A tiny holdout building in the middle of Macy’s is back in view
Unveiling the Secret: The Holdout Building at Macy’s Returns to View
For more than a century, a peculiar architectural secret remained invisible hidden behind a wall of advertisements. Located at the northwest corner of 34th Street and Sixth Avenue, a tiny "holdout" building is finally emerging from the shadows.
The iconic, massive red-and-white shopping bag that served as a Macy's advertisement has largely vanished, leaving only a small fragment of red fabric facing Sixth Avenue. Currently, the site is a construction zone:
- Ground Floor: Enveloped in scaffolding.
- Upper Floors: Wrapped in dark protective netting.
For the first time since the dawn of the 20th century, the billboards are being stripped away from this five-story structure. This grimy yet elegant building—featuring terra cotta ornamentation and expansive studio windows—is once again a visible part of the Manhattan skyline.
A Legacy of Retail Warfare
This structure is perhaps the most legendary holdout in New York City, serving as a physical monument to the cutthroat retail competitions of the early 1900s.
The Great Migration to Herald Square
Around 1901, Macy’s decided to relocate from the congested "Ladies Mile" (the 14th Street corridor between Fifth and Sixth Avenues) to the more accessible and spacious Herald Square. To secure their new footprint, Macy's began a shopping spree of real estate.
Acquisition Checklist:
- Local Restaurant
- Barber Shop
- Koster Bial Concert Saloon (the site of the first projected motion pictures)
However, one tiny piece of the puzzle remained elusive.
The Price of Stubbornness
The final piece was a small remnant of an old farm, measuring exactly:
This plot was owned by a resident named Rev. Duane Pell. As Edward Hungerford detailed in his 1922 chronicle, The Romance of a Great Store:
“It was given to understand that [Pell's] asking price for the small corner was $250,000, an astonishing figure for such a tiny bit of land. Pell felt that he had held the key to the entire important Herald Square corner and that he was justified in asking any price he saw fit.”
The Plot Twist
Macy's eventually succumbed to the price, but before the ink could dry, Pell executed a strategic betrayal. He sold the land to an agent representing Henry Siegel, the owner of the rival "Big Store," Siegel-Cooper.
| Party | Role | Transaction Price |
|---|---|---|
| Rev. Duane Pell | Original Owner | Sold for $375,000 |
| Henry Siegel | Rival Retailer | Purchased for $375,000 |
| Macy's | Intended Buyer | Outbid/Bypassed |
Spite in Stone
Siegel-Cooper was a behemoth of its time, boasting 3,000 employees and 120 departments. In a calculated move, Siegel offered to sell the corner back to Macy's, but only if Macy's traded one of their old 14th Street properties in return.
Macy's refused. In an act of corporate defiance, they simply built their flagship store around the tiny plot.
The resulting five-story building was designed by William Hume. Though Siegel eventually lost ownership, Macy's spent the next century effectively "erasing" the building from public view by leasing the facade for their own advertisements starting in the 1920s.
Why Now?
The building's sudden reappearance is due to a change in leasing. Kaufman Realty, which has owned the property for over six decades, is reportedly transitioning the facade lease to a different entity.
{
"property_status": "Under Renovation",
"previous_tenant": "Macy's (Advertising)",
"new_tenant": "Prominent Online Retailer",
"location": "34th St & 6th Ave"
}
While it is unclear when the new signage will arrive, the current window of visibility offers a rare glimpse at a symbol of Manhattan's relentless real estate battles.
Related Tags: #HeraldSquare #NYCArchitecture #MacysHistory #UrbanHoldouts #MidtownManhattan