The Toy Center, also known as the International Toy Center, is a complex of buildings in the

Flatiron District The Flatiron District is a neighborhood in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan of New York City, named after the Flatiron Building at 23rd Street (Manhattan), 23rd Street, Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway and Fifth Avenue. Generally ...

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, that for many years was a hub for toy manufacturers and distributors in the United States. It includes two buildings located between 23rd Street and 25th Street across from

Madison Square Madison Square is a public square formed by the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Broadway at 23rd Street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The square was named for Founding Father James Madison, the fourth president of the United St ...

, where

Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...

and

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street ** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...

cross. The

American International Toy Fair The North American International Toy Fair (formerly the American International Toy Fair and also known as Toy Fair New York) is an annual toy industry trade show held in mid-February in New York City's Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and at to ...

, the industry's major annual

trade show A trade show, also known as trade fair, trade exhibition, or trade exposition, is an exhibition organized so that companies in a specific industry can showcase and demonstrate their latest products and services, meet with industry partners and ...

, is held annually in February at both the Toy Center and the

Javits Center The Jacob K. Javits Convention Center, commonly known as the Javits Center, is a large convention center on Eleventh Avenue between 34th Street and 38th Street in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City. It was designed by architect James In ...

34th Street 34th Street most commonly refers to 34th Street (Manhattan) 34th Street is a major crosstown street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It runs the width of Manhattan Island from the West Side Highway on the West Side to FDR Drive on t ...

. The building also serves as the corporate

headquarters Headquarters (often referred to as HQ) notes the location where most or all of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The term is used in a wide variety of situations, including private sector corporations, non-profits, mil ...

luxury Luxury may refer to: *Luxury goods, an economic good or service for which demand increases more than proportionally as income rises *Luxury tax, a tax on products not considered essential, such as speedboats or diamonds. **Luxury tax (sports), a ...

retailer Tiffany & Co.

History

The original building, at 200 Fifth Avenue, was constructed on the site of what had been the

Fifth Avenue Hotel The Fifth Avenue Hotel was a luxury hotel located in Manhattan, New York City from 1859 to 1908. It had an entire block of frontage between 23rd Street and 24th Street, at the southwest corner of Madison Square. Site and construction ...

, which was completed in 1859 and was demolished in 1908.

20th century

The 16-story building was completed in 1909 and was originally known as the Fifth Avenue Building, which name is on the landmark clock outside the front entrance, and the interlocked initials "F.A.B." were still in the building's elevators in 2003. The architect was

Robert Maynicke Robert Maynicke (1849–1913) was an American architect. At his death, the ''New York Times'' called him "a pioneer in the building of modern loft buildings."sidewalk clock outside the main entrance, built by

Hecla Iron Works Brooklyn Bowl is a music venue, bowling alley and restaurant in the Williamsburg, Brooklyn, Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. Founded in 2009, it is located in the former Hecla Iron Works Building at 61 Wythe Avenue. It is known for ...

in 1909, became a

New York City designated landmark The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and c ...

in 1981. The building became a center for the toy industry during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, following restrictions on imports from the traditional European manufacturers. From 1910 to 1927 the

Boy Scouts of America National Headquarters The Scouting America national headquarters were established in 1910 in New York City and opened in January 1911. Background From 1910 to 1927, the offices were at the Toy Center at 200 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. In 1927, the National Office mo ...

was located in the building. A second 16-story building at 1107

was acquired in 1967, and a pedestrian bridge over 24th Street, connecting the two buildings at the ninth floor, was constructed the following year.Specter, Michael
"Not All Fun And Games At 5th Ave. Toy Center"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', April 26, 1981. Accessed August 2, 2009. Most of the industry's major companies had moved in by

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, and building manager

Helmsley-Spear Harry Brakmann Helmsley (March 4, 1909 – January 4, 1997) was an American real estate billionaire whose company, Helmsley-Spear, became one of the country's biggest property holders, owning the Empire State Building and many of New York's most ...

restricted new leases exclusively to toy companies starting in the 1960s. By 1981, the complex covered of leasable space, with its 600 tenants accounting for 95% of toy transactions in the United States that year, amounting to $4 billion. The American International Toy Fair, held jointly at the Toy Center and at the Javits Center each February, brings up to 10,000 buyers from the United States and around the world.

21st century

In early 2005, the building complex was sold by the Malkin family for $355 million to the Chetrit Group. In April 2007, L&L Holding Company bought 200 Fifth Avenue for $500 million. Tenants at the building now include

Grey Global Group Grey Group is a global advertising and marketing agency with headquarters in New York City, and 432 offices in 96 countries, operating in 154 cities. It is organized into four geographical units: North America; Europe, Middle East and Africa, Asi ...

, Tiffany & Co., and

Eataly Eataly is a chain of large format/footprint Italian marketplaces (food halls) comprising a variety of restaurants, food and beverage counters, bakery, retail items, and a cooking school. Eataly was founded by Oscar Farinetti, an entrepreneur for ...

. In October 2007, the Chetrit Group sold the 1107 Broadway part of the complex to developer Yitzchak Tessler for $235 million.

Lehman Brothers Lehman Brothers Inc. ( ) was an American global financial services firm founded in 1850. Before filing for bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth-largest investment bank in the United States (behind Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Merril ...

provided a $136.8 million to finance the purchase of the property. Tesslar then announced plans to convert the building into luxury condos. In October 2008, shortly after the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, their loan to Tesslar came due, however he failed to refinance the project and the building remained largely vacant and undeveloped. In December 2009, land research firm Real Capital Analytic added the building to their list of troubled assets. Tesslar claimed that he failed to refinance because Lehman Brothers "did not fulfill their pre-construction obligation." Lehman Brothers Holding Co. filed a suit against Tesslar in 2010 and threatened foreclosure, however all litigation was eventually dropped after Tesslar settled with the bankrupt company, and the property ended up in Lehman's commercial real estate portfolio. Lehman then held an auction for the building in June 2011. A group of investors led by the

Witkoff Group Steven Charles Witkoff (born March 15, 1957) is an American real estate investor and lawyer who has served as the United States Special Envoy to the Middle East since 2025. He is the founder and chairman of the Witkoff Group. Steve Witkoff wa ...

won the auction, purchasing the property for $191 million.Clarke, Katherine
"Witkoff closes on 1107 Broadway for $191M"
" The Real Deal", September 28, 2011. Accessed April 13, 2012.

References

Notes

External links

* {{Authority control 23rd Street (Manhattan) Buildings and structures in Manhattan Fifth Avenue Flatiron District Toy industry in the United States

History

20th century

21st century

See also

References

External links