JPMorgan Chase is the country’s largest bank, and it’s about to get a lot bigger real estate-wise.
Chairman and CEO Jamie Dimon and Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Wednesday that JPMorgan will demolish its existing headquarters at 270 Park Ave. in favor of a brand-new tower as the first major project under the city’s Midtown East Rezoning initiative.
Big changes are coming to our $JPM HQ in New York.
— J.P. Morgan (@jpmorgan) February 21, 2018
“At JPMorgan Chase, we believe that investing for the long-term is a hallmark of our success,” Dimon said in a statement. “With a new headquarters at 270 Park Ave., we are recommitting ourselves to New York City while also ensuring that we operate in a highly efficient and world-class environment for the 21st century.”
The current JPMorgan tower was built in 1961 and stands at 52 stories and 700 feet. The new 70-story headquarters will be about 1,200 feet and give the company an extra 1 million square feet of office space, The New York Times reported.
Once the project obtains various approvals, demolition is slated to begin in early 2019, with the Chase’s new headquarters expected to open by 2024. According to the Times, which cited a company executive who had been briefed on the matter, Chase has been negotiating leases at 237, 245 and 277 Park Ave. and 390 Madison Ave. for the roughly 6,000 employees currently working at 270 Park Ave. The new building will house about 15,000 employees; 270 Park Ave. was initially built to hold about 3,500 workers.
According to the statement, JPMorgan Chase will purchase the development rights from landmarks in the vicinity to construct its new home. The project is expected to create more than 8,000 construction jobs.
“This is our plan for East Midtown in action,” de Blasio said. “Good jobs, modern buildings and concrete improvements that will make East Midtown stronger for the hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who work here. We look forward to working with JPMorgan Chase as it doubles-down on New York as its international home.”
New York City has been the home of JPMorgan Chase since its founding in 1799.
