthouse-in-contract-for-whopping-180m-sources/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Plitt |first=Amy |date=March 15, 2018 |title=Crown Building's five-story, $180M penthouse allegedly has a buyer |url=https://ny.curbed.com/2018/3/15/17126602/midtown-nyc-crown-building-penthouse-sold |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Curbed NY |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160945/https://ny.curbed.com/2018/3/15/17126602/midtown-nyc-crown-building-penthouse-sold |url-status=live }}</ref> Doronin received a $284 million loan for the hotel portion of the building that December.<ref>{{cite web |last=Grossman |first=Matt |date=January 8, 2019 |title=Cain International Steps in on $1B Crown Building Refi |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2019/01/cain-crown-building-refi/ |access-date=June 16, 2024 |website=Commercial Observer |postscript=none |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616010225/https://commercialobserver.com/2019/01/cain-crown-building-refi/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last1=Solomont |first1=E.B. |last2=Putzier |first2=Konrad |date=December 19, 2018 |title=Doronin, Aman Group land $285M development loan for Crown Building |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2018/12/19/doronin-aman-group-land-285m-development-loan-for-crown-building/ |access-date=June 16, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181711/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2018/12/19/doronin-aman-group-land-285m-development-loan-for-crown-building/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Zegna store at the building's base was also redesigned by Marino and reopened in February 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zargani |first=Luisa |date=February 13, 2019 |title=Ermenegildo Zegna Flagship Opens in New York |url=https://wwd.com/menswear-news/mens-retail-business/ermenegildo-zegna-flagship-opens-in-new-york-1203023055/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415171126/https://wwd.com/menswear-news/mens-retail-business/ermenegildo-zegna-flagship-opens-in-new-york-1203023055/ |archive-date=April 15, 2021 |access-date=January 3, 2021 |website=WWD |language=en-US}}</ref> By mid-2019, there were buyers for about half of the building's apartments, despite decreased demand for luxury apartments along the nearby [[Billionaires' Row]].<ref name="Clarke 2019" /> The sales office was open only to invited guests who first underwent an extensive background check.<ref name="Clarke 2019" /><ref name="Plitt q147" /> At the time, the condos were being sold for between $4.7 million and $83 million, even though public sales had not even begun.<ref name="Clarke 2019" /> Also in 2019, Wharton and General Growth sought a $900 million loan to refinance the building's retail space,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Manrodt |first1=Alexis |last2=Jeans |first2=David |date=July 10, 2019 |title=Crown Building Owner Negotiating Refinance With Natixis, Apollo |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2019/07/10/crown-building-owners-in-talks-with-natixis-apollo-for-900m-refi/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181702/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2019/07/10/crown-building-owners-in-talks-with-natixis-apollo-for-900m-refi/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and Apollo Global agreed to provide $807 million that August.<ref>{{cite web |last=Cunningham |first=Cathy |date=August 26, 2019 |title=Wharton Properties, Brookfield Score $807M Refi for Crown Building |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2019/08/wharton-properties-brookfield-score-807m-refi-for-crown-buildings-retail-portion/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Commercial Observer |postscript=none |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181701/https://commercialobserver.com/2019/08/wharton-properties-brookfield-score-807m-refi-for-crown-buildings-retail-portion/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Jeans |first=David |date=August 26, 2019 |title=Crown Building owner secures $800M loan to refinance |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2019/08/26/apollo-to-provide-800m-loan-for-crown-building/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614162502/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2019/08/26/apollo-to-provide-800m-loan-for-crown-building/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Sutton sold most of his stake in the retail space to [[Brookfield Properties]] that month, reportedly due to dissatisfaction over the terms of the refinancing.<ref>{{cite web |last=Bockmann |first=Rich |date=August 10, 2020 |title=Jeff Sutton's Wharton Properties Sold Crown Building Stake |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2020/08/10/jeff-sutton-quietly-sold-piece-of-crown-building/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614162501/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2020/08/10/jeff-sutton-quietly-sold-piece-of-crown-building/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Doronin's [[OKO Group]] received $750 million in construction loans in October 2019 to renovate the upper levels.<ref>{{cite web |last=Marinescu |first=Adriana |date=October 2, 2019 |title=Manhattan's Crown Building Scores $750M Redevelopment Loan |url=https://www.commercialsearch.com/news/manhattans-crown-building-scores-750m-redevelopment-loan/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Commercial Property Executive |postscript=none |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181703/https://www.commercialsearch.com/news/manhattans-crown-building-scores-750m-redevelopment-loan/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last1=Manrodt |first1=Alexis |last2=Bockmann |first2=Rich |date=October 1, 2019 |title=Crown Building Construction Loan |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2019/10/01/doronin-lands-750m-construction-loan-for-crown-building-conversion/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181711/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2019/10/01/doronin-lands-750m-construction-loan-for-crown-building-conversion/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Jean-Michel Gathy was hired to renovate the hotel portion of the building,<ref name="Blumenthal 2023" /><ref name="Abrahams 2022 e320" /> while the brokerage [[Douglas Elliman]] was hired to place the residential condos on sale.<ref name="New York YIMBY u860" /> Residential sales at the Crown Building commenced in January 2020,<ref name="Dilakian Wall 2024 d259">{{cite web |last1=Dilakian |first1=Steven |last2=Wall |first2=Sheridan |date=March 26, 2024 |title=Aman New York Nabs $50M Deal |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/03/26/aman-new-york-nabs-50m-deal/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160950/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/03/26/aman-new-york-nabs-50m-deal/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and the first units became available in early 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mitchell|first=Heidi|date=April 30, 2021|title=High-End Residences in New York City are Bringing Hotel Life Home|url=https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/when-your-hotel-is-also-your-home|access-date=July 22, 2021|website=Architectural Digest|language=en-US|archive-date=July 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210726040639/https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/when-your-hotel-is-also-your-home|url-status=live}}</ref> The project included adding design details such as fireplaces between windows, which, according to Gathy, helped to make the building "luxurious".<ref name="Kachroo-Levine 2022 y293" /> The completion of the renovation had to be postponed due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic in New York City]], and the project had also incurred 34 violations of city building codes by early 2021.<ref name="Pomorski 2022 c477" /> One worker died after falling down a chute in the building,<ref name="Pomorski 2022 c477" /><ref name="Guttmann 2021 f497">{{cite web |last=Guttmann |first=Ben |date=September 9, 2021 |title=The Secret Price of a Life |url=https://citylimits.org/2021/09/09/the-secret-price-of-a-life/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=City Limits |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614232946/https://citylimits.org/2021/09/09/the-secret-price-of-a-life/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and the city fined the developer $12,500 as a result.<ref name="Guttmann 2021 f497" /> Most of the building's apartments had been sold by the end of 2021.<ref>{{cite news |last=Solomont |first=E. B. |date=9 Dec 2021 |title=Manhattan Home at Aman New York in Contract for $55 Million |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/manhattan-home-at-aman-new-york-in-contract-for-55-million-11639080075 |work=The Wall Street Journal |page= |issn=0099-9660 |id={{ProQuest|2608184995}} |access-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240621201701/https://www.wsj.com/articles/manhattan-home-at-aman-new-york-in-contract-for-55-million-11639080075 |url-status=live }}</ref> Doronin sought to refinance the hotel in early 2022,<ref>{{cite web |last1=Hourie |first1=Ilya |last2=Larsen |first2=Keith |date=April 4, 2022 |title=Vlad Doronin Nears Massive Refi on Crown Building Project |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2022/04/04/vlad-doronin-nears-massive-refi-for-condo-hotel-project-at-crown-building/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181709/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2022/04/04/vlad-doronin-nears-massive-refi-for-condo-hotel-project-at-crown-building/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and he refinanced the hotel that June with a $754 million loan from [[JPMorgan Chase]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Cunningham |first=Cathy |date=June 10, 2022 |title=OKO Group Seals $754M Loan for Aman New York Hotel & Residences |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2022/06/oko-group-seals-754m-loan-for-crown-buildings-aman-new-york-hotel-residences/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Commercial Observer |postscript=none }}; {{Cite web |last1=Monahan |first1=Shea |last2=Larsen |first2=Keith |date=June 10, 2022 |title=Vlad Doronin's OKO Group Nabs $754M Refi on Crown Building |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2022/06/10/vlad-doronin-closes-754m-refi-on-crown-building-condo-hotel-conversion/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160945/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2022/06/10/vlad-doronin-closes-754m-refi-on-crown-building-condo-hotel-conversion/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Buyers began finalizing their purchases in mid-2022.<ref name="Hughes 2022 e751" /><ref>{{cite web |last=Solomont |first=E.B. |date=February 5, 2024 |title=Asian Buyer Pays $61.58 Million for Full-Floor Apartment on Fifth Avenue |url=https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/asian-buyer-pays-61-58-million-for-full-floor-apartment-on-fifth-avenue-7006f939 |access-date=June 21, 2024 |website=Mansion Global |archive-date=February 13, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240213113244/https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/asian-buyer-pays-61-58-million-for-full-floor-apartment-on-fifth-avenue-7006f939 |url-status=live }}</ref> Of the first 12 buyers to finalize their purchases, five had paid more than $20 million each; Doronin predicted that the apartments would sell for a total of $893 million.<ref name="Hughes 2022 e751" /> The hotel renovation ultimately cost $1.45 billion.<ref name="Wrathall 2022">{{cite news |last=Wrathall |first=Claire |date=August 25, 2022 |title=Inside New York's newest — and most expensive — hotel |url=https://www.ft.com/content/b1956a5f-6492-43a4-8aa6-dbdf6492ec9d |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240515133138/https://www.ft.com/content/b1956a5f-6492-43a4-8aa6-dbdf6492ec9d |archive-date=May 15, 2024 |access-date=August 26, 2022 |newspaper=Financial Times}}</ref>

==== Hotel opening and 2020s ====
The Aman New York opened on August 11, 2022.<ref name="Wrathall 2022" /><ref>{{cite web |last=Ekstein |first=Nikki |date=August 11, 2022 |title=At Aman New York, a $20,000 Suite Doesn't Get You Full Hotel Access |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2022-08-11/aman-new-york-is-the-most-expensive-hotel-in-nyc-exclusive-first-look-photos |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Bloomberg.com |archive-date=September 26, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926172346/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2022-08-11/aman-new-york-is-the-most-expensive-hotel-in-nyc-exclusive-first-look-photos |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Rahmanan 2022 y336">{{cite web |last=Rahmanan |first=Anna |date=August 12, 2022 |title=See inside the most expensive hotel in NYC |url=https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/see-inside-the-most-expensive-hotel-in-nyc-081222 |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Time Out New York |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625141248/https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/see-inside-the-most-expensive-hotel-in-nyc-081222 |url-status=live }}</ref> The cheapest rooms rented for $3,200<ref name="nyt-2022-08-23" /><ref name="Kachroo-Levine 2022 y293" /><ref name="Kim 2022 c394" /> or $3,400 a night,<ref>{{cite web |last=Bhojwani |first=Romy |date=August 23, 2022 |title=Aman New York Opens Amid Return to Strong Hospitality Fundamentals |url=https://www.costar.com/article/772052595/aman-new-york-opens-amid-return-to-strong-hospitality-fundamentals |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=CoStar |archive-date=August 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220824214959/https://www.costar.com/article/772052595/aman-new-york-opens-amid-return-to-strong-hospitality-fundamentals |url-status=live }}</ref> making the Aman the city's most expensive hotel.<ref name="Chaffin 2023" /><ref name="Rahmanan 2022 y336" /> The Aman also had a private club that, at the time of the hotel's opening, had an upfront membership fee of $200,000, excluding the $15,000 annual renewal fee.<ref name="Chaffin 2023" /><ref name="SCMP v106" /> ''The New York Times'' reported that, at the Aman's opening, there was so much demand for the hotel that even some of the club's members had difficulties reserving rooms.<ref name="nyt-2022-08-23" /> The following month, Doronin considered selling the hotel portion of the building for at least $600 million,<ref name="f929" /> though Aman would continue to operate the hotel.<ref name="Cheng 2022 q578" /><ref name="f929">{{cite web |last=Rogers |first=Jack |date=September 9, 2022 |title=Aman Group Puts NYC's Crown Building on Market for $600M |url=https://www.globest.com/2022/09/09/aman-group-puts-nycs-crown-building-on-market-for-600m/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=GlobeSt |postscript=none |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181703/https://www.globest.com/2022/09/09/aman-group-puts-nycs-crown-building-on-market-for-600m/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Dilakian |first=Steven |date=September 7, 2022 |title=Vlad Doronin's Aman Group Eyeing Sale of Crown Building |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2022/09/07/doronins-aman-group-eyeing-sale-of-crown-building/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614181703/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2022/09/07/doronins-aman-group-eyeing-sale-of-crown-building/ |url-status=live }}</ref> A [[Chopard]] watch shop opened at the building's base in December 2022.<ref>{{cite web |last=Reddinger |first=Paige |date=December 6, 2022 |title=Bright Lights, Big Diamonds: Chopard Just Opened a New Flagship Store in New York City |url=https://robbreport.com/style/jewelry/chopard-opens-new-fifth-avenue-boutique-1234781845/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Robb Report |postscript=none |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614232945/https://robbreport.com/style/jewelry/chopard-opens-new-fifth-avenue-boutique-1234781845/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |date=December 5, 2022 |title=Chopard Celebrates Grand Opening Of Its New Fifth Avenue Flagship |url=https://www.jckonline.com/editorial-article/chopard-fifth-avenue-flagship/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=JCK |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614232946/https://www.jckonline.com/editorial-article/chopard-fifth-avenue-flagship/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Three of the building's apartments ranked among the most expensive apartments in New York City during 2022.<ref>{{cite web |last=Tarmy |first=James |date=December 16, 2022 |title=Here Are This Year's 10 Most Expensive NYC Residential Sales |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-16/the-10-most-expensive-nyc-residential-sales-2022-condos-co-ops-townhouses |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Bloomberg.com |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614232945/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-16/the-10-most-expensive-nyc-residential-sales-2022-condos-co-ops-townhouses |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2023, the Aman began renting out some of the private apartments to hotel guests as part of a program where condos' owners could opt to rent out their homes.<ref>{{cite web | last=Montanez | first=Abby | title=Exclusive: Aman New York Is Opening Its Private Residences for Overnight Stays. Here's a Look Inside. | website=Robb Report | date=September 12, 2023 | url=https://robbreport.com/shelter/vacation-homes/aman-new-york-home-rentals-1234893427/ | access-date=June 15, 2024 | archive-date=June 15, 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003703/https://robbreport.com/shelter/vacation-homes/aman-new-york-home-rentals-1234893427/ | url-status=live }}</ref> The fashion house [[Chanel]] opened a two-story store at the Crown Building's base, its first standalone watch-and-jewelry boutique in the United States, in February 2024.<ref>{{cite web |date=February 8, 2024 |title=Chanel opens its first U.S. store dedicated to jewelry and watches |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/retail/chanel-opens-its-first-us-store-dedicated-jewelry-and-watches |access-date=June 15, 2024 |website=Crain's New York Business |postscript=none}}; {{Cite web |last=Berlinger |first=Max |date=February 8, 2024 |title=Chanel Opens Its First US Store Dedicated to Jewelry and Watches |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-08/chanel-opens-first-us-store-dedicated-to-jewelry-watches-on-fifth-avenue-nyc |access-date=June 15, 2024 |website=Bloomberg.com}}</ref> By the next month, sales had been finalized for 17 of the condos.<ref name="Dilakian Wall 2024 d259" /> The purchasers of the condos included a trust operated by [[Meta Platforms]]<ref>{{cite web |last1=Cuba |first1=Julianne |last2=Hughes |first2=C. J. |date=March 27, 2024 |title=Meta-linked trust snatches up Midtown penthouse in $50M deal |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/meta-linked-trust-snatches-midtown-penthouse-50m-deal |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Crain's New York Business |postscript=none |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614162452/https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/meta-linked-trust-snatches-midtown-penthouse-50m-deal |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Dilakian |first=Steven |date=March 28, 2024 |title=Aman New York's $50M Buyer Linked to Meta |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/03/28/aman-new-yorks-50m-buyer-linked-to-meta/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160945/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/03/28/aman-new-yorks-50m-buyer-linked-to-meta/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and Hong Kong businessman Terence Chan.<ref>{{cite web |last=Gannon |first=Devin |date=February 6, 2024 |title=Aman New York condo sells for $61.58M |url=https://www.6sqft.com/aman-new-york-condo-sells-for-61-58m/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=6sqft |postscript=none }}; {{Cite web |last1=Hourie |first1=Ilya |last2=Wall |first2=Sheridan |date=February 5, 2024 |title=Crown Building Trades $62M Condo to Hong Kong Exec |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/02/05/crown-building-trades-62m-condo-to-hong-kong-exec/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614160952/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/02/05/crown-building-trades-62m-condo-to-hong-kong-exec/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In addition, fashion house [[Prada]] bought one of the commercial condo units in April 2024 for $12.6 million.<ref>{{cite web |date=April 25, 2024 |title=Prada buys Midtown Manhattan commercial unit in Crown Building |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/newyork/news/2024/04/25/prada-buys-retail-unit-fifth-avenue.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=New York Business Journal}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Trombola |first=Nick |date=April 26, 2024 |title=Prada Buys Yet Another Fifth Avenue Retail Property for $13M |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2024/04/prada-buys-another-fifth-ave-building-13m/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Commercial Observer |postscript=none |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625142432/https://commercialobserver.com/2024/04/prada-buys-another-fifth-ave-building-13m/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last1=Cifuentes |first1=Kevin |last2=Cryan |first2=Elizabeth |date=April 25, 2024 |title=Prada Buys Retail Condo at 730 Fifth Avenue in NYC |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/04/25/prada-buys-retail-condo-at-730-fifth-avenue-in-nyc/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=The Real Deal |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614162502/https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/04/25/prada-buys-retail-condo-at-730-fifth-avenue-in-nyc/ |url-status=live }}</ref> On May 14, 2024, the [[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]] designated the Crown Building as an official city landmark.<ref name="Roche x713" /><ref name="Gannon 2024 y894">{{cite web |last=Gannon |first=Devin |date=May 16, 2024 |title=NYC's gilded Crown Building is landmarked |url=https://www.6sqft.com/nycs-gilded-crown-building-is-landmarked/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=6sqft |postscript=none |archive-date=June 14, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240614232946/https://www.6sqft.com/nycs-gilded-crown-building-is-landmarked/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Rahhal |first=Emily |date=May 14, 2024 |title=Fifth Avenue skyscraper, home of Aman resort, named historic landmark |url=https://pix11.com/news/local-news/manhattan/fifth-avenue-skyscraper-home-of-aman-resort-named-historic-landmark/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240515133158/https://pix11.com/news/local-news/manhattan/fifth-avenue-skyscraper-home-of-aman-resort-named-historic-landmark/ |archive-date=May 15, 2024 |access-date=May 15, 2024 |website=PIX11 |postscript=none }}; {{Cite web |date=May 15, 2024 |title=Landmarks Designates the Crown Building in Midtown |url=https://www.citylandnyc.org/landmarks-designates-the-crown-building-in-midtown/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240515133122/https://www.citylandnyc.org/landmarks-designates-the-crown-building-in-midtown/ |archive-date=May 15, 2024 |access-date=May 15, 2024 |website=CityLand }}</ref> The following month, the businessman [[Serdar Bilgili]] sued Shvo over the latter's ownership stake in the Crown Building. Bilgili claimed that he had acquired a one-third interest in Shvo's ownership stake in 2015 and that Shvo had reduced their ownership stakes through a set of [[capital call]]s.<ref>{{cite web | last=Rebong | first=Kevin | last2=Bockmann | first2=Rich | title=Serdar Bilgili Sues Michael Shvo over Aman residences | website=The Real Deal | date=2024-06-27 | url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2024/06/27/serdar-bilgili-sues-michael-shvo-over-aman-residences/ | access-date=2024-07-02 |postscript=none }}; {{cite web | last=Small | first=Eddie | title=Developer Shvo faces lawsuit over Billionaires Row Aman project | website=Crain&#039;s New York Business | date=2024-06-26 | url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/michael-shvo-faces-lawsuit-serdar-bilgili-over-billionaires-row-aman-project | access-date=2024-07-02}}</ref>

==Reception==

=== Architectural commentary ===
[[File:Roof of the Crown Building (4688621274).jpg|thumb|The building's roof]]
When the Heckscher Building was being planned, the ''[[New-York Tribune]]'' wrote that the structure exemplified the commercial and architectural changes taking place on Fifth Avenue.<ref name="NYCL p. 10" /><ref name="New-York Tribune 1920a" /> The ''[[New York Herald]]'' called the structure a "cathedral of commerce",<ref name="NYCL p. 11" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=November 21, 1920 |title=Glimpsing Fifth Avenue's Future in the Crystal Ball |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-herald-glimpsing-fifth-avenues/149464301/ |access-date=June 16, 2024 |work=New York Herald |pages=59 |archive-date=June 16, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616223853/https://www.newspapers.com/article/new-york-herald-glimpsing-fifth-avenues/149464301/ |url-status=live }}</ref> while Heckscher himself called it the "tower of trade".<ref name="NYCL p. 11" /><ref name="Horsley 1978" /> As the building was being completed in 1921, [[Aymar Embury II]] wrote in ''Architectural Forum'' magazine that the building's massing was "perhaps as attractive as that of any in the city", aside from the [[Woolworth Building]].<ref name="AF p. 122" /> The same year, the ''[[New York World]]'' wrote that the Heckscher Building was one of several new skyscrapers that exemplified the idea of the pyramid-roofed tower.<ref>{{Cite news |date=November 13, 1921 |title=Pyramid Skyscrapers Liked by New York Newspapers: "Will Become Ear-marks of Father Knickerbocker's City Beautiful," According to One Critic |work=Courier-Journal |page=B7 |id={{ProQuest|1019155359}}}}</ref> The ''Real Estate Record'' surmised that the building would serve as "a beautiful background" for Fifth Avenue's mansions.<ref name="nyt-1991-02-03" />

Following the building's completion, the architect [[Harvey Wiley Corbett]] stated that the Heckscher Building had a "very pleasing contour", especially its topmost portion, and was "more interesting certainly than the old buildings" further down Fifth Avenue.<ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Corbett |first=Harvey W. |date=June 8, 1921 |title=High Buildings on Narrow Streets: Being Extracts From a Paper Delivered Before the Fifty-fourth Annual Convention of the American Institute of Architects Planning High Buildings |magazine=The American Architect |page=608 |volume=119 |issue=2369 |id={{ProQuest|124688563}}}}</ref> ''[[The Guardian]]'' described the building as a "lovely slight from all the southern part of Central Park", particularly its golden pinnacle.<ref name="The Manchester Guardian 1924">{{cite news |date=June 5, 1924 |title=The "Zoning Law" in New York: Novel Ties in Skyscrapers |work=The Manchester Guardian |page=7 |id={{ProQuest|476884543}}}}</ref> The writer Willard Gilman Myers wrote that the building's roof had one of New York City's most beautiful pinnacles in New York City and that the structure "soars above the Vanderbilt chateau with a Gallic grace that has little of the heavier beauty of its sisters to the south".<ref>{{cite book |last=Myers |first=Willard Gilman |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=nyp.33433058769609&seq=25 |title=The Unbelievable City |year=1926 |page=17 |access-date=June 21, 2024 |archive-date=June 25, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625142441/https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=nyp.33433058769609&seq=25 |url-status=live }}</ref> Conversely, [[George Harold Edgell]] regarded the design as "not wholly successful" because of the excessive emphasis placed on horizontal design elements.<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 362" /><ref>{{cite book |last=Kilham |first=Walter Harrington |title=Raymond Hood, Architect: Form Through Function in the American Skyscraper |publisher=Architectural Book Publishing Company |year=1974 |isbn=978-0-8038-0218-6 |series=G - Reference,Information and Interdisciplinary Subjects Series |page=86}}</ref>

Writing retrospectively in 1976, Paul Goldberger said that the building's roof "made it an early and significant presence on the Fifth Avenue skyline".<ref name="nyt-1976-09-24" /> After Douglas Leigh replaced the building's lighting in the 1980s, Goldberger wrote that the "intricate mix of gilding and lighting [...] works superbly",<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goldberger |first=Paul |date=December 13, 1984 |title=Critic's Notebook; a Snowflake Weighs Heavily on Fifth Avenue |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/13/arts/critic-s-notebook-a-snowflake-weighs-heavily-on-fifith-avenue.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=June 17, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240617195714/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/13/arts/critic-s-notebook-a-snowflake-weighs-heavily-on-fifith-avenue.html |url-status=live }}</ref> though architect [[Patricia Conway (architect)|Patricia Conway]] regarded the gilding as "rather excessive, and not architecturally appropriate".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goncharoff |first=Katya |date=August 12, 1984 |title=The Glitter of Gold Gains in Facade and Lobby Decor: Some Say Owners Feel Gilding May Enhance Values |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/08/12/realestate/the-glitter-of-gold-gains-in-facade-and-lobby-door-some-owners.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=March 31, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210331172644/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/08/12/realestate/the-glitter-of-gold-gains-in-facade-and-lobby-door-some-owners.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In his 1987 book ''New York 1930'', [[Robert A. M. Stern]] wrote that the presence of the Heckscher Building "signaled a new scale of development" along 57th Street.<ref name="Stern (1987) p. 362" /> ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' described the original building as being "a monument to the Beaux-Arts movement" when it was built.<ref name="Clarke 2019" />

=== Hotel commentary ===
Following the Crown Building's conversion into a hotel, a writer for ''Elite Traveler'' wrote that the subtleness of the hotel room's design details contributed to their luxurious feel.<ref name="Abrahams 2022 e320" /> Another critic, for the ''[[Condé Nast Traveler]]'', described going through the hotel as akin to a "nesting process" and said that "walking down the hotel's hushed, cream-colored hallways and reaching your suite feels like making it to the inner sanctum".<ref name="Blumenthal 2023" /> A writer for ''Town and Country'' magazine stated that there was an "interesting juxtaposition between Aman's glossy modernism and its new home's old Beaux-Arts bones", describing the interiors as having a serene atmosphere.<ref name="Kim 2022 c394" />

In the inaugural edition of the World's 50 Best Hotels, the Aman was ranked as the 25th-best hotel in the world, as well as the highest-ranked hotel in the United States on that list.<ref>{{cite web |last=Rahmanan |first=Anna |date=September 20, 2023 |title=This ridiculously expensive NYC hotel was just named one of the best in the world |url=https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/this-ridiculously-expensive-nyc-hotel-was-just-named-one-of-the-best-in-the-world-092023 |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Time Out New York |postscript=none |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003703/https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/this-ridiculously-expensive-nyc-hotel-was-just-named-one-of-the-best-in-the-world-092023 |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Hardingham-Gill |first=Tamara |date=September 20, 2023 |title=World's 50 best hotels for 2023 revealed |url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/world-50-best-hotels-2023-cmd/index.html |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=CNN |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003703/https://www.cnn.com/travel/world-50-best-hotels-2023-cmd/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The first edition of the [[Michelin Guide|Michelin Keys Guide]], in 2024, ranked the Aman New York as a "three-key" hotel, the highest accolade granted by the Michelin Keys Guide.<ref name="Elbaba 2024 u766">{{cite web |last=Elbaba |first=Julia |date=April 25, 2024 |title=Here are the four top NYC hotels, according to the Michelin Guide |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/four-nyc-hotels-receive-top-honor-michelin-key-hotels-2024/5353643/ |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=NBC New York |postscript=none |archive-date=June 13, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240613162910/https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/four-nyc-hotels-receive-top-honor-michelin-key-hotels-2024/5353643/ |url-status=live }}; {{Cite web |last=Weaver |first=Shaye |date=April 24, 2024 |title=These NYC hotels were just awarded Michelin 'Keys' |url=https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/27-new-york-city-hotels-have-been-awarded-michelin-keys-042424 |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Time Out New York |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003706/https://www.timeout.com/newyork/news/27-new-york-city-hotels-have-been-awarded-michelin-keys-042424 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Crains New York Business 2024 i899">{{cite web |date=April 24, 2024 |title=Michelin ranks 5 New York hotels among the world's best |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/michelin-hotel-keys-which-nyc-luxury-hotels-made-list |access-date=June 14, 2024 |website=Crain's New York Business |archive-date=June 15, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240615003645/https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/michelin-hotel-keys-which-nyc-luxury-hotels-made-list |url-status=live }}</ref> The Aman was one of 11 Michelin three-key hotels across the United States<ref name="Crains New York Business 2024 i899" /> and one of four such hotels in New York City.<ref name="Elbaba 2024 u766" />


==See also==
==See also==
* [[Architecture of New York City]]
* [[List of hotels in New York City]]
* [[List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan from 14th to 59th Streets]]
* [[Billionaires' Row (Manhattan)]]


==References==
==References==

=== Notes ===
{{Notelist}}

=== Citations ===
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}

=== Sources ===
* {{cite magazine |last=Embury |first=Aymar II |date=Oct 1921 |title=New York's New Architecture |url=https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=umn.31951000755263d&seq=227 |magazine=Architectural Forum |pages= |volume=35 |issue=4 |ref={{harvid|Architectural Forum|1921}}}}
* {{cite report |url=https://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/2678.pdf |title=Heckscher Building (now the Crown Building) |date=May 14, 2024 |publisher=[[New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission]] |ref={{Harvid|Landmarks Preservation Commission|2024}}}}
* {{Cite New York 1930}}
* {{Cite ny1880}}
* {{Cite aia5}}


==External links==
==External links==
* {{commons category-inline}}
* {{commons category-inline|Crown Building (Manhattan)}}
*[https://www.aman.com/resorts/aman-new-york Aman New York official website]
* [https://www.aman.com/resorts/aman-new-york Aman New York official website]


{{Midtown North, Manhattan}}
{{Midtown North, Manhattan}}
{{Fifth Avenue}}
{{Fifth Avenue}}
{{portal bar|Architecture|New York City|Hotels}}


[[Category:1921 establishments in New York City]]
[[Category:1921 establishments in New York City]]
[[Category:2022 establishments in New York City]]
[[Category:57th Street (Manhattan)]]
[[Category:57th Street (Manhattan)]]
[[Category:Commercial buildings completed in 1921]]
[[Category:Commercial buildings completed in 1921]]
[[Category:Commercial buildings in Manhattan]]
[[Category:Commercial buildings in Manhattan]]
[[Category:Fifth Avenue]]
[[Category:Fifth Avenue]]
[[Category:Hotel buildings completed in 1921]]
[[Category:Hotels established in 2022]]
[[Category:Hotels in Manhattan]]
[[Category:Midtown Manhattan]]
[[Category:Midtown Manhattan]]
[[Category:New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan]]
[[Category:Warren and Wetmore buildings]]

Latest revision as of 14:04, 2 July 2024

Crown Building
The Crown Building as seen from the north in 2007
View of the Crown Building, 2007
Map
Former namesHeckscher Building, Genesco Building
Alternative names730 Fifth Avenue
Hotel chainAman
General information
Architectural styleFrench Renaissance
Address730 Fifth Avenue
Town or cityNew York City
CountryUnited States
Coordinates40°45′46″N 73°58′28″W / 40.762868°N 73.974554°W / 40.762868; -73.974554
Construction started1920
Completed1921
Renovated2019–2022
Renovation cost$1.45 billion
LandlordVladislav Doronin (hotel), General Growth Properties and Brookfield Properties (retail)
Height416 ft (127 m)
Technical details
Floor count25
Grounds26,360 sq ft (2,449 m2)
Design and construction
Architect(s)Charles D. Wetmore
Architecture firmWarren and Wetmore
DeveloperAugust Heckscher
Other information
Number of units83 hotel suites, 22 apartments
DesignatedMay 14, 2024[1]
Reference no.2678[1]

The Crown Building (formerly the Heckscher Building and Genesco Building) is a 25-story, 416-foot-tall (127 m) building at 730 Fifth Avenue, on the southwest corner with 57th Street, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Constructed between 1920 and 1922 for the philanthropist August Heckscher, the structure was designed by Warren and Wetmore as an office building. The lower levels contain retail space, while the upper levels were converted to the luxury Aman New York hotel and residences in 2022. The structure is a New York City designated landmark.

The building's stepped, setback design was regulated by the 1916 Zoning Resolution. Its exterior includes French Renaissance details and is divided into a nine-story base, a twelve-story shaft, and four-story octagonal pyramidal roof. The facade is largely made of limestone, with brick and terracotta detailing, along with 1,363 ounces (38,600 g) of gold leaf. The lower stories include retail stores, while the upper stories originally contained offices before they were redesigned by Jean-Michel Gathy in the 2020s. The upper stories are split up into 22 condominium residences, 83 hotel rooms, and amenity spaces such as a spa and three restaurants. Over the years, the building has received commentary for its general shape and for the design of its roof.

August Heckscher acquired land for the building from 1913 to 1918. After the Heckscher Building was completed, it housed several businesses and art galleries, and it was also the Museum of Modern Art's first home. Heckscher lost the building to foreclosure in 1938. Charles F. Noyes and Joseph Durst bought the building in 1946 before reselling it four years later. It was renamed the Genesco Building in 1964 and sold yet again in 1966. The structure was purchased in 1981 by Philippine dictator Ferdinand E. Marcos, and the name was changed to the Crown Building in 1983, after its crown-like look when illuminated at night. The Crown Building was the focus of various lawsuits after the fall of the Marcos regime, and in 1991, Bernard Spitzer and partners Marvin Winter and Jerome L. Greene acquired the building. In 2015, Michael Shvo and Russian billionaire Vladislav Doronin purchased the office portion of the building. OKO Group took over the upper stories, which were converted to hotel and residential use from 2019 to 2022.

Site[edit]

The Crown Building is at 730 Fifth Avenue, at the southwest corner of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street, in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City.[2] The land lot is composed of a rectangular site at Fifth Avenue and 57th Street, as well as a connected site at 56th Street. The lot covers 26,360 square feet (2,449 m2), with a frontage of 100 feet (30 m) on Fifth Avenue and a depth of 162.5 feet (49.5 m) along 57th Street.[3] On the same block is the townhouse at 17 West 56th Street. The 712 Fifth Avenue skyscraper and the townhouses at 10 and 12 West 56th Street are on the block to the south, while the Bergdorf Goodman Building and Solow Building are immediately across 57th Street to the north. Other nearby buildings include 3 East 57th Street to the northwest; the Tiffany & Co. flagship store, Trump Tower, and 590 Madison Avenue to the east; and the Corning Glass Building to the southeast.[3][4]

Fifth Avenue between 42nd Street and Central Park South (59th Street) was relatively undeveloped through the late 19th century.[5] The surrounding area was once part of the common lands of the city of New York.[6] The Commissioners' Plan of 1811 established Manhattan's street grid with lots measuring 100 feet (30 m) deep and 25 feet (7.6 m) wide.[7] Upscale residences were constructed around Fifth Avenue following the American Civil War.[5][8] These included two residences on Fifth Avenue and 57th Street: a mansion belonging to Frederic W. Stevens at the southwest corner, and the Cornelius Vanderbilt II House on the northwest corner.[9] By the 1900s, that section of Fifth Avenue was becoming a commercial area,[10] and stores were also developed on 57th Street in the 1910s.[11] After about 1921, art galleries started to supplant residences on 57th Street,[12] and other art galleries developed on the street in general.[13][14]

The Crown Building is also near a former artistic hub around a two-block section of West 57th Street between Sixth Avenue and Broadway. The hub had been developed during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, after the opening of Carnegie Hall on Seventh Avenue in 1891.[15][16] The area contained several headquarters of organizations such as the American Fine Arts Society, the Lotos Club, and the ASCE Society House.[15] The Crown Building also had art-related tenants such as the Museum of Modern Art in the early 20th century.[17] By the 21st century, the arts hub had largely been replaced with Billionaires' Row, a series of luxury skyscrapers around the southern end of Central Park.[18]

Previous buildings[edit]

The Frederick W. Stevens House, which stood on the site before the Crown Building was built
The Frederic W. Stevens House, which stood on the site before the Crown Building was built

Prior to the Crown Building's construction, the site at 728 Fifth Avenue was occupied by a marble townhouse belonging to the businessman Charles W. Morse.[19][20] The Morse family owned the house until it was sold at a foreclosure auction in 1910,[21] then acquired by the businessman Harry Payne Whitney in May 1911.[22]

Next door at 2 West 57th Street was a mansion built from 1875 to 1876 for the lawyer and banker Frederic W. Stevens.[9][23] The Stevens house, designed by George E. Harney,[23] was smaller in scale compared to similar mansions along the avenue.[24] The Stevens house's interior was undistinguished, except for a ballroom imported from Belgium;[24] it also was acquired by the Whitney family by the 1910s.[20]

Architecture[edit]

The Crown Building was designed by Charles D. Wetmore of Warren and Wetmore and was completed in 1921 as the Heckscher Building.[2][25][26] Wetmore had invested in the tower's construction along with the mining magnate August Heckscher.[25] The structure includes details in the French Renaissance style,[27][28] which had been selected because it was similar to the style used by the Cornelius Vanderbilt II Mansion nearby.[29][30] Châteauesque decorations like salamanders were incorporated into the design.[29] The Crown Building was one of the city's last skyscrapers to be completed before Art Deco architecture in New York City gained popularity.[25] George Backer Inc. was the building's main contractor. Several other firms, including terracotta contractor New York Architectural Terra-Cotta and marble contractor A. R. Zicha Marble Co., provided construction materials and mechanical systems.[31]

Form and facade[edit]

The structure is 25 stories high,[32] with a nine-story base, a twelve-story shaft, and four-story octagonal pyramidal roof.[33] The building was divided into stores and showrooms on the lower levels and offices on the upper floors.[25][34] In addition to the main structure on 57th Street and Fifth Avenue, there was a six-story annex facing 56th Street,[31] which originally had its own entrance.[29][30] The annex measured 100 by 100 feet (30 by 30 m) across, stood six stories high, and contained accommodations for employees who worked in the main structure.[30] By 2021, the annex on 56th Street had been replaced with a glass structure.[35]

The Crown Building's massing, or shape, was regulated by the 1916 Zoning Resolution.[25] There are three primary setbacks, at the 10th, 13th, and 21st stories.[30][36] The building is set back a different distance from each of the surrounding streets,[34][37] and different setbacks were required for each elevation, since 56th Street is narrower than either 57th Street or Fifth Avenue.[27] The shaft is located toward the southern end of the site, near the center of the block,[34] and the setbacks on each side are complex and asymmetrical.[37] In addition, when the Heckscher Building was completed, it could be seen from several miles north, across the nearby Central Park.[38] After the building was converted into a hotel and residential building in the 2020s, outdoor terraces and swimming pools were added to the setbacks.[39] Some of the setbacks also have glass railings.[40]

The facade is made of limestone, buff-colored brick, and cream-colored architectural terracotta.[33][31] The facade is decorated with 1,363 ounces (38,600 g) of 23-karat gold leaf, which was added in the 1980s.[41][42] According to a promotional brochure from the time, was the largest such application of gold leaf in a commercial building in the U.S.[41] Terracotta reliefs drew attention to each of the main setbacks, while copper spandrel panels with reliefs were used to unite the windows on different stories.[31][37] When the building opened, the spandrel panels were coated in acid to turn them bright green.[27][37] The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat lists the building as being 416 feet (127 m) tall.[32] Originally, the building measured 410 feet (120 m) tall from the ground to the tip of its weather vane.[31]

Base[edit]

The 2nd through 4th stories. The windows on the 3rd story each span multiple bays, and there are cornices above the 2nd and 3rd stories.

The lowest nine stories are clad with Indiana limestone.[31][43] There are cornices above the 2nd, 3rd, and 8th stories, dividing the building's base horizontally into four segments.[43] At ground level, the northern facade along 57th Street measures 162 feet (49 m) across and is divided vertically into 18 bays, while the eastern facade on Fifth Avenue is 100 feet (30 m) across and is divided into 11 bays. The lowest two stories contain double-height storefronts divided by limestone pilasters and topped by flat arches with small brackets and rounded corners.[43] The storefronts were originally one story high, but their heights were increased at some point after 1983.[40] One of the storefronts (the Bulgari store at the corner of 57th Street and Fifth Avenue) has a mesh facade whose design is patterned after a 1930s bracelet clasp.[44] The original main entrance was at the far left (south) end of the Fifth Avenue elevation; it contained four doors, flanked by columns and pilasters.[29]

Above the 2nd story, the northeast corner (facing 57th Street and Fifth Avenue) has a column with a spiraling pattern, which supports a pedestal with brackets atop the 8th story. For the most part, the windows on the 3rd through 9th stories are rectangular windows set within the limestone facade.[43] After 1983, the third-story windows were widened to encompass several bays each.[40] At the center of the Fifth Avenue and 57th Street elevations of the facade, some of the windows have gilded spandrel panels with faces, leaves, and fleurs-de-lis. The cornice above the 9th floor is topped by a balustrade made of stone or terracotta, which in turn is decorated with salamander motifs.[43] At the 9th story, there is a statue of a woman at the northeast corner.[40]

Shaft[edit]

Above the 9th story, the building is clad with brick and has terracotta trim.[31][43] The shaft is clad with custom bricks measuring 4 by 4 by 11.5 inches (100 mm × 100 mm × 290 mm).[27][31] The 10th through 21st stories comprise the shaft, which is set back from the base. The shaft is clad with buff brick, except for curved masonry quoins at each corner. The facade's eastern elevation faces Fifth Avenue. The main portion of the eastern elevation is six bays wide and has a setback above the 13th story; there are two additional bays to the south, which rise to a masonry pediment above the 15th story. The northern elevation is thirteen bays wide on the 10th through 13th stories; due to the setback on Fifth Avenue, this facade is ten bays wide on the 14th through 21st stories. The inner bays on the eastern and northern elevations have gilded spandrel panels similar to those in the base, while the outermost bay on either end has plain spandrels. Additionally, the 21st story has terracotta window frames.[43]

The Crown Building's shaft viewed from the southeast. At left is the largely windowless south facade; at right is the east facade.

The southern and western elevations are partly obscured by other structures. The southern elevation has no windows, except on the 21st story and on its western portion.[36] This is because, at the time of the Heckscher Building's construction, the architects had anticipated that another building might be built directly to the south; for the same reason, the building's elevator banks are all clustered along the southern facade.[34] The western elevation has cornices, spandrel panels, terracotta frames, and some ventilation grilles.[36]

Roof[edit]

The gilded spandrel panels above the 22nd story are similar to the spandrel panels used in the base and shaft. On the 24th story, each bay is separated vertically by panels with rhombus motifs, and there are colonettes with spiral motifs at each corner. The 24th-story windows are topped by a horizontal row of corbels. Above the southwest corner of the 24th story is a chimney with rhombus, chevron, and salamander motifs. The 25th story is set back and contains several ornate dormer windows with pilasters, shell motifs, cartouches, and pediments.[43]

Above the 25th story rises a octagonal, pyramidal roof, which is painted green and is pierced by two stories of windows. The top of the pyramid includes ball, ring, and garland motifs.[43] There was originally a "golden cock" atop the roof,[45][46] which was part of a weather vane.[28][31] The figure weighed 450 pounds (200 kg) and measured 10 by 8.5 feet (3.0 by 2.6 m). Immediately below the rooster, there was also a small observation deck with replicas of jewels.[31] The weather vane was removed during World War II.[28]

Features[edit]

The building originally had 35,000 square feet (3,300 m2) of retail space,[47] as well as 400,000 square feet (37,000 m2) of office space.[48] The lowest nine stories were originally used as showrooms and stores, and the upper stories had offices. There were 10 passenger elevators from the ground floor to the upper stories.[31] By the 2020s, the lowest three stories were used as retail space, while the 4th floor and above were used as a hotel and residences.[49]

Base[edit]

Originally, the building's base contained numerous art galleries and showrooms.[50] In the basement were a shipping room and freight-handling facilities.[51] At ground level was a T-shaped shopping arcade.[29][27][51] One leg of the arcade was flanked by small shops and ran from 57th to 56th Street, while another leg ran east to Fifth Avenue.[51][30] The entrance vestibule from Fifth Avenue had bluestone floors, carved-limestone walls, and a pair of stained-glass windows. The arcades and elevator lobbies had black-and-gold marble walls with brass trim, while the floors were made of black Belgian marble tile with brass inserts. Eight of the building's passenger elevators were in the Fifth Avenue leg of the arcade, while the other two elevators were located in the annex, with a separate elevator vestibule. There were also display cases facing the elevators, in addition to a telephone stand.[31]

Residences and hotel[edit]

Following the building's conversion to the Aman New York hotel in 2022, the building has contained 22 residential condominium apartments, in addition to 83 hotel suites.[52][53] The hotel and residences have separate entrances.[54] Glass soundproofing is used throughout both the hotel and residences. The Aman New York's spaces are generally decorated in what one magazine described as "minimalist colors", although there are also gold-plated decorations, an allusion to the gold leaf on the facade.[55]

The hotel suites were designed by Jean-Michel Gathy.[56][57] Each of the hotel rooms covers between 340 and 2,770 square feet (32 and 257 m2);[58][a] at the time of the building's conversion, even the smallest rooms were twice the average size of a studio apartment in Midtown.[60] Various woods are used for doors, floors, and other furniture, and steel, brass, and bronze are also used.[55] The rooms have contemporary furniture, which is interspersed with the original Beaux-Arts interior decorations.[57] The hotel units have Japanese-inspired decorations,[52][56] including patterned stone floors, movable doors with rice paper panels,[55] and large murals inspired by the 16th-century painting Shōrin-zu byōbu.[52] The rooms have ceilings measuring 11 feet (3.4 m) high,[56] and all the rooms also have gas fireplaces and retractable TVs.[56][59] Each suite has a bathroom with a large tub and shower.[55][57] One of the larger suites is the Corner Suite, which covers 2,025 square feet (188.1 m2).[61] The largest suites are the Aman suites on floors 11 and 12, which each have a kitchenette, a bar, and hidden compartments.[62]

The residential condos are on floors 15 through 26.[63][b] They have a combined area of 95,000 square feet (8,800 m2), giving each residence an average area of 4,300 square feet (400 m2).[64] The largest residence in the building is a five-story penthouse that covers 14,000 square feet (1,300 m2); it has a full-floor master suite as well as a piano lounge, a gallery, two pools, two kitchens, four other bedrooms, and a game room.[65] The five-bedroom, 6,300-square-foot (590 m2) Vana penthouse on floor 21[66] has a library and private theater.[67] Another large unit is the four-bedroom, 6,700-square-foot (620 m2) Jala penthouse on floor 20,[68][63] which has 3,750 square feet (348 m2) of outdoor terraces in addition to a pool.[63] The other residences have varying numbers of bedrooms.[69]

Amenity spaces[edit]

The hotel portion of the building has a spa and three restaurants.[53] The spa covers 22,000 square feet (2,000 m2)[69] or 25,000 square feet (2,300 m2),[70] and it spans across three stories.[61] The spa includes two "spa houses", as well as fire pits around an indoor swimming pool[69][61] that measures 65 feet (20 m) long.[61][71] The two "spa houses" have various treatment rooms, pools, beds, and fireplaces, which can be rented out.[52] The swimming pool is hidden behind an unmarked wooden door.[71] There is a jazz club in the basement, the Aman Jazz Club,[41][72] which is accessed through an annex on 56th Street.[73] The hotel also has two restaurants: Nama, which serves Japanese cuisine, and Arva, which serves Mediterranean cuisine.[41][72]

Floor 14 has an atrium with sculptures designed by Peter Gentenaar.[55] On the tenth story is the Garden Terrace, which occupies multiple exterior spaces[56] and includes a dining room, cigar bar, and drinking bar.[69] The Garden Terrace covers 7,000 square feet (650 m2) and is covered by a retractable glass canopy.[55][74][70] Other amenity spaces in the hotel include a sky lobby, wine library, and piano bar.[41][72] In addition, the hotel includes a private club called Aman Club.[75][74] The club is limited to 600 members whose identities are not publicized. Members were allowed to use the hotel's amenities, received discounted food at the restaurants, and had a private concierge.[74]

History[edit]

Heckscher ownership[edit]

What is now the Crown Building was developed by August Heckscher, who had built his fortune from mining and Manhattan real estate.[28][76] Heckscher actively mined commodities such as copper, coal, and zinc in the northeastern U.S. during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He began buying buildings in Manhattan in 1910, and he was also a philanthropist who supported museums such as the Heckscher Art Museum and El Museo del Barrio.[76][77] The Real Estate Record and Guide wrote in 1912 that Heckscher "has not invested largely in real estate hitherto as an individual" but owned at least two other Fifth Avenue properties.[78] Before Heckscher developed what is now the Crown Building, he had built another Heckscher Building at the intersection of Madison Avenue and 42nd Street; that building also had setbacks in its design, even though it predated the 1916 Zoning Resolution.[77]

Site acquisition[edit]

Heckscher Building, 1921

In December 1912, the 734 Fifth Avenue Company bought the Morse and Stevens–Whitney houses[79][78] and immediately began tearing down the houses to make way for a commercial building.[80] Heckscher told his broker not to publicize the fact that he was buying the structure,[81] but the Real Estate Record and Guide reported that Heckscher was involved with the 734 Fifth Avenue Company.[78] The New-York Tribune wrote that Heckscher was "highly incensed" that his secret purchase had been announced publicly, since he had wanted to give the Whitney mansion to his wife as a surprise gift.[81] Heckscher was recorded as the property's owner by January 1913.[82] That July, Heckscher hired H. Edwards Ficken to build a three-story commercial building on the site.[82][83] The structure included stores on the ground story, offices on the second, and galleries on the third.[83]

Heckscher bought James Roosevelt's residence at 3 West 57th Street, and two other houses at 3–5 West 56th Street, in late 1913.[84] In November 1915, Heckscher acquired the adjacent properties at 7 West 56th Street and 6–8 West 57th Street from the estate of J. S. Kennedy.[85] The site was quickly resold to Michael Dreicer,[86] who built a structure on the 57th Street lots.[87] Heckscher bought back 7 and 9 West 56th Street from Dreicer in February 1918.[88] Heckscher formed a holding company called Anahma Realty, which was named after his yacht, though work was delayed likely due to the Spanish flu.[89]

Development[edit]

George Backer leased the corner of 57th Street and Fifth Avenue for 21 years, along with the adjacent Kennedy property on 56th Street, from Heckscher in 1919.[90][91] The L-shaped site wrapped around Joseph Duveen's art dealership on 56th Street.[90] Backer then announced plans for a 30-story building on the site, which would have cost $6 million and would have included offices, apartments, a theater, and some stores. Warren and Wetmore were hired as the architects.[90][91] As planned, there would have been only one setback;[92] the base would have risen 125 feet (38 m) above ground, while the shaft would have ascended another 325 feet (99 m).[93] The lower stories would have contained eight stories of showrooms and commercial stores, and the apartments and offices would have been located above. There would also have been an enclosed shopping arcade leading from 57th Street and from Fifth Avenue. The arcade would have led to a 900-seat, ten-story theater on 56th Street.[93]

Hughes & Hammond placed a $4.5 million mortgage loan on the building's site in February 1920, which at the time was one of the largest real-estate loans ever placed on a property in New York City.[94] The Heckscher Building was to be the first tall building along the Midtown segment of Fifth Avenue,[92] and its theater would have been the first Broadway theater along this same segment.[93] Insurance companies objected to the original plans, and the New York City Department of Buildings refused to approve the theater.[30][95] That August, Wetmore reduced the building's overall height to 25 stories,[30][96] and the apartments and theater were removed from the plans.[51][96] The building was to be used purely as a commercial and office structure, without any manufacturing.[30] The three-story structure on the site had been demolished by October 1920.[51][95] By then, the first 13 stories were planned to be used as shops (with showrooms on floors 2 through 9), while the 14th through 25th stories were to be used as offices.[51]

At the time of the building's development, Heckscher believed that the building was "the ultimate location for the exclusive shopping center of New York" because businesses would not relocate north of 59th Street in great numbers.[97] Backer's construction company built the Heckscher Building,[31][98] while Heckscher had a one-third ownership stake in the building.[99] After Backer's death in May 1921,[20][98] the executor of his estate, Samuel Levy, completed the structure.[99] By mid-1921, the Heckscher Building's rental agents Cushman & Wakefield were looking to attract retail tenants to the building.[100] Although media from August 1921 advertised the building as being ready for occupancy by the beginning of September, the building was still reportedly not complete in January 1922.[37] The structure was ultimately finished in 1922.[101][102]

Early years[edit]

The Crown Building's shaft seen from Fifth Avenue

The building's base originally contained numerous art galleries and showrooms.[50] Linen store Mosse Inc. was the first retail tenant, signing a lease in January 1922.[103] Tenants with full floors in the building included upholstery and decoration distributor Stroheim & Romann,[104] the Consolidated Cigar Company,[105] stockbroker J. P. Benkard & Co.,[106] and oil refiner Cosden & Co.[107] Women's Wear wrote that the building's completion coincided with the increasing concentration of businesses along 57th Street,[108] while the New York Herald Tribune wrote that its construction accelerated the street's commercial redevelopment.[109] In any case, the building was nearly fully occupied in October 1923,[37] and fashion store Joseph's leased the building's last available storefront in October 1924.[110] Other early tenants with large amounts of space included jewelers Udall & Ballou[111] and the Hadley-Leon apparel store.[112] Harry Payne Whitney offered $7 million to buy the building in 1926, though Heckscher declined.[113] Instead, Heckscher refinanced the building in 1930 with a $4.5 million mortgage loan, replacing the previous mortgages.[114]

The Museum of Modern Art moved into a six-room gallery on the Heckscher Building's twelfth floor in November 1929;[115] it was MoMA's first-ever location.[116] Among the notable exhibitions that MoMA hosted at the building was the Modern Architecture: International Exhibition,[101][117] in which curators Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson popularized the term International Style.[118] MoMA also displayed work from other artists, such as Vincent van Gogh, Paul Cézanne, Georges Seurat, and Paul Gauguin, at the Heckscher Building.[101] In the same building, the Mexican artist Diego Rivera had rented a studio where, in 1931, he created works for a MoMA exhibition.[119][120] MoMA remained at the Heckscher Building until 1932,[25][116] when it moved to 53rd Street.[121] During the 1930s, other tenants with large amounts of space included womenswear company Nelson-Hickson Inc.,[122] linen retailers William Coulson & Sons,[123] antiques dealer Symons Inc.,[124] film studio Universal Pictures,[125] and camera maker E. Leitz Inc.[126] There was also a four-room exhibition studio for Studio Guild Galleries,[127] in addition to a contract bridge club[128] and a luncheon club.[129]

With the construction of Rockefeller Center nearby in the 1930s, Heckscher blamed Rockefeller Center's developers for decreased demand at his building.[130][131] Heckscher sued Rockefeller Center's developers for $10 million in January 1934, claiming that the developers took over the tenants' old leases at below market rate or paid tenants to disregard or cancel the leases at their old buildings.[132] No trial was ever held for the lawsuit,[25] and in December 1934, the City Bank-Farmers Trust Company filed to foreclose on the building's mortgage.[130][133] The Heckscher Building was offered for sale at a foreclosure auction in early July 1938,[134] and City Bank Farmers Trust paid $4.25 million for the structure that month.[135]

Mid-20th century[edit]

Stores along the 57th Street side of the Crown Building

During the 1940s, space in the building was leased to tenants such as dressmaker Wilma Gowns,[136] perfume seller Parfums Charbert,[137] and the Motion Picture Sales Corporation.[138] In addition, the building's weather vane was removed in 1942 to provide scrap metal for World War II.[28] In January 1946, Charles F. Noyes and a partner agreed to buy the building as an investment for Noyes's family.[19][139] At the time, the structure was earning $700,000 in rent per year and was valued at $4.875 million for tax purposes.[139] The sale was finalized the next month. Noyes gave his ownership stake to his daughter, whom media sources referred to as "Mrs. Duncan M. Findlay", and the developer Joseph Durst was revealed as Noyes's partner.[140][141] The Herald Tribune wrote that Durst had urged Noyes to buy the building after several other developers had expressed interest in the building,[141] and that Noyes had rejected an outside offer of $5 million for the building.[142]

Durst and Duncan Findlay received a $4.15 million mortgage loan for the building in mid-1949.[143] The Durst and Findlay families sold the building in November 1950 to Kenneth S. Keyes, who represented two anonymous Cuban investors.[99] The buyers paid $1.965 million in cash and took over the building's existing $4.01 million mortgage.[144] By then, the building's tenants paid about $1 million in annual rent and occupied about 300,000 square feet (28,000 m2) of office space.[99][145] Further space was leased in the 1950s and 1960s to tenants such as specialty shop Blackton-Fifth Avenue Ltd.,[146] the U.S. Senate campaign offices of Herbert Lehman,[147] talent agency Mercury Artists,[148] paint company Martin-Senour,[149] and cosmetic and perfume company Lanvin-Charles of the Ritz.[150]

The building was renamed the Genesco Building in 1964, when Genesco became a major tenant.[28][151] At the time, Genesco owned an I. Miller shoe store at the base and the Bonwit Teller department store across the street.[151] In 1966, the building was sold to Centurion Real Estate Inc.[25][151] Paul Goldberger of The New York Times wrote in the 1970s that the base of the Genesco Building contained a wooden tent which housed the I. Miller store.[152] By the late 1970s, Centurion reported that the building was nearly fully occupied.[25]

Marcos ownership[edit]

Acquisition, renovation, and new tenants[edit]

The Crown Building as seen from one block north. 712 Fifth Avenue is in the background, and the Bergdorf Goodman Building is in the foreground.
The Crown Building as seen from one block north. 712 Fifth Avenue is in the background, and the Bergdorf Goodman Building is in the foreground.

The Genesco Building at 730 Fifth Avenue was sold in September 1981 to Ralph and Joseph Bernstein of the New York Land Company, which was initially reported to be representing an anonymous Canadian investment group.[153] The real buyer was Imelda Marcos, the wife of Philippine dictator Ferdinand Marcos, who purchased it through a Dutch Antillean company named Lastura Corp. N.V.[154] Lastura, in turn, was owned by a Panamanian shell company.[155][c] In a subsequent criminal case, one witness testified that Ferdinand Marcos was initially reluctant to buy the building, but relented after his wife tearfully pleaded for him to purchase it.[157] The acquisition cost $51 million.[158][159][160] Joseph Bernstein was designated as the trustee for Lastura Corp. N.V.[161][154] According to later testimony from Bernstein, the Marcoses had obtained a loan to purchase the Crown Building, including $34 million from BNP Paribas.[162] Marcos also received a $30 million loan from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, the Philippines Central Bank;[163][164] he allegedly forced an associate to submit a fraudulent loan application to the bank.[164]

The Genesco Building was renamed the Crown Building in 1983, after its crown-like look when illuminated at night.[26] New York Land subsequently spent $15 million on redecorating the building,[165][166] and it paid another $70 million to buy and renovate a Korvettes storefront in the building.[166] The new owners added 23-karat gold leaf to the building's facade,[42][167] reportedly to compete with the decorations on the nearby Trump Tower.[160] New York Land hired lighting designer Douglas Leigh to renovate the building's exterior lighting.[168] Leigh also added floodlights atop the Tiffany, Manufacturers Hanover, and Bergdorf Goodman buildings, at the other three corners of the intersection of Fifth Avenue and 57th Street, to match the Crown Building's lights.[169][170] The new lights atop all four buildings were activated in January 1983,[170] though local businesses complained about the brightness and glare created by the other three buildings' lights.[171] New York Land funded the installation of a large illuminated snowflake-shaped object above Fifth Avenue and 57th Street,[172] and they upgraded the elevators as well.[173]

During the 1980s, a group of 38 art galleries leased the building's second and third floors.[174] Other new tenants during that decade included a store for Salvatore Ferragamo S.p.A.,[175] a temporary construction office for Donald Trump,[166] the headquarters of fashion brand Pierre Cardin,[176] and a jewelry gallery.[177] New York Land also wanted to market the office space to large firms, so it paid some of the smaller tenants to move out.[166] Shoe companies opened showrooms within the building, and retail space was being rented for about $500 per square foot ($5,400/m2) by the late 1980s, making it among the world's most expensive retail space.[165] Among the retail tenants at that time were Bulgari and Sharper Image.[178] Also during that decade, preservationists had proposed designating the Crown Building as a contributing property to a planned historic district along the midtown section of Fifth Avenue. The historic district was never created.[179]

Attempted sales[edit]

In August 1985, opposition politicians in the National Assembly of the Philippines submitted a complaint in an unsuccessful attempt to impeach Marcos; the complaint alleged that Imelda Marcos had bought the Crown Building in 1981.[180] A United States House of Representatives committee found that the Bernsteins had been working on behalf of Marcos,[181][182] who had intended the building and several others as a gift for his wife Imelda.[183][d] The Washington Post reported that in coded cables between the Marcos family and their alleged "front" in Manhattan, Gliceria Tantoco, the Crown Building was referred to using the code word "Ferragamo".[159] By February 1986, the Crown Building and three other buildings reportedly owned by the Marcoses were being placed for sale.[160][185] Around that time, the Bernsteins were contemplating paying $250 million for the Crown Building and two of the other buildings.[186] The Bernsteins alleged that they paid $235 million for the Crown Building, Herald Center, and 40 Wall Street,[187][188] but the Philippine government claimed that the sale was never finalized.[189] The Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi also claimed to be involved with the building's purchase;[190] he asserted that he had owned the building for several years before the Bernsteins' alleged purchase.[187][188]

After Marcos was forced out of office, the administration of his successor Corazon Aquino froze Marcos's assets within U.S. banking channels in March 1986.[191] As a result, the building's tax bills went unpaid.[192] A lawyer alleged that the building's value was declining under the Bernsteins' management.[193] After a U.S. circuit court ruled to block the sale of the Marcos properties in November 1986, Aquino's administration filed a lawsuit against the Marcos estate to obtain title to the buildings.[194] Security Pacific Bank held one of the building's mortgage loans, which was worth either $60 million[195] or $76 million by 1989.[196] Two additional mortgages, totaling $39 million, were held by Mabari, a Liechtenstein foundation originally operated by Khashoggi.[155] The Marcoses defaulted on the Security Pacific loan in 1987,[197] and the loan had been foreclosed upon by the following year.[198] Federal judge Pierre N. Leval ruled in 1988 that the building could be sold at a foreclosure auction.[195] The first through third floors, which were leased to I. Miller and then re-leased to Bulgari, were exempted from the foreclosure auction because I. Miller's lease had been negotiated long before the Marcoses obtained the building.[155]

The Crown Building's disposition was unresolved for several years[41][199] because the Philippine government, the Bernsteins, and Khashoggi each claimed ownership over it.[200] The Aquino administration attempted in early 1989 to sell the four Marcos properties to Morris Bailey for $398 million, over the objections of the Bernsteins and Khashoggi.[187][201] Khashoggi was also accused of helping the Marcoses hide their stakes in their buildings,[202] although he was acquitted of all racketeering charges in relation to the properties.[203] By late 1989, Leval was planning a foreclosure auction for the building, setting the minimum bid at $125 million.[196][204] The auction was originally scheduled for that October,[195][205] but it was rescheduled eight times due to uncertainty over who owned the structure.[206] An unidentified buyer offered $120 million for the building the following year.[207]

Spitzer, Winter, and Greene ownership[edit]

The Aquino administration, Khashoggi, and the Bernsteins settled their conflicting claims to the building in late 1990, agreeing to split the profits after the building was sold and the mortgage was paid off.[208][209] By then, the building was half-empty.[155] There had been few attempts to attract new tenants or maintain the building during the late 1980s, and its largest tenant had moved out.[196] The Crown Building was ultimately sold in February 1991 to real-estate developers Bernard Spitzer, Marvin Winter, and Jerome L. Greene for $93.6 million, only a few thousand dollars above Security Pacific's bid.[207][210] After the $89 million mortgage and various taxes were paid off, comparatively little remained;[199][206] the Philippine government received about $3,000 in total.[156] To attract tenants, Spitzer and his partners subdivided the interior space and advertised the building's location, design, and floor areas;[211] they had managed to lease 10 percent of the empty space by the end of 1991.[212]

The building was 80 percent occupied by 1993, with foreign companies comprising many of the new tenants.[213] The building's occupants during the 1990s included fashion designer Louis Féraud,[214] fashion designer Laura Biagiotti,[215] art gallery Kennedy Galleries,[216] fashion showroom Falmola,[217] antique dealer Israel Sack,[218] and watch company Piaget SA.[219] Luxury goods store Bruno Magli leased the penthouse,[220] while other office space was occupied by fashion firm Mondo Inc.,[221] lifestyle magazine Playboy,[222] and hotel chain Sun International.[223] Despite the owners' initial failure to attract art-gallery owners to the building, by the mid-1990s the Crown Building was in high demand among art galleries.[216] An executive for the building's leasing agent, Cushman & Wakefield, said that they wanted to lease the space to high-end tenants.[224] The owners also leased out some prebuilt office space in the building.[225]

During the 2000s, the building gained tenants such as a Smythson stationery store,[226] a Vidal Sassoon fashion salon,[227] a Gilan jewelry showroom,[228] and the headquarters of the Nina Footwear Corporation (which had acquired I. Miller).[229] In addition, the building had a coworking space.[230] After Spitzer's son Eliot Spitzer resigned as the governor of New York, Eliot had an office at the Crown Building.[231] When Bernard Spitzer died in 2014, Eliot continued to operate the building alongside the Winter family.[232]

Redevelopment[edit]

Sales[edit]

Seen from Fifth Avenue

In December 2014, Eliot Spitzer and the Winters began looking to sell the building for at least $1.8 billion.[233] Jeff Sutton's Wharton Properties and Sandeep Mathrani's General Growth Properties purchased the building for about $1.75 billion that month,[e] including both the office space and the lower-story retail space.[48][236][237] The sale price of $4,490 per square foot ($48,300/m2) made the Crown Building the world's costliest office building per square foot at the time.[238][239] Though the sale was one of the largest deals in New York City real estate history,[48][236][237] one observer predicted that the retail space alone was worth more than the price paid for the whole structure.[47] The retail tenants, Bulgari, Zegna, and K. Mikimoto & Co, were paying less than the market rate, though most of the tenants' leases expired in seven years or less.[237][238] In addition, the office space was occupied by companies such as private-equity firm Apollo Global Management and investment manager Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.[238]

Wharton and General Growth finalized their purchase in April 2015.[235][240] That month, developer Michael Shvo and Russian billionaire Vladislav Doronin purchased the top 21 stories for about $500 million.[235][241] Shvo and Doronin beat out several other large bidders, including the Blackstone Group, the Carlyle Group, and LVMH.[241] Shvo and Doronin announced plans to convert and redevelop their portion of the Crown Building into the Aman New York, a luxury hotel and residences.[242] The hotel and residences would be operated by Doronin's Aman Resorts[53] and would be the third Aman resort located in a city.[241] Some of the building's office tenants began leaving after the sale was announced,[243] while other tenants, including several art galleries, were forced out of the office space against their wishes.[244]

Wharton and General Growth also evicted tenants on the lower stories so these areas could be converted to retail space.[245] They leased out two of the building's storefronts at rates that greatly exceeded the area's $3,324 per square foot ($35,780/m2) average.[246] Bulgari signed a new lease in late 2015, reducing its space to 3,675 square feet (341.4 m2),[247] and Zegna leased 9,000 square feet (840 m2) on the first and second floors in March 2016.[248] The last non-retail tenant in the base, ICM Partners, moved out in June 2016.[245]

Hotel conversion[edit]

Mikimoto renovated its 1,800-square-foot (170 m2) store at the building in 2016.[249] Shvo and Doronin submitted a condominium offering plan to the New York Attorney General's office that November.[250][251] Early plans called for 79 hotel rooms on the 4th through 9th stories; three floors of amenity space; and 26 residential condos above the 11th story.[251][252] The terms of the Aman New York's condo offering allowed the developers to rent out some of the apartments as hotel rooms.[253] Following allegations of corruption against Shvo,[241] he was ousted as one of the hotel's developers by September 2017, although Shvo still owned a partial stake in the project.[254] Doronin estimated that the penthouse apartment would be sold for $100 million, while the other units would be sold for at least $4 million.[69][255] Doronin also planned to add large terraces and outdoor pools to the setbacks.[39] The Crown Building's Bulgari store opened in October 2017 following a renovation designed by Peter Marino.[44][256]

In March 2018, a buyer offered $180 million for the Aman's penthouse, making it one of the highest-priced residential sales in the U.S.[257][258] Doronin received a $284 million loan for the hotel portion of the building that December.[259] The Zegna store at the building's base was also redesigned by Marino and reopened in February 2019.[260] By mid-2019, there were buyers for about half of the building's apartments, despite decreased demand for luxury apartments along the nearby Billionaires' Row.[41] The sales office was open only to invited guests who first underwent an extensive background check.[41][72] At the time, the condos were being sold for between $4.7 million and $83 million, even though public sales had not even begun.[41] Also in 2019, Wharton and General Growth sought a $900 million loan to refinance the building's retail space,[261] and Apollo Global agreed to provide $807 million that August.[262] Sutton sold most of his stake in the retail space to Brookfield Properties that month, reportedly due to dissatisfaction over the terms of the refinancing.[263] Doronin's OKO Group received $750 million in construction loans in October 2019 to renovate the upper levels.[264]

Jean-Michel Gathy was hired to renovate the hotel portion of the building,[56][57] while the brokerage Douglas Elliman was hired to place the residential condos on sale.[64] Residential sales at the Crown Building commenced in January 2020,[265] and the first units became available in early 2021.[266] The project included adding design details such as fireplaces between windows, which, according to Gathy, helped to make the building "luxurious".[61] The completion of the renovation had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City, and the project had also incurred 34 violations of city building codes by early 2021.[241] One worker died after falling down a chute in the building,[241][267] and the city fined the developer $12,500 as a result.[267] Most of the building's apartments had been sold by the end of 2021.[268] Doronin sought to refinance the hotel in early 2022,[269] and he refinanced the hotel that June with a $754 million loan from JPMorgan Chase.[270] Buyers began finalizing their purchases in mid-2022.[253][271] Of the first 12 buyers to finalize their purchases, five had paid more than $20 million each; Doronin predicted that the apartments would sell for a total of $893 million.[253] The hotel renovation ultimately cost $1.45 billion.[272]

Hotel opening and 2020s[edit]

The Aman New York opened on August 11, 2022.[272][273][274] The cheapest rooms rented for $3,200[59][61][70] or $3,400 a night,[275] making the Aman the city's most expensive hotel.[75][274] The Aman also had a private club that, at the time of the hotel's opening, had an upfront membership fee of $200,000, excluding the $15,000 annual renewal fee.[75][74] The New York Times reported that, at the Aman's opening, there was so much demand for the hotel that even some of the club's members had difficulties reserving rooms.[59] The following month, Doronin considered selling the hotel portion of the building for at least $600 million,[276] though Aman would continue to operate the hotel.[49][276] A Chopard watch shop opened at the building's base in December 2022.[277] Three of the building's apartments ranked among the most expensive apartments in New York City during 2022.[278]

In 2023, the Aman began renting out some of the private apartments to hotel guests as part of a program where condos' owners could opt to rent out their homes.[279] The fashion house Chanel opened a two-story store at the Crown Building's base, its first standalone watch-and-jewelry boutique in the United States, in February 2024.[280] By the next month, sales had been finalized for 17 of the condos.[265] The purchasers of the condos included a trust operated by Meta Platforms[281] and Hong Kong businessman Terence Chan.[282] In addition, fashion house Prada bought one of the commercial condo units in April 2024 for $12.6 million.[283][284] On May 14, 2024, the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission designated the Crown Building as an official city landmark.[101][102] The following month, the businessman Serdar Bilgili sued Shvo over the latter's ownership stake in the Crown Building. Bilgili claimed that he had acquired a one-third interest in Shvo's ownership stake in 2015 and that Shvo had reduced their ownership stakes through a set of capital calls.[285]

Reception[edit]

Architectural commentary[edit]

The building's roof

When the Heckscher Building was being planned, the New-York Tribune wrote that the structure exemplified the commercial and architectural changes taking place on Fifth Avenue.[95][93] The New York Herald called the structure a "cathedral of commerce",[37][286] while Heckscher himself called it the "tower of trade".[37][25] As the building was being completed in 1921, Aymar Embury II wrote in Architectural Forum magazine that the building's massing was "perhaps as attractive as that of any in the city", aside from the Woolworth Building.[38] The same year, the New York World wrote that the Heckscher Building was one of several new skyscrapers that exemplified the idea of the pyramid-roofed tower.[287] The Real Estate Record surmised that the building would serve as "a beautiful background" for Fifth Avenue's mansions.[28]

Following the building's completion, the architect Harvey Wiley Corbett stated that the Heckscher Building had a "very pleasing contour", especially its topmost portion, and was "more interesting certainly than the old buildings" further down Fifth Avenue.[288] The Guardian described the building as a "lovely slight from all the southern part of Central Park", particularly its golden pinnacle.[46] The writer Willard Gilman Myers wrote that the building's roof had one of New York City's most beautiful pinnacles in New York City and that the structure "soars above the Vanderbilt chateau with a Gallic grace that has little of the heavier beauty of its sisters to the south".[289] Conversely, George Harold Edgell regarded the design as "not wholly successful" because of the excessive emphasis placed on horizontal design elements.[50][290]

Writing retrospectively in 1976, Paul Goldberger said that the building's roof "made it an early and significant presence on the Fifth Avenue skyline".[152] After Douglas Leigh replaced the building's lighting in the 1980s, Goldberger wrote that the "intricate mix of gilding and lighting [...] works superbly",[291] though architect Patricia Conway regarded the gilding as "rather excessive, and not architecturally appropriate".[292] In his 1987 book New York 1930, Robert A. M. Stern wrote that the presence of the Heckscher Building "signaled a new scale of development" along 57th Street.[50] The Wall Street Journal described the original building as being "a monument to the Beaux-Arts movement" when it was built.[41]

Hotel commentary[edit]

Following the Crown Building's conversion into a hotel, a writer for Elite Traveler wrote that the subtleness of the hotel room's design details contributed to their luxurious feel.[57] Another critic, for the Condé Nast Traveler, described going through the hotel as akin to a "nesting process" and said that "walking down the hotel's hushed, cream-colored hallways and reaching your suite feels like making it to the inner sanctum".[56] A writer for Town and Country magazine stated that there was an "interesting juxtaposition between Aman's glossy modernism and its new home's old Beaux-Arts bones", describing the interiors as having a serene atmosphere.[70]

In the inaugural edition of the World's 50 Best Hotels, the Aman was ranked as the 25th-best hotel in the world, as well as the highest-ranked hotel in the United States on that list.[293] The first edition of the Michelin Keys Guide, in 2024, ranked the Aman New York as a "three-key" hotel, the highest accolade granted by the Michelin Keys Guide.[294][295] The Aman was one of 11 Michelin three-key hotels across the United States[295] and one of four such hotels in New York City.[294]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ Other sources cite a minimum area of 718 square feet (66.7 m2)[56] or 745 square feet (69.2 m2).[59] The four smallest suites are 340-square-foot studios that are attached to larger units; excluding these studios, the smallest room is 745 square feet.[58]
  2. ^ Also described as floors 15 through 30. The floor numbers do not correspond to the physical stories in the building.[61]
  3. ^ The owner of the Lastura Corporation has been variously cited as Trade & Commodities S.A., Paneles Porcelanizados S.A., and Yewell Compagnie Immobiliere S.A.[155] Lastura itself was subsequently renamed the Canadian Land Company, then Crown Building N.V.[155][156]
  4. ^ Marcos was also found to have purchased several other New York City buildings; see Overseas landholdings of the Marcos family.[184]
  5. ^ The price has also been cited as $1.77 billion[234] or $1.78 billion.[235]

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 2024, p. 1.
  2. ^ a b White, Willensky & Leadon 2010, p. 337.
  3. ^ a b "730 5 Avenue, 10019". New York City Department of City Planning. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
  4. ^ White, Willensky & Leadon 2010, p. 326.
  5. ^ a b "John Peirce Residence" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. June 23, 2009. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 10, 2021. Retrieved April 28, 2021.
  6. ^ Stokes, Isaac Newton Phelps (1915). "The iconography of Manhattan Island, 1498–1909 : compiled from original sources and illustrated by photo-intaglio reproductions of important maps, plans, views, and documents in public and private collections". p. 67. Archived from the original on April 15, 2012 – via Internet Archive.
  7. ^ Jackson, Kenneth T., ed. (2010). The Encyclopedia of New York City (2nd ed.). New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 558. ISBN 978-0-300-11465-2.
  8. ^ Stern, Mellins & Fishman 1999, p. 578.
  9. ^ a b Landmarks Preservation Commission 2024, p. 8.
  10. ^ "Mr. Edward Harriman..." (PDF). The Real Estate Record: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide. Vol. 79, no. 2038. April 6, 1907. p. 296. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved June 9, 2020 – via columbia.edu.
  11. ^ "A Brilliant Future for 57th Street: to Be Great Store Centre Shopping Zone of the Highest Class Being Formed in Fifty-seventh Street—No Other Crosstown Thorough-fare in Manhattan Has More Promising Outlook". New-York Tribune. March 28, 1915. p. C1. ISSN 1941-0646. ProQuest 575358267.
  12. ^ "'Shanty Land' Now Site of $125,000,000 New Construction: Skyscrapers and Shops Have Replaced Homes of 5,000 Squatters in 57th Street". New York Herald Tribune. January 13, 1929. p. D1. ProQuest 1111941344.
  13. ^ Stern, Gilmartin & Mellins 1987, p. 357.
  14. ^ Russell, John (April 24, 1988). "Three Worlds of 57th Street; the World of Art". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on November 28, 2020. Retrieved November 20, 2020.
  15. ^ a b "Society House of the American Society of Civil Engineers" (PDF). New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission. December 16, 2008. p. 2. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 23, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
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