JP Morgan Unveils Foster+Partners' 423-Metre Headquarters Tower in Manhattan
JP Morgan has established its global headquarters in a towering 423-metre, 60-storey building in Manhattan, designed by Foster+Partners and reportedly costing around $4 billion. The skyscraper utilizes approximately 95,000 tonnes of structural steel, about 60% more than the Empire State Building, and replaces the 1960 Union Carbide building, which was demolished after a 2012 green renovation. Despite rising nearly twice as high with only eight additional floors, the tower's bulky and dominating design has drawn criticism, particularly concerning its base's extra-wide steel columns and a public-private plinth that reduces usable street space.
The complex within the building is extensive, accommodating a workforce of 10,000 people and featuring amenities such as a 19-restaurant food court, hair salon, meditation rooms, fitness centre, medical clinic, and a pub. To enhance worker wellbeing, circadian lighting is installed to help keep workers at their desks. A notable interior feature includes a 12-metre-high bronze flagpole with a flag indoors, accompanied by a Maya Lin stone cliff facade; the flag is said to flutter due to an artificial indoor breeze.
The project's inception traces back to a 2017 Midtown zoning change that allowed the sale of unused air rights, enabling JP Morgan to acquire about 65,000 square metres from Grand Central and another 5,000 square metres from St Bartholomew’s Church to exceed normal development limits. Further expansion plans in Midtown include a 487-metre, 62-storey tower at 350 Park Avenue, also by Foster+Partners, and a similar-sized project at 175 Park Avenue. Additionally, Foster+Partners is designing a 280,000-square-metre European headquarters for JP Morgan in London's Canary Wharf.
