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Pfizer Midtown conversion in New York triggers safety response after columns buckle
The July emergency led officials to cordon off 40th to 45th streets, evacuate several buildings, and prompt citywide construction safety sweeps tied to the project contractor.
New York City has moved quickly after a structural emergency emerged at the former Pfizer headquarters conversion underway in Midtown, with officials responding to reports of two buckling columns. Commercial Observer reports that emergency personnel were called after the incident in early July, leading to a cordon off of 40th to 45th streets between First and Third avenues and the evacuation of several buildings. A school with roughly 400 children was among those relocated, and temporary supports were later put in place to secure the structure. In the following weeks, the New York City Department of Buildings initiated citywide construction safety sweeps, including checks on projects linked to the contractor, Barone Steel Fabricators, according to the report. The full investigation is ongoing, with a final determination likely to hinge on the two columns and the weight carried above them. The conversion project adds 19 stories and 1,600 apartments to the existing structure, and Commercial Observer notes that New York plans to use office-to-residential conversions to address its housing crisis, with more than 16,000 units planned. The article also cites Cushman and Wakefield data showing conversion starts in New York totaled 5 million square feet last year, the highest annual total in 20 years, and that as of February, 9.8 million square feet was planned for future conversions.