NEW YORK (AP) — JPMorgan Chase unveiled its new 60-story headquarters to the public Monday, one of the first large office buildings to be built since the COVID-19 pandemic and a building that will change New York’s skyline for decades.
The bronze and steel tower at 270 Park, which reportedly cost $3 billion, replaced the Union Carbide building that stood for nearly 60 years across the city block between 47th and 48th Streets and Park Avenue and Madison Avenue. JPMorgan expects to house about 10,000 of its 24,000 New York-based employees in the new building, with some employees starting their first day at the tower at the same time as the company’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
“For 225 years, JPMorgan Chase has always had deep roots in New York. The opening of our new global headquarters is not only a significant investment in New York, but also a testament to our commitment to our clients and employees around the world,” said Jamie Dimon, CEO and Chairman of JPMorgan.
The completion of the new 270 park is a big achievement for Dimon, who has been one of the loudest voices urging workers to report to the office. The building was designed before the COVID-19 pandemic made telecommuting the norm. The bank held meetings to halt work on the building so it could be redesigned or scaled down, but Dimon insisted that work continue as planned.
Both politicians and CEOs, especially Wall Street CEOs, have spoken out about the need for companies to have offices. New York politicians must answer to local businesses that have been around for decades and where workers eat, clean, shop and drink.
“These investments at this extraordinary time are a testament to New York’s boldness and ambition,” said Governor Kathy Hochul, who attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony. The ceremony ended with Jay-Z and Alicia Keyes playing Empire State of Mind.
Designed by famed architect Norman Foster, the new 1,388-foot building towers above the roofline of the Empire State Building and is now the fourth tallest building in Manhattan. The building has 2.5 million square feet and a block’s worth of public space. The bank also commissioned five new artworks for the building, adding to the bank’s already extensive art collection. The bank will house its retail operations on eight floors of the building and has contracted several food and coffee vendors to create an urban concept within the building.
The building was a major engineering and architectural undertaking by Foster, the building’s principal architect, and Tishman Speyer, who handled construction and engineering. The old Union Carbide building was to be systematically demolished over two years, much of the demolition taking place during the pandemic. Construction was complicated by the fact that the site sits over the tracks of the Metro North Railroad and the Long Island Railroad, which run under Park Avenue to Grand Central Terminal.