The real estate deal the city has been waiting for just got done.
After months of speculation, Vornado, Ken Griffin and Rudin announced they formally closed on their joint-venture agreement to build 350 Park Avenue, a 66-story, 1,400-foot tall skyscraper between East 51st and East 52nd streets.
The JV partners also closed on a $3.3 billion construction loan, believed to be the largest for a single building in the city’s history.
Griffin’s Citadel Enterprise America will anchor the 1.9 million square-foot project with a 1.05 million square-foot lease.
Citadel Enterprise Americas is an entity that provides shared infrastructure and support services to Citadel and Citadel Securities, which are separate businesses within the broader Citadel Group.
The remaining 850,000 square feet on the highest floors of the Foster + Partners-designed cloudbuster will be marketed to other tenants. Completion of the tower is estimated for 2032.
Although Vornado CEO Steve Roth said in a recent earnings call that a construction loan was “ready to go,” he didn’t name the lenders.
They are Wells Fargo Bank; JP Morgan Chase Bank, National Association; and Bank of America, BMO Bank, ING Capital, PNC Bank and Standard Chartered Bank.
Despite Roth’s apparent certainty, fingers were crossed until today’s announcement.
Fears lingered that the deal might fall apart following Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s blind-side video attack on Griffin over his ownership of a $230 million condo.
But if Mamdani meant to sabotage the project, Griffin was undeterred.
In fact, a Griffin affiliate is the majority owner with 60% of the joint venture. Vornado,the developer, owns 36% and Rudin only 5%.
The tower’s great size and height were made possible by Greater East Midtown rezoning.
The partners bought development rights from St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Saint Bartholomew’s Church and will contribute a total $150 million for the maintenance of both, in addition to providing more than $35 million to the East Midtown Public Realm Improvement Fund.
The building boasts ground-floor food and beverage facilities, a 40-foot-tall glass lobby and 16-foot floor-to-ceiling windows.