461 Fifth Avenue
General information
Type	Office and retail
Location	New York, NY
Coordinates	40°45′08″N 73°58′53″W / 40.7523°N 73.9815°W / 40.7523; -73.9815
Construction started	1988
Completed	1989
Owner	SL Green Realty
Height
Roof	376 ft (115 m) [1]
Top floor	335 ft (102 m)
Technical details
Floor count	28
Floor area	200,000 sq ft (19,000 m2)
Design and construction
Architect(s)	Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
Developer	Mitsui Fudosan, London & New York Estates Corporation, and Colonial Property Group
References
website

461 Fifth Avenue is a 28-story skyscraper in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, at the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue and 40th Street. The building was constructed in 1988 by the Mitsui Fudosan development group and designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. ^[2]

History

In the late nineteenth century, 461 Fifth Avenue was the residence of the Misses Furniss, who were known for hosting musicals and other social functions. ^[3] They had acquired the address from a J. M. Bixby sometime after 1873. ^[4]

Sometime between 1911 and 1915, the private house was replaced with an eleven-story office building, which in 1945 was renovated to become a Lane Bryant store. ^{[5] [6] [7]} By 1988 the Lane Bryant building was demolished. ^[8]

The current structure was built in 1988 by a Japanese-lead development group using a design by Raul de Armas of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill. ^{[9] [10]} Within a year of completion, the building had a 90% occupancy rate and had spurred a building boom in the Fifth Avenue area. ^[11] By 1992 it was fully leased. ^{[12] [13]} The first floor shopping level was occupied by a Pier 1 Imports until 2007, when it was leased to BCBGMAXAZRIA. ^[14]

The building was sold to its current owner, SL Green Realty, in 2003 for $62.3 million. ^[15]

Architecture

The building uses modern materials, creating a stone-finish look, as well as a setback at the base, which is at the same height as older buildings in the neighborhood. The building is also noted architecturally for its combination of a 10-story 19th-century base, which mirrors nearby older buildings, and an 18-story post-modern tower. ^{[9] [16]}

The exterior uses a pre-cast concrete finish to mimic the appearance of limestone and has a copper mansard roof similar to other buildings in the area. ^{[10] [17]}

References