Lendlease and Extell Development top out
1520 First Ave. - 400,000 s/f medical office

Manhattan, NY Lendlease’s New York construction group has topped out 1520 First Ave., a 30-story medical office building in the Yorkville section of the Upper East Side. Developed by Extell Development Company, the 400,000 s/f facility, slated for completion in 2025, will house doctors’ offices, medical treatment centers and retail space on the ground floor.

Lendlease provided pre-construction services ahead of the tower’s groundbreaking and is serving as construction manager for the development, which is being built on a full-block site located on the east side of First Ave., between East 79^th and East 80^th Sts. It offers proximity to some of the city’s top hospitals and medical research centers.

“We’re thrilled to once again work with Extell on a notable project that will bring a much-needed medical office facility to the growing Upper East Side medical community, already home to many of New York’s top hospitals and medical research centers,” said Steven Sommer, executive general manager and president, East Coast Construction, Lendlease Americas. “With its top-of-the-line specifications, 1520 First Ave. is fully equipped to meet the needs of today’s healthcare providers and, in doing so, complement the area’s growth.”

The Hospital for Special Surgery, one of the world’s leading academic medical centers, has signed on as anchor tenant and will occupy 200,000 s/f across the first eight stories. Additionally, the building will offer accommodations for both Department of Health (DOH) and Article 28 requirements for uses such as ambulatory care and surgical facilities.

Upon completion, 1520 First Ave. will feature the latest in modern, user-centered design, infrastructure and technological specifications. In addition to oversized windows that will offer expansive views and an abundance of natural light, the building will incorporate post-COVID enhancements and specific healthcare solutions, including increased ventilation and enhanced filtration.

Designed by Perkins Eastman, 1520 First Ave. comprises a rectangular tower atop a multistory podium with numerous setbacks. The façade utilizes white paneling to form a grid of vertical window groupings, while the crown will feature dark metal grilles. WSP is serving as the structural engineer of record.

The building uses a COBIAX system that incorporates preassembled voids inside the reinforced concrete slab, allowing for larger column-to-column spans while reducing overall concrete consumption of the project. With this system, a high proportion of the solid slab’s concrete is replaced by COBIAX void formers that consist of 100% recycled plastic, supporting Lendlease’s sustainability goals.

Lendlease has provided construction management services for Extell on several New York projects, including Central Park Tower, a 1.2 million s/f luxury high-rise completed in 2022 that is the tallest residential building in the world; One57, a hotel and condo building that opened in 2015; Brooklyn Point, the final structure in the City Point Development complex and, at the time of its completion in 2021, the tallest skyscraper in Brooklyn; and 680 Madison Ave., a hotel-to-condo conversion that delivered in 2014. Lendlease is currently working with Extell to complete a 70-story Snøhetta-designed condominium tower at 50 West 66^th St.