JP Morgan’s Demolition of 270 Park Avenue Making Visible Progress in Midtown East

270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

Demolition is moving along on JP Morgan Chase‘s 52-story headquarters at 270 Park Avenue. Formerly referred to as the Union Carbide Building, the financial company is in the midst of razing the 707-foot-tall mid-century skyscraper in order to make way for a 1,425-foot-tall, 2.5-million-square-foot supertall, which will be one of the tallest structures in New York City.

Recent photos show the western podium annex almost completely gone, with only a couple floors remaining. This looks to be the fastest part of the demolition process. Views from above show a team of machinery busily ripping apart the steel structural columns, girders, and beams, while large chunks of the concrete floor slabs and torn metal decking have been removed and lay in piles waiting to be hauled away.

270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

The lower floors on the western side of 270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

The remaining podium of 270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

Looking on West 47th Street at the podium of 270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

The vast majority of the skyscraper is still standing, though the demolition progress is becoming apparent. A huge amount of scaffolding and black netting shrouds all four sides of the superstructure, with the exception of the area around the base of the construction crane on the southern elevation facing East 47th Street. This assembly is divided with the use of three platforms located on the 16th, 29th, and 41st floors.

270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

270 Park Avenue. Photo by Michael Young

270 Park Avenue will make history as the tallest building ever to be peacefully demolished. This record has long been held by the Singer Building, which was torn down in 1968 to clear the way for the construction of One Liberty Plaza.

YIMBY expects 270 Park Avenue to be fully demolished by 2021. A completion date for the new JP Morgan headquarters and a finalized rendering of the office supertall have yet to be disclosed.

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22 Comments on "JP Morgan’s Demolition of 270 Park Avenue Making Visible Progress in Midtown East"

  1. Well, I suppose 270 Park Avenue will temporarily be known as the “Net-Work Tower.” ?
    Overall, this is a very exciting project.

  2. “Peacefully Demolished” 🙂

  3. Funny but with Corona placing majority of workers at home this can
    Be turned into a homeless shelter very fast. Lol!

  4. David in Bushwick | August 31, 2020 at 9:16 am | Reply

    Disgusting waste made possible by infinite greed and arrogance.

    • Weston Liggett | August 31, 2020 at 9:54 am | Reply

      “Disgusting waste” or renewing the city. What does infinite greed mean, exactly? What are you proposing instead? Anything? Or just criticizing because you are angry? Why so angry? It’s a construction project to replace an outdated, energy-inefficient building with something modern. This has been New York City since the 1600s. This project is providing a lot of employment to the building trades workers in NYC for years to come so not sure what the issue is.

    • What is your endless obsession with “greed”? Do you even know what it is? Are you just envious of those who are more financially successful than you? I’m sorry, but you sound like a Marxist. Maybe economically-strangled Venezuela would be more to your liking. No “greedy” skyscrapers being built in that socialist paradise!

    • David’s Sisyphean moaning never disappoints.

  5. Is there any information on who the GC will be when they are ready to start building the new structure.

  6. The only good thing about this wasted demolition, is that neighboring buildings will get more sunlight and views until the new construction begins! ?

  7. In the ’50s growing up in Fresh Meadows, we had class trips in public school to the Museum of Natural History, the Bronx Zoo, Central Park, the Seagram Building, Lever House and Foley Square, among other sites. I remember the Union Carbide Building as a classy modern building. I guess everyone who works in one of the new super-talls that are now being clustered together will have to bring lunch to the office, or have it brought in, because it will be impossible to find a place to eat at lunch time. When I was a brand new lawyer I practiced out of the Empire State Building on the 47th Floor. Back then it was still fairly easy to have enough time to do one’s banking, eat out, and relax a little during one’s lunch break.

  8. I worked at 270 Park with JP Morgan, 280 Park with Deutsche Bank, and 277 With DLJ. I assumed 270 was landmarked because of its iconic lobby.

  9. My first job was on the 39th floor as a mail boy now just retired as VP Director of a downtown Co. How to susceed in business with really trying Robert Morse take note LOL

  10. JP Morgan must firmly believe in the future of NYC as a place to work and live. Or will the remote working trend alter their plans?

    • They say no. They WANT their employees working together, in cohesion. In an office building. Not scattered and isolated from one another and the company. It’s up to NYCs stunningly awful, diabolical left-wing mayor to let the city LIVE again. NOW!!! He’s been the one most responsible for killing the city.

  11. You guys do understand this is a pro-development site?
    All of the comments about greed etc.
    If this is what you believe greed to be, then Grand Central would only be a dream today. And anything else for that matter.

  12. Demolishing Singer was tragic, not this one.

  13. And Pennsylvania Station

  14. The new building will be a marvel and I look forward to its rising on the site and standing for a long time.

  15. I believe that plaza construction will be the GC

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