Construction has been halted on the tower at 222 Broadway in Lower Manhattan following a “Full Stop Work Order” issued by New York City officials as they review engineering documentation related to previous cracks that had formed on a couple of beams.
The former office tower is being converted into a luxury residential building by the developers GFP Real Estate and TPG Real Estate, with Leeding Builders Group as the contractor. The developers say that the issue does not involve the building’s safety and that the repairs on the cracks were completed months ago.
“Last week’s stop work order was issued over a Department of Buildings reporting timeline discrepancy in March for since-addressed work, not safety issues of any kind,” a spokesperson for both developers of the 222 Broadway building told Newsweek, noting “at no point during construction has the building’s stability been compromised.”
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A spokesperson for the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) told Newsweek: “As is standard protocol for all Full Stop Work Orders, DOB will not lift the order at 222 Broadway until we are fully confident that it is safe to continue construction operations,” adding that “further enforcement actions are pending DOB’s ongoing audit and investigation.”
Newsweek has contacted the Leeding Builders Group as well as DeSimone Consulting Engineering, the engineer of the project, for comment via email.
The latest stop work order comes in the aftermath of the structural emergency reported earlier this month at the former Pfizer headquarters building in Midtown Manhattan, where buckling columns prompted heightened attention on major office-to-residential conversion projects across the city.
The incident has also drawn attention to the potential safety risks of other Manhattan properties, such as the 670-foot residential tower at 161 Maiden Lane, whose construction appeared to have been paused since 2019 amid reports that the structure was leaning.
Previous Beam Issue Disclosed During Recent Inspection
According to the DOB, the department’s inspectors conducted a proactive enforcement inspection at 222 Broadway on July 11. During that visit, contractors informed inspectors about a previous issue involving two concrete beams on the 32nd floor that had developed cracks.
DOB officials said inspectors observed that the beams had already been repaired. The repairs included through rods installed in the concrete and large steel plates encasing the damaged sections. The repair strategy was developed by the project’s engineer of record, DeSimone Consulting Engineering.
The DOB told Newsweek that the inspectors were also provided with documentation and an attestation letter from DeSimone stating that the building was stable and that “there were no safety concerns related to the beams.”
The department said inspectors did not find conditions that warranted a vacate order or immediate action to protect the public. However, the DOB told Newsweek that “the contractors and engineers at the site did not notify us of the issue with the beams when they first became aware of it, and the change in plans for the repairs to the beams were not properly filed with the department, as required.”
As a result, the DOB issued a partial stop work order and requested additional engineering reports concerning the cracking. “Over the next several weeks, they provided us with additional documentation at our request,” the DOB said.
Full Stop Work Order Issued
DOB engineers returned to the site on July 23 for a follow-up inspection and “again asked for the complete package of engineering reports with additional information on how the cracks on the beams appeared,” the DOB told Newsweek.
The department said inspectors once again found no conditions requiring a vacate order. While on site, DOB engineers upgraded the previously issued partial stop work order to a full stop work order pending receipt and review of the requested documentation.
According to the DOB, DeSimone submitted the remaining engineering reports on July 24, and those materials are now being audited by DOB engineers.
Developers Say Crack Issues Were Addressed Promptly
A spokesperson for both developers of the building told Newsweek: “Our structural engineers immediately identified and addressed this issue in March upon inspection, and we subsequently had the proposed repairs reviewed by a third-party structural inspector to ensure that it was safely completed.”
According to the spokesperson, two newly installed beams on the 32nd floor, beneath a planned outdoor space, exhibited cracks in March. They said the beams were immediately evaluated and repaired, with the work reviewed and approved by the structural engineer of record. A third-party engineer also peer-reviewed the repairs and confirmed that they were structurally sound.
The developers stressed that the building’s stability was never compromised and that there was never a risk to the building’s occupants, the public, or neighboring properties.
The developers said they met with the DOB and provided certification that the repairs had been performed to the satisfaction of the structural engineer. The DOB subsequently issued a partial stop work order on July 11 and a separate DOB concrete enforcement unit later visited the site on July 23 and reviewed the relevant areas.
The DOB later issued a full stop work order because the contractor had not immediately notified the department about the incident involving cast-in-place elements in March. The developers said this interpretation differed from their contractor’s understanding of the reporting rules at the time.
According to the spokesperson for the developers, on Tuesday this week, the DOB granted the building a new Temporary Certificate of Occupancy, allowing residents to move into four additional floors. This follows an earlier certificate given in May that allowed residents to move into nine floors of the building, including the lobby, the back of house, and an amenity floor, according to the spokesperson. Newsweek has contacted the DOB via email for further comment on the building’s Temporary Certificate of Occupancy.
The spokesperson for the developers told Newsweek: “We will continue to follow Department of Buildings reporting rules and work closely with the Department as work on the project continues.”
Despite the halt, the developers told Newsweek that they expect to complete the conversion within the next year and do not believe the recent issue will affect that timeline.
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Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Sirena Bergman and Emma Lee-Sang