WATCH: Inside Macklowe’s gut renovation of historic One Wall Street

It’s one of the largest office-to-condo conversions in New York real estate history

It’s one of the largest office-to-condo conversions in New York real estate history.

Macklowe Properties’ development of One Wall Street comes with unique challenges. The building’s landmarked limestone exterior has to be preserved, even while the interiors are gut-renovated and modernized to create 566 condominiums and 174,000 square feet of retail space.

The Real Deal got a sneak peek inside the construction project.

Built between 1928 and 1931, the Art Deco skyscraper designed by architect Ralph Walker only ever had one tenant, the Bank of New York. As part of the redesign, 34 old elevators and 16 escalators were torn out.

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“You’ve got pre-war, as well as very modern, in one building,” said Lilla Smith, director of architecture and design at Macklowe Properties.

Apartments in the building, which has a projected sellout of $1.69 billion, will range from studios to three bedrooms, with a penthouse in the famed White Room at the top of the landmarked tower. The apartments will average about $2,600 a square foot, though the building’s sales launch has been pushed back multiple times.

Macklowe, in partnership with former prime minister of Qatar Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber al-Thani (HBJ), landed a $750 million construction loan in November. They paid $585 million to acquire the property in 2014.

Two retailers, Whole Foods and Life Time, have signed leases at the site. Target was  in discussions to open a location at the base of the tower, as TRD reported last year.