Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration has proposed rezoning a five-block stretch surrounding Grand Central Terminal to allow for the construction of SL Green’s 65-story tower project 1 Vanderbilt.
De Blasio’s plan looks to partly resuscitate the failed push by his predecessor, Michael Bloomberg, to rezone 73 blocks of Midtown East to make way for larger office buildings. SL Green has been negotiating with TD Bank about becoming the flagship tenant at the proposed 1,200-foot tower.
Alicia Glen, deputy mayor for housing and economic development, said a timeframe for the rezoning would be announced in the next two weeks. Former Metropolitan Transportation Authority sites – located at 341, 345 And 347 Madison Avenue – and the Yale Club of New York City at 50 Vanderbilt Avenue would be part of the rezoning, the Wall Street Journal reported. Vanderbilt Avenue, between 42nd and 43rd streets, would be converted into a pedestrian plaza.
The rezoning would span from East 42nd Street to East 47th Street along Vanderbilt. The tower would occupy the site between Vanderbilt and Madison avenues and East 42nd and East 43rd streets, the Journal said. [WSJ] and [NYT] — Mark Maurer