In 2005, Tishman Construction started the renovation and conversion of the historic Plaza Hotel in New York City. The hotel now features private residences, hotel rooms and hotel/condo suites.

Premier Business Partners:

Nine Stone Marble and Tile Hoffman Floors Eagle One Rad & D'Aprile Inc. Samfet Du-Well Wood Restoration Corp.

When a project comes along as grand as the renovation and restoration of The Plaza Hotel in New York City, many stakeholders have a say in the design and direction of the project, making close coordination efforts vital. So, when owner Elad Properties approached Tishman Construction Corporation (TCC) to lend its construction management expertise to the $400 million conversion and renovation, TCC knew it would take nothing less than a total team effort to invigorate the century-old hotel.

Built in 1907, The Plaza Hotel is a 21-story, 1-million-square-foot landmark overlooking Central Park and Grand Army Plaza. The hotel has long been known as an iconic structure in New York City, and was built with high-end materials and finishes such as marble lobbies, solid mahogany doors and crystal chandeliers. In 2004, Elad Properties purchased the property for $675 million with the intent to restore the hotel and add a residential feature and retail component to the building.

Under a negotiated contract, TCC joined the project in the same year, and, in 2005, started the process of gutting the building. The 800-room hotel has been converted into 182 private residences – ranging from $2.5 million to more than $50 million – and 282 hotel rooms and suites, 152 of which are hotel/condos suited for short-term rentals. The renovation of the residential component was substantially completed in October 2007, coinciding with the building’s 100th anniversary.

“This was a very fast-track project,” Senior Vice President and Project Executive Tom Keane says. “The demolition phases, the phased construction and the development of construction drawings were carried out concurrently. Because the project was moving so quickly, they started the process [before the design was complete.]” This process effectively contained costs and allowed the project to meet the two-and-a-half year deadline.

A team approach was the only solution to getting the project completed on a fast-track schedule.

A Major Facelift
Working with architect Costas Kondylis & Partners, designer Walter Melvin Architects, interior designer Gal Nauer, mechanical, electrical and plumbing (MEP) engineer Flack and Kurtz, and a host of other firms with renovation expertise, TCC was charged with restoring the landmarked interior spaces and exterior façade, other structural additions and the build-out of new condos and building the new MEP infrastructure and mechanical components of the project six months into demolition.

“We had to create, in many cases, new stairwells and shafts throughout the entire building,” Keane says. “We created a central plant in the cellar levels and seven new cooling towers on the roof. Multiple existing electrical services had to be reconfigured and redistributed to accommodate the new loads.”

Landmark Status
The Plaza is an official New York City landmark – a factor to which Keane says TCC had to attend during construction. “Meeting landmark requirements is always difficult, but we worked well with the landmark commission,” Keane says. Several landmark areas were restored and each new element within these areas also had to comply with landmark regulations.