Inside Manhattan's most expensive office building, which boasts swanky showers, March Madness parties, and views for 40 miles

Kelsey NeubauerOct 28, 2022, 19:47 IST

One Vanderbilt.Andre Poulin/Shutterstock

One Vanderbilt is a 2-year-old skyscraper and the second-tallest office building in New York City.
Now it's also the priciest: A 72nd-floor office is listed for $312 a foot, or $3.3 million a year.

Manhattan's biggest office landlord, SL Green, opened One Vanderbilt in September 2020 after 13 years of planning and construction.

The top portion of One Vanderbilt, located in Midtown Manhattan.Max Touhey

The 1,401-foot-tall skyscraper sits on East 42nd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue, next to Manhattan's storied Grand Central Terminal train station. It has 1.8 million square feet of interior space — the size of over 30 football fields — across its 72 floors.

One Vanderbilt from the street.Max Touhey

The 1,401-foot-tall skyscraper sits on East 42nd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue, next to Manhattan's storied Grand Central Terminal train station. It has 1.8 million square feet of interior space — the size of over 30 football fields — across its 72 floors.

One Vanderbilt is 99% leased to tenants including TD Bank and private-equity firm The Carlyle Group — no small feat at a time when offices are struggling amid a work-from-home revolution.

The TD Bank office in One Vanderbilt.TD Bank / Anthony Quintano

One Vanderbilt is 99% leased to tenants including TD Bank and private-equity firm The Carlyle Group — no small feat at a time when offices are struggling amid a work-from-home revolution.

Walker & Dunlop, which finances commercial real estate investments throughout the country, also has offices in the tower. Companies pay dearly for their offices — from $130 per square foot, compared to an average of $83 per square foot in the area overall.

A portion of the TD Bank office in One Vanderbilt.TD Bank / Anthony Quintano

Walker & Dunlop, which finances commercial real estate investments throughout the country, also has offices in the tower. Companies pay dearly for their offices — from $130 per square foot, compared to an average of $83 per square foot in the area overall.

Anyone who comes to work in One Vanderbilt first enters the huge, sleek lobby.

The lobby of One Vanderbilt.Jakob Dahlin

Take these elevators up to the 68th floor and you'll find the corporate law firm McDermott Will & Emery, which employs 2,300 people, and pays $302 per each of the nearly 23,000 square feet it leases. That's almost $7 million a year.

Elevator bank in One Vanderbilt.Jakob Dahlin

Take these elevators up to the 68th floor and you'll find the corporate law firm McDermott Will & Emery, which employs 2,300 people, and pays $302 per each of the nearly 23,000 square feet it leases. That's almost $7 million a year.

Forget getting wet: Many people commuting via subway or commuter rail MetroNorth don't even have to walk outside to get to the lobby.

One Vanderbilt entrance from Grand Central.Crystal Cox/Insider

Only a few other office buildings in the area connect directly to historic Grand Central. Employees sidle through a door marked "Tenants Only."

Tenant-only entrance into One Vanderbilt.Crystal Cox/Insider

If employees ride their bikes to work or get off a red-eye flight to make a big presentation, they can reserve one of several One Vanderbilt's shower rooms, located on various floors, through an app.

One of the shower rooms in One Vanderbilt.Crystal Cox/Insider

If employees ride their bikes to work or get off a red-eye flight to make a big presentation, they can reserve one of several One Vanderbilt's shower rooms, located on various floors, through an app.

The showers have been the most popular amenity for tenants, according to Steven Durels, SL Green's executive vice president of leasing.

The shower room comes complete with a bathrobe.Crystal Cox/Insider

Employees also have access to a whole entire amenities floor, a third-floor space called the The Vandy Club. Among the options is a sushi restaurant called JoJi Box.

Daniel Boulud's restaurant on One Vanderbilt's amenity floor.Crystal Cox/Insider

Also on that floor is La Terrace, a restaurant run by Michelin-starred French chef Daniel Boulud that is only open to people who work in the building. It serves salads, sandwiches, soup, and pastries.

A restaurant on One Vanderbilt's amenity floor.Crystal Cox/Insider

Also on that floor is La Terrace, a restaurant run by Michelin-starred French chef Daniel Boulud that is only open to people who work in the building. It serves salads, sandwiches, soup, and pastries.

Employees can take their food outside to a landscaped patio overlooking Grand Central.

An outdoor patio space on the third floor.Crystal Cox/Insider

One Vanderbilt also has a conference center that spans half of the third floor for companies that want to host an event or an important meeting.

Entrance to the conference center on the third floor.Crystal Cox/Insider

Anyone who works in the building can reserve a space.

A board room on the amenity floor.Crystal Cox/Insider

It's not all board meetings. A company reserved this room for a March Madness watch party for its workers last year.

One Vanderbilt head of leasing Zach Freeman walks in a conference room on the amenity floor.Crystal Cox/Insider

All of One Vanderbilt's offices have floor-to-ceiling windows.

An office space in One Vanderbilt.Jakob Dahlin

The building was designed to maximize the number of corner offices, lead architect Jamie von Klemperer, of Kohn Pedersen Fox, told Insider.

An office space in One Vanderbilt.Crystal Cox/Insider

On the 54th floor is vacant office space that has been built out and decorated to lure a tenant.

Office space that SL Green has built out before leasing out.Crystal Cox/Insider

The space is designed to feel like a home, said Zach Freeman, who runs One Vanderbilt's leasing office. It has a café area.

A café within the 54th-floor office space.Crystal Cox/Insider

"We are actively trading proposals" with interested companies, Freeman said. The Real Deal reported the space is asking $250 per square foot.

Another view of the café.Crystal Cox/Insider

On the 72nd floor, SL Green is asking $312 per square foot, or over $3.3 million a year, The Real Deal reported. That's the most expensive asking office rent in New York City right now.

Freeman walks around the 72nd floor of the building, one of the only spaces left to rent in the building.Crystal Cox/Insider

On the 72nd floor, SL Green is asking $312 per square foot, or over $3.3 million a year, The Real Deal reported. That's the most expensive asking office rent in New York City right now.

The 10,790-square-foot office, which will be built out and finished when a tenant signs a lease, contains an outdoor terrace that overlooks most of Manhattan.

A terrace on the 72nd floor of One Vanderbilt. It's open-air but has high glass walls.Crystal Cox/Insider

People on the 72nd floor can see the iconic Chrysler Building head on. On a clear day, you can see 40 miles in each direction, Freeman said.

A view of the East River, the east side of Manhattan, and the Chrysler Building from One Vanderbilt.Crystal Cox/Insider

Employees on the upper floors of One Vanderbilt can see the shores of the Atlantic Ocean in Brooklyn to the east, as well as the Hudson River and to the mountains north of Manhattan to the west and north.

A view north and west over the Hudson River from One Vanderbilt.Courtesy of SL Green

Employees on the upper floors of One Vanderbilt can see the shores of the Atlantic Ocean in Brooklyn to the east, as well as the Hudson River and to the mountains north of Manhattan to the west and north.

Atop One Vanderbilt is an observation deck, called the Summit, which has hosted 1.4 million visitors since it opened in October 2021, according to SL Green. Tickets cost from $59.

A view from the Summit looking south. The Empire State Building can be seen on the right and One World Trade Center in the distance.Mariusz Lopusiewicz/Shutterstock

Atop One Vanderbilt is an observation deck, called the Summit, which has hosted 1.4 million visitors since it opened in October 2021, according to SL Green. Tickets cost from $59.

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Inside Manhattan's most expensive office building, which boasts swanky showers, March Madness parties, and views for 40 miles

Manhattan's biggest office landlord, SL Green, opened One Vanderbilt in September 2020 after 13 years of planning and construction.

The 1,401-foot-tall skyscraper sits on East 42nd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue, next to Manhattan's storied Grand Central Terminal train station. It has 1.8 million square feet of interior space — the size of over 30 football fields — across its 72 floors.

One Vanderbilt is 99% leased to tenants including TD Bank and private-equity firm The Carlyle Group — no small feat at a time when offices are struggling amid a work-from-home revolution.

Walker & Dunlop, which finances commercial real estate investments throughout the country, also has offices in the tower. Companies pay dearly for their offices — from $130 per square foot, compared to an average of $83 per square foot in the area overall.

Anyone who comes to work in One Vanderbilt first enters the huge, sleek lobby.

Take these elevators up to the 68th floor and you'll find the corporate law firm McDermott Will & Emery, which employs 2,300 people, and pays $302 per each of the nearly 23,000 square feet it leases. That's almost $7 million a year.

Forget getting wet: Many people commuting via subway or commuter rail MetroNorth don't even have to walk outside to get to the lobby.

Only a few other office buildings in the area connect directly to historic Grand Central. Employees sidle through a door marked "Tenants Only."

If employees ride their bikes to work or get off a red-eye flight to make a big presentation, they can reserve one of several One Vanderbilt's shower rooms, located on various floors, through an app.

The showers have been the most popular amenity for tenants, according to Steven Durels, SL Green's executive vice president of leasing.

Employees also have access to a whole entire amenities floor, a third-floor space called the The Vandy Club. Among the options is a sushi restaurant called JoJi Box.

Also on that floor is La Terrace, a restaurant run by Michelin-starred French chef Daniel Boulud that is only open to people who work in the building. It serves salads, sandwiches, soup, and pastries.

Employees can take their food outside to a landscaped patio overlooking Grand Central.

One Vanderbilt also has a conference center that spans half of the third floor for companies that want to host an event or an important meeting.

Anyone who works in the building can reserve a space.

It's not all board meetings. A company reserved this room for a March Madness watch party for its workers last year.

All of One Vanderbilt's offices have floor-to-ceiling windows.

The building was designed to maximize the number of corner offices, lead architect Jamie von Klemperer, of Kohn Pedersen Fox, told Insider.

On the 54th floor is vacant office space that has been built out and decorated to lure a tenant.

The space is designed to feel like a home, said Zach Freeman, who runs One Vanderbilt's leasing office. It has a café area.

"We are actively trading proposals" with interested companies, Freeman said. The Real Deal reported the space is asking $250 per square foot.

On the 72nd floor, SL Green is asking $312 per square foot, or over $3.3 million a year, The Real Deal reported. That's the most expensive asking office rent in New York City right now.

The 10,790-square-foot office, which will be built out and finished when a tenant signs a lease, contains an outdoor terrace that overlooks most of Manhattan.

People on the 72nd floor can see the iconic Chrysler Building head on. On a clear day, you can see 40 miles in each direction, Freeman said.

Employees on the upper floors of One Vanderbilt can see the shores of the Atlantic Ocean in Brooklyn to the east, as well as the Hudson River and to the mountains north of Manhattan to the west and north.

Atop One Vanderbilt is an observation deck, called the Summit, which has hosted 1.4 million visitors since it opened in October 2021, according to SL Green. Tickets cost from $59.