We reported on the scary scene that unfolded in midtown Manhattan Tuesday when support columns at the former Pfizer headquarters skyscraper buckled and the building sagged. Mass evacuations were ordered as authorities worried the whole thing could come down. The property is being converted into luxury residences.
The situation has been stabilized for now, but there’s still the danger of a partial collapse, and portions of the building may need to be demolished.
NewsCopter 7 was above the buckled high rise on the East Side of Manhattan which has now been deemed stable. According to MetroLoft, the developer overseeing the conversion project, the columns likely buckled under the added weight of newly expanded upper floors. The company said… pic.twitter.com/2Mx9L3k5HZ
— Eyewitness News (@ABC7NY) July 8, 2026
NewsCopter 7 was above the buckled high rise on the East Side of Manhattan which has now been deemed stable. According to MetroLoft, the developer overseeing the conversion project, the columns likely buckled under the added weight of newly expanded upper floors. The company said part of the floor sagged by about four inches.
It turns out the developer of the building, MetroLoft, is also facing a massive lawsuit over defects in another property, one that’s home to the jet set in the Greenwich Village section of the Big Apple. We’re talking hundreds of millions of dollars:
MetroLoft, the developer behind the Manhattan high rise that suddenly buckled on Tuesday, is facing a $350 million-plus lawsuit at star-studded 443 Greenwich St., home to names including Rebel Wilson, Harry Styles and Meg Ryan over the last decade.
A construction defect case, alleging a number of structural flaws, initially included $250 million in compensation and insurance claims. That figure has since ballooned to $376 million over the course of the last three years of litigation.
MetroLoft converted the old bookbinding factory at 443 Greenwich St. into luxe private apartments and soon celebs like Jennifer Lawrence, Justin Timberlake and wife Jessica Biel snapped them up quickly. But it wasn't long before they discovered defects — allegedly “life-threatening” ones — such as leaking roofs that allowed water to flow into multi-million-dollar penthouses, “structural decay so intense that residents could pull decorative bricks from courtyard walls by hand,” and a courtyard without proper drainage that frequently experienced heavy flooding.
His buildings also face numerous additional violations and fines.
Pfizer Building Buckles in Midtown Manhattan – Area Still Closed Off + Developer Faces $376M Lawsuit on Celebrity Project
— Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) July 9, 2026
The former Pfizer headquarters at 235 E. 42nd St. — under conversion to luxury apartments by MetroLoft — had support columns buckle earlier this week,… pic.twitter.com/BFgHL1U9yZ
Pfizer Building Buckles in Midtown Manhattan – Area Still Closed Off + Developer Faces $376M Lawsuit on Celebrity Project
The former Pfizer headquarters at 235 E. 42nd St. — under conversion to luxury apartments by MetroLoft — had support columns buckle earlier this week, triggering evacuations. Surrounding streets and sidewalks remain closed as crews rush to stabilize the site.
This major office-to-residential project already carried prior violations. The same developer faces a $376M lawsuit over alleged shortcuts at their celeb-packed Tribeca building (443 Greenwich St.), home to Justin Timberlake & Jessica Biel, Jennifer Lawrence, Harry Styles, Meg Ryan and others — with reports of leaks flooding penthouses, residents pulling bricks from walls by hand, and serious structural complaints.
NYC desperately needs housing from these conversions, but cutting corners on safety isn’t the answer. Stronger oversight could prevent bigger headaches down the line.
(Video: AI)
Thoughts on balancing speed and real safety?
MORE: The Stuff of Nightmares: Evacuations Underway As Support Structures Buckle on NYC Skyscraper
Sagging Manhattan Skyscraper Stabilized — but the Danger Is Not Over
Meanwhile, Berman is downplaying the skyscraper fiasco and calling it “typical.” Survey says: “Seriously?”
A developer behind the Midtown office conversion project that suffered structural damage on Tuesday played down the problems in an interview, saying there was never a danger of a building collapse and that he expected the project to be delayed for only a few weeks.
“This incident is nothing more than a typical construction mishap,” Nathan Berman, managing principal and founder of MetroLoft, said on Tuesday evening. “It happens unfortunately far too often on construction sites: falling cranes, people — God forbid — falling off buildings, windows falling out.”
That outlook certainly isn’t going to comfort many observers — people falling off buildings? How about you take the appropriate safety precautions to make sure that doesn’t happen?
He also claimed the engineering and design of the retrofit were “perfect.” Note to Mr. Berman: if they were perfect, the building wouldn’t be facing a possible partial collapse or demolition.
I have a feeling this story is going to stay in the news for quite a while.
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