A look at New York’s Flatiron Building, remade from the inside

The Flatiron Building has always been a study in illusion — a razor-thin wedge that appears delicate from afar — but has anchored New York’s streetscape for more than a century.

Now, after serving as an architectural beacon for 124 years, the landmark known worldwide from paintings and photographs has been taken down to its essence — not to preserve it as is, but to remake it for how New Yorkers live today.

Behind the beaux-arts facade at 175 Fifth Ave., nearly everything was stripped away. What remains are the exterior walls and structural columns as the former office building is converted into 36 luxury condominiums, down from 38 after some buyers combined units.

The overhaul matters beyond a single trophy asset. It’s one of the most high-profile office-to-residential conversions not just in Manhattan but nationwide, a test case for how cities can repurpose aging offices. It also shows how even iconic buildings can adapt to residential use without losing what made them symbols.

Designed by Daniel Burnham and completed in 1902, the Flatiron is undergoing a top-to-bottom reinvention that preserves its defining character.

“We ripped everything out,” said Dean Amro, a principal at The Brodsky Organization, the multigenerational developer leading the project. “The only thing that remained was really the exterior facade and the structural columns.”

Those elements — along with other rediscovered or repurposed details — now anchor both the design and the sales pitch, setting the project apart from newer luxury towers.

New York’s office-to-residential-conversion starts last year totaled 5 million square feet, the highest annual total in at least 20 years, according to a report from Cushman & Wakefield. Nationwide, office-to-residential conversions — led by New York — are set to break records again this year, according to a RentCafe study.

The change reflects the pandemic-driven hybrid work trend that has created sticky high office vacancies, a flight to quality that has left some buildings obsolete or outdated, and a growing view that some properties are better suited for housing at a time of record-high average multifamily rents, industry professionals say.

The goal for the Flatiron is to attract buyers drawn as much to the building’s history and unusual geometry as to its modern finishes.

“Anywhere that there is structure … we chose to celebrate that,” Amro said in an interview during a walkthrough of the building. “People gravitate towards this building because of its history. … But they don’t want to live in 1902. They want modern kitchens and modern bathrooms. We spent a lot of time … thinking through ‘How do you meld the kind of historic context, but also give people a comfortable living space that’s consistent?’”

That balance shows throughout the building. Original mosaic lobby flooring uncovered beneath a later marble layer has informed a restoration that echoes the early 20th-century design. Private unit vestibules — each served by elevator access directly to the floor — now feature hand-clipped mosaic tiles as a nod to that craftsmanship.

Other elements have been reimagined. Spindles from the original staircase have been repurposed as legs for pedestal sinks in powder rooms. Exposed steel columns, rather than concealed, are integrated into closet shelving or serve as focal points in living rooms. Even the revolving door — tracked down to its original manufacturer in Indiana — has been refurbished and will return as the main residential entrance.

“We felt that was what made this building extra special,” Amro said. “People … attracted to this building really appreciate being able to be up close and personal” with it.

The building has been largely vacant since 2019, when Macmillan Publishers relocated downtown. Its unusual triangular footprint — long a defining feature — proved to be one of the project’s biggest design challenges. Office conversions can be complex and costly, often requiring deep structural changes, that can limit viable candidates.

“What we’re attracted to about this building … is because … it’s not too thick or deep,” Amro said. “You have so much light and air that every room has these huge windows. … This, to me, is real New York.”

At the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Broadway between 22nd and 23rd streets, the Flatiron’s shape floods interiors with light and frames views of Madison Square Park, the surrounding skyline and beyond. Unlike many traditional office buildings, its narrow floor plates mean nearly every room has a window.

But that same geometry created complications. Early attempts to work around existing elevators and an original staircase fell short.

“With the triangle, that was the part that was the challenge,” Amro said. “A typical condominium or rental building would be a rectangle.”

Ultimately, the team abandoned the original configuration altogether.

“We have all those iterations, and it just didn’t produce layouts that were commensurate with a building of this stature,” Amro said. “We got to a point where we said, ‘Let's just pretend it’s a blank canvas. … Where does the staircase want to be? Where do the elevators want to be?’”

The result is a reworked interior with new staircases and elevators placed to support more cohesive residential layouts. Most floors will contain two units, alongside a handful of full-floor and penthouse residences.

The building’s sharp prow — seen as a constraint — has proved workable, however. While the site tapers to a dramatic edge on the ground floor, upper floors don't actually have the same geometry, and the angled corners can function as flexible niches for desks, pianos or seating.

The landmark designation added another layer of complexity. The project required approval for a range of work, including facade upgrades, the replacement of roughly 1,000 windows and the building’s first exterior lighting.

“This is one of the most scrutinized buildings from a landmark perspective,” Amro said, noting replacement windows “have to look exactly the same” from the outside and required multiple mock-ups.

Brodsky joined Sorgente Group and GFP Real Estate in 2023 to restore the Flatiron. The family-owned firm that holds a controlling stake and serves as managing partner expects residences to be ready later this year, with full completion, including amenities such as a 60-foot lap pool, slated for early 2027. The exterior netting is expected to come down by the end of the summer.

The Flatiron redevelopment is expected to cost several hundred million dollars, financed in part by a $357 million construction loan. Early demand has been strong: Fourteen contracts have been signed since February, ranging from $10.95 million to $58.5 million.

The residences range in size from about 3,000 square feet to 7,400 square feet. Corcoran Sunshine is the exclusive agent on the project. Studio Sofield designed the residences.

Buyers include empty nesters, young families and both local and part-time New Yorkers. While a new pied-à-terre tax — which would raise carrying costs for second-home buyers — briefly slowed momentum, activity has since picked up, according to Amro.

“People who went on pause for a week or two are all back,” he said. “Inventory is diminishing. It’s going to still remain attractive to the handful of people who just want to own a piece of New York.”

The ground floor will add new life at street level, including a café, called Bar Pisellino Flatiron, from chefs Rita Sodi and Jody Williams, along with two luxury retail tenants.

For Amro, the project carries personal weight. As a child visiting his grandparents on lower Fifth Avenue, the sight of the Flatiron signaled he was close to home.

“When I started working in the family business, my mother gave me an old photograph of the Flatiron Building under construction,” he said. “It was always a very special building for me. … It’s humbling to be even a part of its reconstruction. … It gives us a sense of pride.”