Olympic Tower

• 1. Site And Zoning Origins

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  The L-shaped lot at 641 and 645 Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan covers approximately 20,000 square feet with a frontage of 75 feet on Fifth Avenue. Before the mid-1940s, this site held the Union Club and two private residences at 3 East 51st Street and 645 Fifth Avenue. These structures were demolished by 1944 to make way for a 12-story department store built for Best & Co. The Best & Co. store opened its doors in 1947 and stood there until the late 1960s when financial struggles forced the McCrory Corporation to liquidate the brand. Olympic Airways subleased 647 Fifth Avenue immediately north of the store in 1965 and opened a sales office there the following year. This specific location became the foundation for what would become the first skyscraper constructed within a special zoning district designed to encourage mixed-use development along Fifth Avenue.

• 2. Architectural Design And Structure

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  Skidmore Owings and Merrill designed the 51-story tower in the International Style with Whitson Overcash serving as the partner in charge. Paul Baren managed the project while general contractor Tishman Realty & Construction handled the physical build. The superstructure features steel columns and girders for the lower stories and cast concrete for the upper 30 floors. A transitional floor exists on the 22nd level where vertical loads transfer from the concrete upper stories onto the steel truss below. The glass facade is tinted brown and clad with black anodized aluminum to reflect St. Patrick's Cathedral located directly to the south. Architectural critics Ada Louise Huxtable and Christopher Gray criticized the design upon completion, calling it nondescript and mildly offensive in taste. The building contains 230 condominium apartments across the top 30 stories and 19 stories of office space above two levels of retail shops.

• 3. Planning And Construction History

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  Morris Lapidus was initially hired to design the tower after Arlen Realty acquired air rights over neighboring properties including the Cartier Building. Lapidus proposed a 40-story L-shaped structure topped by a glass cube but faced opposition from city planners and architectural critics. In February 1971 New York City mayor John Lindsay created a special zoning district along Fifth Avenue to preserve its retail character. The legislation went into effect in April 1971 and provided development bonuses for buildings that included ground-floor retail and mixed uses. Aristotle Onassis wife Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis opposed Lapidus involvement stating she could not have his name associated with such vulgarity. SOM won the commission in September 1971 and announced plans for a 50-story building with retail offices and apartments. By June 1973 the steel framework had passed the twelfth story and the first retail lease was signed in October 1973 to confectionery Perugina.

• 4. Opening And Early Sales Strategy

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  Olympic Tower formally dedicated on the 6th of September 1974 with more than 70 percent of commercial space already leased and 24 apartments sold. The total construction cost reached $95 million while residential units ranged from $40,000 for a studio to $650,000 for a nine-room duplex. Arlen Realty hired public relations firm Burson Marsteller to advertise the building across Europe South America and Mexico. Brochures were printed in French German Japanese Spanish and English to target foreign buyers who made up most of the initial purchasers. Stanley Thea vice president at Arlen stated they advertised to a select core of 80,000 people around the world. Most units were intended as pied-à-terre residences and some wealthy owners purchased multiple apartments within the tower. The condominium board bylaws required a twenty-day waiting period before approving any sale of a residential unit to maintain exclusivity.

• 5. Notable Residents And Tenants

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  Aristotle Onassis took an apartment for himself when the building opened while fashion designer Halston occupied the entire 21st floor until 1984. Billionaire Adnan Khashoggi owned a penthouse duplex from 1976 to 1993 that featured its own swimming pool and five bedrooms. The Marcos family of the Philippines allegedly owned five condominiums including a ten-room apartment on the 43rd floor before Philippine authorities seized them in the late 1980s. Since 1998 the National Basketball Association has maintained headquarters on floors 11 through 20 with a lease extending through 2035. Richemont North America subsidiary also occupies space since 2001 covering three through nine floors. Actress Anne Hathaway lived in Khashoggi's old residence until 2012 alongside musician Roger Waters actor Nicolas Cage and restaurateur Rocky Aoki who all chose the building for its history and anonymity.

• 6. Financial Transactions And Renovations

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  In May 2012 Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation sold a 49.9 percent stake in the commercial portion to Crown Acquisitions for $420 million. Oxford Properties acquired a majority interest during the same transaction when Crown purchased remaining ownership interests for $652 million in May 2015. Owners received a $760 million commercial mortgage-backed security loan in May 2017 from Deutsche Bank Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley. MdeAS Architects renovated Olympic Tower's atrium which reopened in January 2019 after installing sculptural artworks by Liam Gillick. The renovation included a green wall with five types of plants and an active lighting system adjusted to align with circadian rhythms. A new cafe was added to the space while Triangulated Passage Work became a permanent fixture on the walls. The original white chairs that discouraged lingering were replaced as part of efforts to make the public area more inviting.