New York City officials spent Tuesday racing to stabilize a Midtown Manhattan high-rise after structural columns buckled on its 21st floor, an incident unfolding directly across the street from one of Superman’s most recognizable on-screen locations.
The building at 235 E. 42nd St., the former Pfizer headquarters currently being converted into luxury apartments, was evacuated Tuesday morning along with several neighboring buildings after workers reported bricks falling from upper floors. The evacuations forced the closure of a multi-block “frozen zone” from First to Third avenues along 40th to 45th streets. The building sits between Second and Third avenues, roughly a block from the Chrysler Building and between Grand Central Terminal and the United Nations headquarters.
The Daily News Building at 220 E. 42nd St. sits just south of 235 East 42nd Street, directly across the street from the unstable structure. The two are entirely separate buildings under separate ownership, not part of the same complex. The Daily News Building’s Art Deco lobby, centered on a giant rotating globe, served as the filming location for the Daily Planet in Richard Donner’s 1978 “Superman” and its sequels. Its exterior also served as the filming location for some of cinema’s most iconic scenes.
As of Tuesday afternoon, no reports indicated the Daily News Building itself had been evacuated or damaged. But its address places it inside the footprint of the frozen zone officials established around the unstable structure.
City officials said the building remained structurally unstable Tuesday afternoon, with fears of a partial collapse. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the city is “taking it minute by minute” as engineers work to secure the site. Fire Department of New York Chief John Esposito said the steel support beams had begun bending under the weight of the structure, and that the building continued to move after crews arrived.
Structural engineers determined two columns buckled on the 21st floor, with sagging floor conditions reported between the 21st and 26th floors. Officials are examining whether an added vertical extension built atop the original structure contributed to the failure. The city’s Department of Buildings has since filed a complaint against the building’s owner, listed as 235 Fee Owner LLC, alleging construction was performed contrary to previously approved plans.
The site has drawn city fines before: a $5,000 penalty last July after a piece of window glass fell from the eighth floor, and a $10,000 penalty and temporary stop-work order last August after a metal panel fell from the 33rd floor.
Building records show the structure has accumulated seven violations between July and December 2025, resulting in more than $32,000 in fines, along with at least 22 violations dating back to 2020. Metro Loft Management, the developer leading the conversion, said it is working with the Department of Buildings to understand the full scope of the situation.
Officials evacuated the building along with at least nine neighboring structures, including a hotel and a nearby school with roughly 400 students. No injuries have been reported, and all construction workers were accounted for. Gov. Kathy Hochul said her office remains in close contact with city officials and is prepared to provide assistance if needed.
By mid-afternoon, the building had stopped moving long enough for a six-person team from the Department of Buildings, FDNY and the project’s contractor to enter and begin assessing whether shoring efforts could safely proceed.
