388 Greenwich Street
Encyclopedia
388 Greenwich Street, originally called the Shearson Lehman Plaza, and more recently the Travelers Building, is a skyscraper
located at 388 Greenwich St. in the TriBeCa
neighborhood of New York City
.
388 Greenwich Street forms a complex with neighboring 10-story 390 Greenwich Street near the Hudson River
. Currently, the two buildings comprise the headquarters of the corporate and investment banking arm of financial services corporation Citigroup
. 388 Greenwich stands about ten blocks north of the World Trade Center site
and is among the tallest in TriBeCa. Like many other office buildings in Manhattan, 388 Greenwich Street contains in addition to office space, a fitness center, full-service dining facilities, a medical center, a conference center, a day care center, and an outdoor park. The building is one of the few in New York to utilize double-deck elevator
s.
On September 11, 2001
, the building's courtyard was used as a triage center.
and St. Paul Travelers Companies which acquired the logo.
in order to reduce real estate exposure on its balance sheet. The complex was acquired by a joint venture consisting of SL Green Realty Corp. and SITQ for USD 1.58 Billion. Citigroup, however, maintained their primary presence in the complex through a 15-year leaseback
arrangement.
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
located at 388 Greenwich St. in the TriBeCa
TriBeCa
Tribeca is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York in the United States. Its name is an acronym based on the words "Triangle below Canal Street", and is properly bounded by Canal Street, West Street, Broadway, and Vesey Street...
neighborhood of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
388 Greenwich Street forms a complex with neighboring 10-story 390 Greenwich Street near the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
. Currently, the two buildings comprise the headquarters of the corporate and investment banking arm of financial services corporation Citigroup
Citigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
. 388 Greenwich stands about ten blocks north of the World Trade Center site
World Trade Center site
The World Trade Center site , also known as "Ground Zero" after the September 11 attacks, sits on in Lower Manhattan in New York City...
and is among the tallest in TriBeCa. Like many other office buildings in Manhattan, 388 Greenwich Street contains in addition to office space, a fitness center, full-service dining facilities, a medical center, a conference center, a day care center, and an outdoor park. The building is one of the few in New York to utilize double-deck elevator
Double-deck elevator
Double-deck elevators are designed with two elevator cars that are attached, one on top of the other. This allows passengers on two consecutive floors to be able to use the elevator simultaneously, significantly increasing the passenger capacity of an elevator shaft...
s.
On September 11, 2001
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
, the building's courtyard was used as a triage center.
Umbrella icon
The building was well-known by New York residents for its large 50 ft (15.2 m)-by-50 ft 4-story red neon umbrella mounted in May 1997 near the top of its north-facing side that some found emblematic and others distracting.. Complementing this neon sign, an iconic, steel 16 feet (4.9 m), 5300 lbs red umbrella sculpture also stood outside 388 Greenwich St at street-level. Both have been removed from the building, the latter in the summer of 2007, as part of a deal between CitigroupCitigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
and St. Paul Travelers Companies which acquired the logo.
Sale
In December 2007, 388 Greenwich Street and 390 Greenwich Street were sold by CitigroupCitigroup
Citigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
in order to reduce real estate exposure on its balance sheet. The complex was acquired by a joint venture consisting of SL Green Realty Corp. and SITQ for USD 1.58 Billion. Citigroup, however, maintained their primary presence in the complex through a 15-year leaseback
Leaseback
Leaseback, short for sale-and-leaseback, is a financial transaction, where one sells an asset and leases it back for the long-term; therefore, one continues to be able to use the asset but no longer owns it...
arrangement.