Extell Development may have bigger ideas in mind for its 37-story project at 655 Madison Ave.
The Gary Barnett-led real estate firm has filed plans to demolish a quartet of addresses right around the corner from the Lenox Hill property it purchased for roughly $160 million in October: 33, 35, 37 and 39 E. 60th St. The properties each stand 5 stories and 75 feet tall and span about 28,000 square feet overall, according to city records.
The building at 33 E. 60th St. is home to a location of the high-end Chinese restaurant Philippe Chow. Crain’s reached out to the restaurant’s spokespeople but did not hear back by press time. The properties include residential units as well, but none are occupied, according to Extell’s demolition permit filings.
Extell does not appear to own the sites yet despite filing to tear them down. Solil Management, a real estate arm of the Goldman family, is still listed as the owner in city property records. Representatives for Extell and Solil did not respond by press time to questions about whether Extell intends to buy the sites from Solil, and Extell’s plans for them are unclear.
Based on their location, however, it seems likely that Extell’s work would be related to its project at nearby 655 Madison Ave. The prolific developer filed plans late last year for a development at the site that would span about 193,000 square feet with 62 residential units and hotel, retail and office space on the first six floors. The demolition permits for East 60th Street could indicate that Extell hopes to expand on this.
Extell also recently filed demolition permits for 77 W. 66th St. and 54 W. 67th St. on the Upper West Side’s former Disney/ABC campus, which it bought for $931 million in 2022 from Silverstein Properties. The company is developing a 32-story tower with Manhattan’s first Ikea at 574 Fifth Ave. as well.
