A bellwether overhaul of the aging Emery Roth & Sons-designed 55 Broad Street office tower in Lower Manhattan will be undertaken by CetraRuddy in what is billed as one of the New York market’s largest office-to-residential conversion projects in recent memory.

The project for developers Silverstein Properties and Metro Loft Management will commence early next month and culminate in a reimagined 410,000-square-foot structure replete with 571 new apartment units, a private club, 45-foot-long rooftop pool feature, and other amenities. 

The firm’s founding partner and CEO John Cetra explained of their forthcoming design: “We took advantage of 55 Broad’s unique form with setbacks which enabled us to design a variety of apartment sizes and types ranging from efficient units to loft-like layouts with generous terraces. In converting the building from commercial to residential use, we recaptured floor area that was then used to add additional square footage at the top of the building, which added value to the investment.”

Although not without initial opposition from existing office tenants, CetraRuddy’s latest scheme will join a robust portfolio of other New York area adaptive reuse and conversion projects that include a recent effort at 443 Greenwich Street in Manhattan, another at 30 Morningside Drive near Columbia University, and the 2019 creation of Fotografiska's U.S. headquarters in Gramercy.

“Amid a citywide housing shortage, our conversion of 55 Broad Street will create hundreds of new apartments in Lower Manhattan,” Silverstein's CEO Marty Burger said in a statement. “As our local and national policymakers look to conversions as a critical way to generate new housing, Downtown continues to be a model mixed-use neighborhood, offering lessons to cities across the country. We are excited to partner with Metro Loft on one of the city’s largest conversions.”

The firm expects a completion within two years. An unspecified LEED certification will be achieved through construction. Also, upon completion, the newly all-electric residential building is projected to use energy at a rate 22% lower than its 56-year-old predecessor.