Redevelopment Of Former MTA HQ To Generate $1B For Transit

NEW YORK, NY — The MTA and New York City reached a deal in the midst of a pandemic to redevelop the transit authority's former Madison Avenue headquarters and generate $1 billion for the MTA, city and transit officials said.

Real estate taxes and revenue gained from the ground lease of the 347 Madison Avenue site will be allocated to the MTA's capital projects budget after the site is turned over to private developer Boston Properties for redevelopment. Boston Properties previously won the rights to redevelop the former headquarters building into a new office tower through a request for proposals bid in 2016.

The money will be collected by the city and then disbursed to the MTA, which city and transit officials described as a "creative" way to fulfill the city's obligation to provide $2.66 billion to the MTA’s 2015-2019 Capital Program, officials said.

"This type of redevelopment deal is consistent with what we envisioned when we agreed on a funding commitment to the MTA’s 2015-2019 Capital Plan," New York City First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan said in a statement. "Through mutual agreement, we were able to find a creative way to fund transit projects on behalf of riders, while also ensuring that the maximum potential of the East Midtown Rezoning is fully realized."

A deal between the city and state on the property was necessary to begin the public review process on Boston Properties' planned office tower development.

The MTA used 347 Madison Avenue as its headquarters from 1979 to 2014 when the agency moved to 2 Broadway in Lower Manhattan. The Madison Avenue office building was developed in 1917 and was once known as the Equitable Trust Building.

"The deal embodies the MTA’s commitment to maximize the value of its assets for the public’s bottom line," Janno Lieber, President of MTA Construction & Development, said in a statement. "The project is an example of environmentally friendly transit-oriented development. The new project will include a new entrance on Madison Avenue with direct connection to Grand Central and the new Long Island Rail Road terminal."