The famous New York skyscraper, visible in “Spider-Man” because it houses the newspaper where Peter Parker works, will be auctioned on Wednesday March 22. The only way out that was found after a fierce struggle between its multiple owners, explains The New York Post. Sorgente Group, Jeffrey Gural’s GFP Real Estate and ABS Real Estate Partners together own 75% of the Flatiron Building, and Nathan Silverstein 25%. This sharing of the building gives each owner a right of veto on major decisions concerning the building.
The owners were unable to agree on the future of the property and found themselves at an impasse. Indeed, the tenant of the 22 floors, the publisher Macmillan Publishers, has decided to move. Nathan Silverstein proposed not to do any work between the departure of the current tenant and the arrival of the next. But for Jeffrey Gural, it was unthinkable. Upgrades were mandatory according to him for fire safety in particular. Nathan Silverstein also had the idea of dividing the office building into five separate properties but, again, Jeffrey Gural, opposed it because the Flatiron Building is listed. Silverstein, for his part, accuses Jeffrey Gural of having tried to rent the tower for a “exceptionally low cost per square meter».
One of the tallest skyscrapers in Manhattan
The steel-framed skyscraper has stood empty since 2020, with no agreement reached between the owners. In January, a New York state judge issued an order allowing the auction to proceed. The Sorgente-GFP-ABS group will probably make an auction offer. The building, beyond being the source of a conflict between owners, is reputed to be the only triangular tower in New York. At this location, Fifth Avenue and Broadway intersect, which is the only avenue that does not respect the city’s alignment plan with its crossings at right angles. The only solution to integrate into this landscape is to build a building in a triangle at the intersection.
121 years old, it takes its name from its surprising shape in iron (iron) but one can just as easily think of the prow of a boat or an ancient column, as the National Library of France points out. In the front of the Flatiron Building, the angle of the building is 25 degrees and the width is only 2 meters. “If viewed from below, the Flatiron is reduced to a thin column“, according to the BnF. The construction of the Flatiron was extremely fast. “Each week, a new floor is completed. Between February and May 1902, the terracotta panels are placed on part of the facade and the building is delivered the following month», Explains the National Library of France.
The Flatiron is also renowned for its height, 87 meters and 22 floors. It was one of the tallest skyscrapers in Manhattan when it was built in 1902 by architect Daniel Burnham, although it was never the tallest in the world. Its weight is also impressive: more than 300,000 tons. Who will become the owner of this colossus? See you on March 22.
