Top 5 Office Projects Under Construction in Manhattan

Manhattan’s under-construction office pipeline consisted of 4.6 million square feet of competitive space across 12 properties at the end of April, according to CommercialEdge data. This represents 0.9 percent of its existing stock—slightly above the national average of 0.7 percent.

The metro’s slow office construction activity follows last year’s trend, when Manhattan’s December under-construction pipeline included 2.7 million square feet. On a national level, 2024 ended with a significant drop in developments and office deliveries, in line with a changing office work culture.

The following list includes the five largest office projects currently under construction in Manhattan as of the end of April. These developments feature a combined 3.6 million square feet and are mainly located in Midtown Manhattan’s Plaza District.

1. 270 Park

In June 2020, construction began on 270 Park, a Class A+ office high-rise in the borough’s Plaza District totaling 2.5 million square feet. Developed by JPMorgan Chase as its new global headquarters, the tower topped out at 60 stories in late 2023. It is rising 1,388 feet and currently holds the sixth place on the List of New York City’s tallest buildings, while being designed as the metro’s largest all-electric tower.

JPMorgan Chase’s new building will house more than 14,000 employees, replacing an outdated property that has the capacity for only 3,500 employees. The development team includes AECOM Tishman as manager of the construction project, Foster + Partners as designer in charge, Adamson Associates as architect of record, Severud Associates as structural engineer and New York City Constructors, which oversaw the frame’s installation.

The structure replaces the 1960-built Union Carbide Building, a 52-story property demolished in 2021, where JPMorgan Chase was headquartered. The company’s world headquarters is currently at 383 Madison Ave. until the official moving in at 270 Park, with delivery estimated for November this year.

2. 403 E. 79th St.

The second-largest project underway in the metro is a medical office development at 403 E. 79th St., totaling 400,000 square feet. Owned and developed by Extell Development, construction began in late 2022, with construction funds totaling $54.8 million, secured in 2023 from Cain International.

Perkins Eastman Architects is the designer in charge, with other development partners including Ancora Engineering as structural engineer and Consigil Building Group Inc. acting as general contractor. The completion date is scheduled for August this year.

The Class A property rises 30 stories in the city’s Upper East Side area. Designed to include medical office, research space and ground-floor retail spaces, the building’s anchor tenant will be Hospital for Special Surgery, that signed a long-term leasing agreement for nearly 200,000 square feet across the first eight floors.

The academic medical center and research institution is specializing in orthopedic and rheumatologic treatments and is the oldest orthopedic hospital in the U.S., founded in 1863. The upcoming Hospital for Special Surgery’s facility will for its orthopedic and rheumatology physicians, treatment rooms for musculoskeletal conditions and ancillary services.

3. 125 W. 57th St.

Totaling 252,955 square feet, our list continues with 125 W. 57th St., owned and developed by Alchemy-ABR Investment Partners and Cain International. The 30-story project broke ground in September 2022, while leasing started in August of last year, with JLL acting as exclusive broker. The development partners secured a $100 million construction loan originated in 2021 by Security Benefit Life Insurance Co.

The project is the only planned, ground-up Class A speculative office building within the borough’s Plaza District within the next few years, in an area with limited new office inventory. Designed by FXCollaborative, the glass tower will include vertical, bronze-colored fins, ground-floor retail space and nearly 180,000 square feet of Class A boutique office space. Other project partners include Leading Builders Group as general contractor and Focchi Group, part of the design team.

The property is located on a lot initially owned by the Calvary Baptist Church, that sold the site for $130 million in 2017 to Alchemy-ABR Investment Partners. Expected to reach completion by the end of June this year, the building will also include a new home for the Calvary Baptist Church, that occupied the site since 1883.

4. NYC Public Health Laboratory

New York City’s new Public Health Laboratory, a 240,000-square-foot medical office project, is the next development on our list. Developed by The New York City Economic Development Corp., with Skanska as general contractor, the city’s public health lab is taking shape at 40 W. 137th St., within Harlem’s Hospital Center campus.

Skanska signed the $148 million construction contract in 2021 and broke ground in 2022, following the demolition of three buildings on the Harlem Hospital campus. The new facility topped out in September 2023 at 10 stories, while completion is estimated for January 2026.

Project partners include Skidmore, Owings & Merrill as designer. Valued at $454 million, the facility will be operated by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The venture secured $25 million from the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, as the project will include one of the most energy efficient facilities of its kind in the country

The building will include office spaces, laboratories and clinical facilities, as well as a lobby area, a 200-person auditorium, a walk-in testing center and several support areas. The new facility is meant to replace the current public health lab at 455 Fifth Ave.

5. 520 Offices

The last development on our list is another property in the city’s Plaza District. Developed by Rabina Properties, 520 Offfices began construction in 2022, with completion at the 508,000-square foot facility scheduled for September this year.

Developed at 520 Fifth Ave., the project is set to be the tallest structure on Fifth Avenue, in the vicinity of the Empire State Building. The office component will total 210,882 square feet and will be spread between the 9th and 34th floors, while the residential element will consist of 100 condominiums across floors 42nd and 80th. Reaching 1,001 feet tall, the mixed-use tower is backed by a $410 million construction loan originated by Bank OZK in 2022.

Development partners include Kohn Pederson Fox as architect of record, Charles & Co. as interior designer, WSP as structural engineer, DeSimone Consulting Engineering as façade consultant and Suffolk Construction is the general contractor.