Because nothing is sacred, Macy's Herald Square might sprout a tower (or two), the Post has learned. The news comes days after Bloomberg reported that the retailer is selling stakes in its flagships, including the iconic 34th Street store. The retailer recently partnered up with Eastdil Secured to explore how it could maximize the value of its primo real estate holdings in New York City, so the "tower" revelation isn't entirely surprising, but it is far fetched. In order to build a tower atop the Herald Square store, the property will have to be rezoned. The massive department store, which takes up nearly the whole block between Broadway and Seventh Avenue and 34th and 35th streets, is "overbuilt" by zoning standards. The store, which opened on the site in 1902, occupies 2.1 million square feet. By 1960's zoning guidelines, the site's maximum buildable square footage taps out at about 1.4 million. The towers could be used for offices or hotel rooms. Adding to the far-fetchedness is that the structure's a National Historic Landmark.
A Macy's spokesperson said via a statement that the company isn't ruling out the tower route, "We will consider any and all ideas for all of our real estate assets in order to create shareholder value and enhance our operations."
In 2015, the retailer inked a deal with Tishman Speyer to partially convert its Downtown Brooklyn store into offices, which may also include a vertical addition.
· Macy's considers adding a tower to iconic Herald Square store [NYP]
· Downtown Brooklyn Macy's To Be Partially Remade as Offices [Curbed]
· All Macy's coverage [Curbed]
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