NYC Halts Construction at 222 Broadway Office-to-Residence Tower
New York City’s Department of Buildings issued a stop-work order at a Manhattan office tower that’s being converted into apartments weeks after authorities evacuated one of the largest residential conversions due to structural concerns.
Officials visited 222 Broadway as part of a proactive enforcement inspection of conversion projects, and contractors informed them of a previous issue with two concrete beams on the 32nd floor of the building that had developed cracks, according to a DOB statement.
Inspectors found that the cracked beams had already been repaired with thru rods installed in the concrete and large steel plate strappings encasing the beams, the DOB said. Officials didn’t see anything that required an order to vacate or needed any additional DOB action to protect the public.
“It was determined that the contractors and engineers at the site did not notify us of the issue with the beams when they first became aware of it, and the change in plans for the repairs to the beams were not filed with the Department,” the statement said.
The city first issued a partial stop-work order at the site and issued violations to the contractor for performing work that didn’t match the plans. After a second visit, the DOB upgraded that to a full stop-work order until it could review engineering reports and be “fully confident that it is safe to continue construction operations.”
GFP Real Estate is the developer leading the conversion. A spokesperson for 222 Broadway said the cracked beams were identified and repaired in March, and the work was reviewed by a third-party engineer. The project remains on track to be completed within the next year, the spokesperson said.
“Last week’s stop-work order was issued over a Department of Buildings reporting timeline discrepancy in March for since-addressed work, not safety issues of any kind,” the spokesperson said in a statement. “At no point during construction has the building’s stability been compromised.”
The stop-work order comes after the city evacuated 235 East 42nd Street and surrounding buildings earlier this month after cracks developed in multiple columns and floors began to sag. That building, the former headquarters of drugmaker Pfizer Inc., is being converted into residential units by Metro Loft and David Werner Real Estate Investments. While the site and the surrounding streets are no longer under evacuation orders, work remains halted while the DOB continues an investigation.
Photo: Buildings in lower Manhattan in New York, U.S., on Thursday June 17, 2021. Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg