A high-profile joint venture to develop a 66-story Manhattan office skyscraper has finalized a massive $3.3 billion construction loan, moving forward with a project backed by billionaire hedge fund founder Ken Griffin, Vornado Realty Trust, and real estate firm Rudin.
Vornado announced the financial milestone, confirming the partnership to build the 1.9 million-square-foot tower located at 350 Park Avenue. Under the structure of the joint venture, an affiliate of Griffin—who serves as the founder and CEO of Citadel—owns a 60% stake in the project. Vornado holds a 36% share, while Rudin retains the remaining 4%.
Citadel Enterprise Americas LLC has already committed to anchoring the building, signing a lease for 1.05 million square feet of office space. That agreement claims more than half of the skyscraper’s total planned office capacity.
The multibillion-dollar construction financing is backed by a syndicate of seven major financial institutions: Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, BMO Bank, ING Capital, PNC Bank, and Standard Chartered Bank. Vornado confirmed that construction on the site is already underway.
Designed by renowned architecture firm Foster + Partners, the completed tower is expected to rise approximately 1,400 feet above Park Avenue. It will feature luxury amenities alongside roughly 850,000 square feet of upper-floor office space available for lease to other tenants.
The progression of the major development follows a public feud earlier in the year between Griffin and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. The controversy erupted in April when Mamdani posted a video filmed in front of Griffin’s Manhattan penthouse. In the recording, the mayor criticized the billionaire hedge fund owner ahead of the implementation of a pied-à-terre tax targeting high-value residential properties owned by non-full-time residents, a policy that officially took effect in July.
Griffin strongly condemned the video at the time, labeling the incident a “personal attack” that was “creepy and weird.” He argued that the public singling-out placed him in physical danger and reflected a “profound lack of judgment” by the mayor. Citadel executives subsequently warned that the company’s planned New York footprint could face jeopardy due to the administration’s policies, contrasting with massive philanthropic investments Griffin directed to institutions like Carnegie Mellon University in Miami.
Tensions eventually eased when Mayor Mamdani softened his public rhetoric, later thanking Griffin for his economic contributions to the city.
Beyond the primary office tower, the project incorporates substantial financial contributions linked to New York City’s Greater East Midtown rezoning framework. Vornado stated that the development will contribute a combined $150 million toward the structural preservation and maintenance of historic St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Saint Bartholomew’s Church through the acquisition of transferable development rights.
