Vornado Hit With $3M Damage Suit at 220 Central Park South

The billionaire sheen of 220 Central Park South is getting scuffed by a decidedly unglamorous neighbor dispute this holiday season.

Gainsborough Studios, the landmarked 1908 co-op next door at 222 Central Park South, is suing Vornado Realty Trust over damage allegedly caused by years of heavy-duty construction at the ultra-luxury supertall, the New York Post reported. The co-op is seeking at least $3 million to cover repairs it claims Vornado agreed to pay for but refuses to reimburse.

The allegations paint a vivid picture of what happens when a 70-story tower rises beside a 16-story historic building.

Excavation for 220 Central Park South began in 2014 with blasting through bedrock to create three underground levels about 50 feet below grade, according to the complaint filed in Manhattan Supreme Court. By the end of that year, Gainsborough’s building had shifted downward and eastward, twisting nearly an inch at the top, per the complaint.

That movement, the suit claims, triggered a cascade of problems: cracked foundations, broken windows, chipped skylights, air conditioning issues and damage to the historic facade.

While the repairs have since been completed, Gainsborough says it paid the costs itself despite agreements signed in 2008 and 2014 that required Vornado to cover construction-related damage.

Residents and board members didn’t mince words.

One longtime resident told the Post the building was “basically…molested by the whole thing,” while board president Tod Williams, whose architecture firm occupies the ground floor, said the blasting “felt like a seismic shift” and forced workers to wear noise-canceling headphones for more than a year.

Vornado disputes responsibility. In court filings, its attorney said any damage was caused by “intervening acts of third parties,” not the developer’s work. Vornado declined to comment to the publication.

The stakes are modest by Billionaires’ Row standards. Gainsborough’s $3 million claim is a rounding error compared to the roughly $3.5 billion in sales at 220 Central Park South, which cost about $1.5 billion to build. The tower is home to nine of the 20 most expensive residential sales in New York City history, including Ken Griffin’s record-setting $238 million purchase and an $82.5 million deal this year.

— Holden Walter-Warner