Steve Cuozzo

Steve Cuozzo

Real Estate

Landmark in limbo on Billionaires’ Row

140 W. 57th St.Brian Zak

A landmarked office building across the street from skyscraper One57 is being emptied of its artsy tenants — suggesting that the luxury condo-creation boom along 57th Street’s “Billionaires’ Row” isn’t over yet.

Leases are not being renewed for office tenants at the Feil Organization’s handsome 140 W. 57th St., we’ve learned. Although Feil would not comment, the buzz behind the building’s elegant, double-height bay windows is that residential conversion is in the wind, despite a slowdown in oligarch-market apartment sales nearby.

Among those on their way out of 140 W. 57th is interior designer Brian J. McCarthy, who’s moving to nearby 57 W. 57th St. “We’re out of here,” an insider said. “Our eight-year lease is up and we were told it would not be renewed.”

The move by Feil seemed to come suddenly. Less than a year ago, McCarthy’s 3,500-square-foot, “wow-factor” suite was featured in Architectural Digest, with no indication he’d soon have to leave.

Another former tenant, lifestyle brand Hunter Boots, also left for 57 W. 57th St. Other current tenants, including designer Jhane Barnes and several financial firms, have similarly been told their leases won’t be renewed.

The 1907-vintage 140 W. 57th has only about 80,000 square feet on 14 floors. But its modest size belies its pride of place on the glamorous block, which is home to Carnegie Hall, the rising 111 W. 57th St. condo tower, and major hotels including the new Park Hyatt.

It was landmarked in 1999 along with lookalike 130 W. 57th St. next door, which is owned by a different company. Both Neo-Renaissance-style structures boast projecting, double-height windows, which were originally meant to provide prized northern light to artists.

No. 140 was converted to offices in 1998. Feil bought the building for $59 million in 2009 from Harry Macklowe, who developed Metropolitan Tower next door — the knife-edged structure divided between luxury condo homes and offices/retail.

Of course, Feil could also convert an empty 140 W. 57th St. to a hotel or even to a reconfigured “boutique” office address for a single high-end user. But Feil is said to have already drawn up floor plans for apartments. Leasing agent Kevin J. Driscoll didn’t get back to us.

The base of the building is occupied by the three-level gourmet supermarket Morton Williams. Avi Kaner, a part-owner of the store, said it had 20 years left on its lease and would not be affected by what he called a “contemplated” residential conversion.

Miller Samuel analyst Jonathan Miller, who’s not involved at 140 W. 57th, said of the residential scene on West 57th Street, “I’d say this is late in the cycle in terms of conversion and development of Billionaires’ Row.”


A major new lease could be in the works at 180 Maiden Lane, the 1.17 million-square-foot office tower owned by Clarion Partners and the Norman Sturner-led MHP Real Estate Services.

Sources said the city’s Department of Investigation is in serious talks for a lease of more than 300,000 square feet — which would eat up much of roughly 700,000 available square feet.

The leasing agent, Cushman & Wakefield powerhouse Tara Stacom, said, “We are still negotiating with multiple tenants, and there are no leases out to anyone.”

With a staff that’s grown from 500 to 700 over the past three years, “We’ve outgrown our current nearly 200,000 square feet at five sites. We are in negotiations but we can’t comment on any location,” Diane Struzzi, a spokesperson for the Department of Investigation, told The Post.

The department currently has offices at both 80 and 83 Maiden Lane, 250 Broadway, 160 Water St. and a location in the Bronx.