731 Lexington Avenue is a

mixed-use Mixed-use is a kind of urban development, urban design, urban planning and/or a zoning type that blends multiple uses, such as residential, commercial, cultural, institutional, or entertainment, into one space, where those functions are to some ...

glass

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ris ...

Lexington Avenue Lexington Avenue, often colloquially abbreviated as "Lex", is an avenue on the East Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City that carries southbound one-way traffic from East 131st Street to Gramercy Park at East 21st Street. Along it ...

, on the East Side of

Midtown Manhattan Midtown Manhattan is the central portion of the New York City borough of Manhattan and serves as the city's primary central business district. Midtown is home to some of the city's most prominent buildings, including the Empire State Buildin ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. Opened in 2004, it houses the headquarters of

Bloomberg L.P. Bloomberg L.P. is a privately held financial, software, data, and media company headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It was co-founded by Michael Bloomberg in 1981, with Thomas Secunda, Duncan MacMillan (Bloomberg), Duncan MacMi ...

and as a result, is sometimes referred to informally as Bloomberg Tower. The building also houses retail outlets, restaurants and 105 luxury

condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...

s. The residence section of the building is known as One Beacon Court and is served by a separate entrance. 731 Lexington Avenue is a 55-story building with a roof height of . As of July 2022, it is the 40th-tallest building in New York City and the 85th-tallest building in the United States. The building occupies the former site of an

Alexander's Alexander's is a real estate investment trust that owns 7 properties in New York metropolitan area, including 731 Lexington Avenue, the headquarters of Bloomberg L.P. It is controlled by Vornado Realty Trust. It was founded by George Farkas and ...

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...

and is owned by the Alexander's real estate investment trust, the successor to the defunct retail chain.

Construction and design

Construction on the building began in 2001, three years after the vacant

department store was demolished. The building was developed by

Vornado Realty Trust Vornado Realty Trust is a real estate investment trust formed in Maryland in 1982, with its primary office in New York City. The company invests in office buildings and street retail in Manhattan. Investments Notable properties owned by the ...

, as a fee developer, with

César Pelli César Pelli (October 12, 1926 – July 19, 2019) was an Argentine-American architect who designed some of the world's tallest buildings and other major urban landmarks. Two of his most notable buildings are the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur a ...

& Associates as architect. The building comprises a full city block between Lexington and Third Avenues and 58th and 59th Streets. The complex features two towers constructed above a steel office and retail section, separated by a seven-story atrium. The design of the courtyard at One Beacon Court, which connects 58th and 59th Streets, was inspired by other historic New York enclosures such as

Grand Central Terminal Grand Central Terminal (GCT; also referred to as Grand Central Station or simply as Grand Central) is a commuter rail terminal located at 42nd Street and Park Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Grand Central is the southern terminus ...

, the reading room of the

New York Public Library Main Branch The Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, commonly known as the Main Branch, 42nd Street Library or the New York Public Library, is the flagship building in the New York Public Library system in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. T ...

, and the skating rink at

Rockefeller Center Rockefeller Center is a large complex consisting of 19 commerce, commercial buildings covering between 48th Street (Manhattan), 48th Street and 51st Street (Manhattan), 51st Street in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. The 14 original Art Deco ...

; glass walls curve around the perimeter of the courtyard, tilting slightly inward as they rise.

Tenants

Although the building was originally planned to be entirely residential,

negotiated a deal with Vornado Realty Trust to lease of office space at the base of the tower. STUDIOS Architecture did the design, which includes rows of uniform desks for approximately 4,000 employees and a large central atrium known as "the Link" that overlooks the courtyard.

Paul Goldberger Paul Goldberger (born in 1950) is an American author, architecture critic and lecturer. He is known for his "Sky Line" column in ''The New Yorker''. Biography Shortly after starting as a reporter at ''The New York Times'' in 1972, he was assign ...

, in the August 6, 2007, issue of ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'' magazine, lauded the Bloomberg offices as "a newsroom truly designed for the electronic age ... a dazzling work environment tucked inside a refined but conventional skyscraper." By 2011, Bloomberg L.P. added another of office space at 731 Lexington Avenue and announced plans to expand to an additional in the former Philip Morris building at 120 Park Avenue. Bloomberg pays Alexander's, the owner of the building, $105 million in annual rent. The PBS commentary series ''

Charlie Rose Charles Peete Rose Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American former television journalist and talk show host. From 1991 to 2017, he was the host and executive producer of the talk show '' Charlie Rose'' on PBS and Bloomberg LP. Rose also co-an ...

'' was formerly produced at 731 Lexington Avenue.

Bloomberg Television Bloomberg Television (on-air as Bloomberg) is an American-based pay television network focusing on business and capital market programming, owned by Bloomberg L.P. It is distributed globally, reaching over 310 million homes worldwide. It is head ...

also has its flagship studio in the building. Retail tenants include

The Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the largest home improvement re ...

, H&M, and

The Container Store The Container Store Group, Inc. is an American specialty retail chain company that operates The Container Store, which offers storage and organization products, and custom closets. The company has made ''Fortunes list of "100 Best Companies ...

Sirio Maccioni Sirio Maccioni (5 April 1932 – 20 April 2020) was an Italian restaurateur and author known for opening Le Cirque. Biography Maccioni got his start at Oscar's Delmonico, Delmonico's. Owner Oscar Tucci once stated, "Sirio and with Tony May w ...

Le Cirque Le Cirque is a French restaurant that has had several locations throughout the New York City borough of Manhattan for more than forty years. It is currently closed, with its future status unknown. New York City history Le Cirque was establish ...

restaurant moved to the building from

The New York Palace Hotel Lotte New York Palace Hotel is a luxury hotel in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, at the corner of 50th Street and Madison Avenue. It was originally developed between 1977 and 1980 by Harry Helmsley. The hotel consists o ...

in 2006, but vacated in 2018. Residential tenants included

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

, former

NBC Nightly News ''NBC Nightly News'' (titled as ''NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt'' for its weeknight broadcasts since June 22, 2015) is the flagship daily evening News broadcasting#Television, television news program for NBC News, the news division of the NB ...

anchor

Brian Williams Brian Douglas Williams (born May 5, 1959) is an American retired journalist and television news anchor. He was a reporter for ''NBC Nightly News'' starting in 1993, before his promotion to anchor and managing editor of the broadcast in 2004. ...

, and

Bobby Abreu Bob Kelly Abreu (; ; born March 11, 1974), nicknamed "El Comedulce" and also "La Leche", is a Venezuelan former professional baseball outfielder, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, New York ...

Johnny Damon Johnny David Damon (born November 5, 1973) is an American former professional baseball outfielder who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1995 to 2012. During his MLB career, Damon played for the Kansas City Royals (1995–2000), Oakland ...

sold his unit for $8 million in 2010.

Tina Knowles Tina may refer to: People *Tina (given name), people and fictional characters with the given name ''Tina'' Places *Tina, Iran, a village in Khuzestan Province, Iran *Tina, Tunisia, a town in Sfax Governorate, Tunisia * Tina, Guadalcanal, Solomon ...

sold her unit for $5.6 million in 2011.

Jack Welch John Francis Welch Jr. (November 19, 1935 – March 1, 2020) was an American business executive, chemical engineer, and writer. He was Chairman and CEO of General Electric (GE) between 1981 and 2001. When Welch retired from GE, he receive ...

purchased a unit in the building for $6.4 million and

Jeffrey Immelt Jeffrey Robert Immelt (born February 19, 1956) is an American business executive currently working as a venture partner at New Enterprise Associates. He previously served as the CEO of General Electric from 2001 to 2017, and the CEO of GE's Medi ...

paid just over $4 million for a unit. Hedge fund manager

Steven A. Cohen Steven A. Cohen (born June 11, 1956) is an American hedge fund manager and owner of the New York Mets of Major League Baseball since September 14, 2020, owning roughly 97.2% of the team. He is the founder of hedge fund Point72 Asset Manageme ...

's unit is listed for sale for $67.5 million. Joseph Betesh, co-owner of hip hop clothing outlet Dr. Jay's, owned an apartment in the building from 2005 to 2013, which is now owned by VFT Investments.

Amenities

Residents have access to

concierge A concierge () is an employee of a multi-tenant building, such as a hotel or apartment building, who receives guests. The concept has been applied more generally to other hospitality settings and to personal concierges who manage the errands of ...

services by the London-based

Quintessentially Group Quintessentially Group is a British concierge company founded in 2000 by Aaron Simpson (entrepreneur), Aaron Simpson, Ben Elliot and Paul Drummond. The company is headquartered in London and operates 60 offices worldwide. Quintessentially is a ...

, as well as use of "The Beacon Club", the 29th-floor amenity space that includes a

health club A health club (also known as a fitness club, fitness center, health spa, and commonly referred to as a gym) is a place that houses exercise equipment for the purpose of physical exercise. In recent years, the number of fitness and health se ...

, entertainment suite, children's playroom and business center. Other amenities include a 24-hour doorman, garage, and valet parking.

References

External links

Bloomberg Tower at Emporis
{{Bloomberg Bloomberg L.P. Buildings and structures completed in 2005 César Pelli buildings Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design gold certified buildings Lexington Avenue Mass media company headquarters in the United States Midtown Manhattan Residential condominiums in New York City Residential skyscrapers in Manhattan Skyscraper office buildings in Manhattan 59th Street (Manhattan)