75 Rockefeller Plaza

History

In July 1944, the Rockefellers began planning a new 16-story tower to house the Standard Oil Company (Esso), which had outgrown its lease at the nearby 30 Rockefeller Plaza. The structure was completed in 1947 in the early Modernist style. It was originally known as the Esso Building. At completion, the building was the tallest completely air-conditioned building in New York City and the first in Rockefeller Center. The building also housed Schrafft's Restaurant, which had a capacity of 1,283 people, making it the largest restaurant in the world at the time. Standard Oil's successor, Exxon, moved to the newly built 1251 Avenue of the Americas in 1971.

In 1973, the building's heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems were replaced, along with some upgrades to the electrical systems. After these renovations, Warner Communications (later Time Warner) leased all 570,000 sqft of Exxon's former space, which led to the building becoming known as the Warner Communications Building. Warner initially occupied only 340,000 sqft of space and subleased the rest to tenants including the Financial Times, Thomson-CSF, PBS, and The Economist.

In December 1996, a fire at the TGI Fridays in the basement of the building led to a minor explosion in a top-floor equipment room, causing the building to be evacuated. In 2012, Time Warner indicated that they would not be renewing their space in the building due to their move to Time Warner Center, which would leave the building virtually empty in 2014.

After Time Warner vacated the space, Rockefeller Center's owners brought in RXR Realty by a $500 million, 99-year lease to manage the building's office space. As part of the deal, RXR would spend $250 million to renovate the building in a plan designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox. The renovation included a new lobby, replacement of the elevator cabs, new mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and HVAC systems, and a complete façade restoration.

Following the renovation, RXR secured Merrill Lynch Wealth Management as the anchor tenant in June 2016 with a 125,000 sqft lease. The American Girl Store also signed a 2-story, 40,000 sqft lease to relocate its flagship store from nearby Fifth Avenue. In August 2017, Austrian bank Erste Group signed a 14,000 sqft lease in the building for their New York outpost. In October 2018, co-working startup Convene announced plans to open a 14,000 sqft, invite-only "Club 75" on the 32nd floor with a library, dining space, lounge, and event space.

References

References

1. "Time Warner Building". Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat.
2. [http://s-media.nyc.gov/agencies/lpc/lp/1446.pdf Landmark Designation] New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission, 1985.
3. Horsley, Carter. (April 8, 1973). "Two Buildings Get A Major Overhaul At Rockefeller Center". The New York Times.
4. (April 7, 1974). "News of the Realty Trade". The New York Times.
5. Stout, David. (December 6, 1996). "Fire Empties Rockefeller Center Restaurant". The New York Times.
6. (January 25, 2012). "75 Rockefeller Plaza will need tenants, manager". The Real Deal.
7. Sadovi, Maura. (February 18, 2013). "RXR Bullish in Manhattan". [[The Wall Street Journal]].
8. Barbarino, Al. (January 24, 2013). "RXR Realty Signs 99-Year Lease at 75 Rockefeller Plaza". Commercial Observer.
9. Cullen, Terence. (June 20, 2016). "Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Taking 125K SF at RXR's 75 Rock". Commercial Observer.
10. Cullen, Terence. (May 17, 2016). "American Girl Headed to 40K SF in Rockefeller Center [Updated]". Commercial Observer.
11. Voien, Guelda. (August 9, 2017). "RXR Inks 14K-SF Lease With Austrian Bank At 75 Rockefeller Plaza". Commercial Observer.
12. (October 24, 2018). "RXR taps Convene to manage invite-only penthouse club at 75 Rock". The Real Deal.