City Council Approves Plans For New JP Morgan Headquarters

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — JP Morgan's headquarters reconstruction was approved Wednesday by the City Council, becoming the first project yielded by the city's 2017 rezoning of East Midtown, the local council member announced.

The banking giant will invest $42 million into public improvements near its 270 Park Avenue site in order to build a 2.5 million square foot office complex that may rise as tall as 1,500 feet. The money JP Morgan is investing comes from a deal to buy air rights from Grand Central Terminal in order to allow the construction of its new headquarters, City Councilman Keith Powers said.

"JP Morgan’s plans for 270 Park Avenue exceed the vision for East Midtown Rezoning,” said Council Member Keith Powers. "This development sets a precedent for what is possible for Midtown. The project fulfills the intention of the rezoning with more jobs and neighborhood improvements."

The New York City Council rezoned a 70-block stretch of East Midtown in 2017 to spur increased office development in the dense commercial district. The plan is expected to generate 6.8 million square feet in new commercial office space in its first next 20 years, city officials said in 2017. An additional 6.6 million square feet of existing office space will be upgraded into Class A office space.

The rezoning provides developers with several options to upgrade existing office buildings and construct new ones. These options include: undertaking pre-approved transit upgrades in exchange for more building space, buying the air rights of landmarked buildings in the district and allowing currently overbuilt buildings to re-use all of their existing floor area in an on-site redevelopment.

Part of JP Morgan's public investment includes the construction of a new MetroNorth Railroad train shed at Grand Central Terminal, a new East 48th Street entrance at the terminal and compensation should work at 270 Park Avenue interfere with MTA's own fixes at the station.

JPMorgan also agreed to increase the amount of public open space on Madison Avenue from 7,000 to 10,000 square feet and more than 35,000 square feet of sidewalk enhancements near the headquarters building, city officials said.

"The vote today validates Chase’s commitment to New York City as our global headquarters and helps to ensure midtown remains a world class destination for business and New Yorkers," JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon said in a statement.

JP Morgan Chase announced its plans to build a new 2.5 million-square-foot headquarters in February 2018, and construction work is expected to begin in 2019. The new tower could rise more than 1,500 feet, which would make it taller than the Empire State Building.

The work is expected to take five years and will generate 6,000 union construction jobs, officials said. JP Morgan employees who work at 270 Park Avenue, located between East 47th and 48th streets, will be moved to a nearby office during the construction.