Penn Plaza Tower Clears City Council

NEW YORK CITY-Following approvals by a pair of key committees earlier in the day, the full City Council voted on Wednesday to okay the rezoning necessary for Vornado Realty Trust to develop its proposed 15 Penn Plaza, an office tower that would rival the nearby Empire State Building in height and square footage. The vote occurred the day after Mayor Michael Bloomberg expressed his support for Vornado’s project.

Last week, ESB’s owners began a public campaign in opposition to the project, sending a letter to Council Member Mark Weprin, chair of the Subcommittee on Zoning and Franchises. They also took out a full-page ad in the New York Times this past Monday urging the Council to either reject the rezoning or demand that the tower’s height be reduced, and conducted a nationwide poll finding that 85% of visitors to the city believed that 15 Penn would alter the skyline and 63% said the Council should nix the project or demand modifications.

The mayor was not sympathetic to the cause. “Competition’s a wonderful thing,” Bloomberg told reporters on Tuesday. “One guy owns a building, he’d like to have it be the only tall building. I’m sorry, that’s not the real world, nor should it be.”

Bloomberg said the project served as “an affirmation of people’s confidence in the future,” adding, “It would be a great addition to our skyline.” It would be built on the current site of the Hotel Pennsylvania, across Seventh Avenue from Penn Station. Vornado has not set a start date, and reportedly has signed no tenants.

At Wednesday’s zoning subcommittee meeting, Weprin said, “On behalf of myself and my colleagues, we love the Empire State Building. One of the wonderful things about this city is it continues to grow.” The zoning subcommittee approved the 15 Penn rezoning unanimously, while the Council’s Land Use Committee passed it after Vornado pledged to set a goal of giving 15% of the construction work to minority- and women-owned businesses.

Council Speaker Christine Quinn says in a statement that the project will mean "jobs, jobs, jobs" for the city. “We want the new Rockefeller Centers and the new Chrysler Buildings to keep this town thriving," says Quinn. "This proposal is not removing the beauty of the Empire State Building from our skyline, or even diminishing it."

In a statement issued after the full Council vote, Anthony Malkin, president of Malkin Holdings, says that as "the current stewards" of the Fifth Avenue landmark, “we thought that 15 Penn Plaza was too close to the Empire State Building for its height and design. In polls, the public has spoken out 2:1 to reject or amend the project. We advocated amendment. We are pro-development and think this area represents a great opportunity for development.”

Malkin acknowledges that “the City Council is the decision maker on this subject. They have gone out of their way to listen to our position. In the end, they are the elected representatives of the City of New York, and it was up to them to decide.”

Through a spokesman, Vornado praises the Council’s rezoning vote. "We wish to acknowledge the efforts of the City Council, the City Planning Commission, the Borough President and all those connected with the approval of our project, which we believe will be an outstanding addition to New York’s iconic skyline,” the REIT says in a statement. “We look forward to working with the Council to implement strong minority and women participation in the development and construction of 15 Penn Plaza.”