The former Pfizer World Headquarters at 219-235 East 42nd Street in Midtown Manhattan. Photo by Norbert Nagel, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
A Midtown Manhattan high-rise under construction remained unstable Tuesday after officials found buckled columns, cracks, and sagging floors at 235 East 42nd Street, a former Pfizer office building being converted into residential use.
FDNY officials said the structural issues were found between the 21st and 26th floors after a call came in around 8 a.m. The building and nearby properties were evacuated, including a school and the Israeli consulate. No injuries have been reported.
Just before at 8 a.m. Tuesday, the FDNY received reports of a structural issue at an active construction site on East 42nd Street between 2nd Avenue and 3rd Avenue in Manhattan. The call came in for reported issues at a 37-story building at 235 East 42nd Street that is currently… pic.twitter.com/NavUpNGAJE
— FDNY (@FDNY) July 7, 2026
The 37-story building is part of a major office-to-residential conversion led by Metro Loft, with Gensler listed as design architect, interior architect, and architect-of-record for the project. The redevelopment is planned to create more than 1,600 apartments, making it one of New York City’s largest office-to-housing conversions.
Archinect previously reported on the conversion of the former Pfizer headquarters in 2025, when the project was announced as one of the largest office-to-residential conversions in New York City.
City officials said engineers and emergency responders are assessing the structure floor by floor and preparing a stabilization plan involving emergency beams and columns. FDNY Chief John Esposito said a total collapse was considered unlikely, but a localized collapse remained a concern.
Hat tip to Archinect forum member graphemic, who first flagged the incident in this Archinect discussion thread.
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