After more than 120 years of serving as a commercial office building, New York City's iconic Flatiron Building is preparing to shine in an entirely new way. The distinctive triangular structure at 175 Fifth Avenue will be illuminated at night for the first time in its storied history when it reopens as a luxury residential development, marking a historic transformation for one of Manhattan's most recognizable landmarks.
The groundbreaking LED lighting scheme, designed by L'Observatoire International and officially approved by the city's Landmarks Preservation Commission, will prominently highlight the building's architectural features. The illumination will be most striking on the top five floors beneath the building's signature cornice, then cascade downward to emphasize the meticulously restored architectural details that have been painstakingly renovated as part of an extensive multi-year restoration project.
"For a real estate family with over 80 years of experience in New York City, there's no greater thrill, or responsibility, than stewarding a landmark as essential to the city's fabric as the Flatiron Building," said Daniel Brodsky, owner of the Brodsky Organization, which is overseeing the building's comprehensive restoration and conversion. "We're honored that the Landmarks Preservation Commission has approved the building's first-ever exterior lighting plan, allowing this icon to shine nightly for the first time in its 123-year history."
Originally designed by renowned architect Daniel Burnham and completed in 1902 as the Fuller Building, the Flatiron has evolved into one of New York City's most photographed and celebrated landmarks. The structure is renowned for its unique triangular shape, elegant Beaux-Arts facade, and innovative steel-frame construction, making it one of the world's first true skyscrapers. Throughout its long history, the building has accommodated a diverse range of tenants, including two basement restaurants, clothing and toy companies, and various magazine and publishing houses, though it has always been used exclusively for office and commercial purposes.
In 2021, the building became the epicenter of a highly contentious legal battle among its former owners: GFP Real Estate, Newmark, Sorgente Group, ABS Real Estate Partners, and Nathan Silverstein. The four partners filed a lawsuit against Silverstein, who held a 25 percent ownership stake, seeking a partition sale. They alleged that he had made poor business decisions following the departure of the building's sole tenant, Macmillan Publishers, which moved out in 2019 after occupying the space for 60 years.
That March, the building was put up for auction to resolve the ownership dispute, initially receiving a winning bid of $190 million from Jacob Garlick of Abraham Trust. However, when Garlick failed to meet the down payment deadline, the property returned to auction and was ultimately sold to Jeff Gural of GFP Real Estate for $165.1 million. Through this transaction, Gural effectively acquired Silverstein's 25 percent stake in the historic property.
Sorgente Group and the Brodsky Organization are now jointly redeveloping the building, transforming its former office and commercial spaces into 38 luxury condominiums, complete with 40 storage units and two commercial units. Earlier development reports had detailed plans for 60 residential units, but the final design has been refined to focus on fewer, more spacious luxury apartments.
The ambitious redevelopment has included a comprehensive, multi-year restoration effort that has meticulously preserved the building's historic character while preparing it for modern residential use. This extensive renovation process has involved replacing all of the building's windows—more than 1,000 individual units—and painstakingly restoring thousands of terra-cotta fixtures. Each terra-cotta element has been hand-replicated by a specialized California manufacturer to ensure historical accuracy. Additionally, a detailed restoration of the building's impressive six-foot-tall cornice has been completed, returning this architectural feature to its original grandeur.
For the interior design of the new luxury apartments, the development team has enlisted the expertise of AD100 designer William Sofield's Studio Sofield to reimagine the building's interior spaces for contemporary living. Sofield is responsible for designing both the individual residences and the shared amenity spaces throughout the building. According to a project representative, the interior design will honor the building's rich architectural legacy while incorporating modern touches inspired by original materials, including historic railings, original ironwork, and intricate marble mosaics.
The newly approved lighting design by the Landmarks Preservation Commission represents the latest significant addition to this comprehensive restoration project. Other planned upgrades include an extensively updated lobby, brand-new elevator systems, enhanced retail frontage and modern storefront louvers, and carefully designed facade modifications to the 21st floor behind the roof parapet. The complete restoration and conversion project is expected to reach completion in 2027, at which time residents will be able to move into their luxury apartments in this transformed historic landmark.
Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group has been selected as the exclusive sales and marketing firm for the Flatiron Building residential development, indicating the high-profile nature of this unique real estate offering in one of Manhattan's most desirable locations.
