Renderings revealed for 550 Madison’s renovated lobby

The office tower’s $300M repositioning is expected to wrap up next year

Olayan Group and its partners can see the finish line for 550 Madison Avenue’s major rehab.

The local arm of the Saudi Arabian conglomerate has released renderings showing the new lobby, designed by Gensler. The central feature of the new entrance is a large rear window that frames a garden in the rear of the building.

The project is on track to wrap up by next year, according to a release. The building’s exterior was landmarked in August 2018, and the latest design proposal for the tower’s exterior was approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission in February.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

By signing up, you agree to TheRealDeal Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy.

“We cannot wait to introduce Olayan’s brand of luxury hospitality for commercial tenants to New York next year,” said Erik Horvat, managing director of real estate at Olayan, in a release. CBRE is handling leasing.

Olayan bought the building, designed by renowned architect Philip Johnson and John Burgee, for $1.4 billion in 2016 from Chetrit Group and David Bistricer’s Clipper Equity. At the time, the former headquarters for AT&T, and later Sony Corporation of America, had been vacated to make way for a condo conversion.

Olayan partnered with U.K.-based developer and asset manager Chelsfield and later RXR Realty to execute a $300 million makeover of the tower into a multi-tenant office building, though the project was complicated by a contentious landmarking process.