{{Short description|Skyscraper in Manhattan, New York}} {{other uses}} {{pp-semi-indef|small=yes}} {{good article}} {{Use American English|date=June 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=June 2025}} {{Infobox building | name = Trump Tower | logo = Trump Tower logo.svg | logo_size = 255 | logo_alt = | logo_caption = | image = Trump Tower (7181836700) (cropped).jpg | image_size = 250 | image_caption = View from Fifth Avenue, 2010 | pushpin_map = <!-- Manhattan#New York City#New York#USA --> | map_caption = | pushpin_label = Trump Tower | pushpin_relief = yes | status = complete | cancelled = | topped_out = | building_type = Retail, office, and residential | architectural_style = Modernist | classification = | location = 721 Fifth Avenue<br>Manhattan, New York City | mapframe-wikidata = yes | coordinates = {{coord|40.7625|-73.9738|format=dms|type:landmark_region:US-NY_dim:100000|display=inline,title}} | current_tenants = The Trump Organization | namesake = Donald Trump | groundbreaking_date = | construction_start_date = | topped_out_date = | completion_date = | opened_date = | inauguration_date = {{Start date and age|1983|11|30}} | relocated_date = | renovation_date = | closing_date = | demolished_date = | cost = $300 million | ren_cost = | client = | owner = GMAC Commercial Mortgage<ref name="ZoLa" /> | landlord = | height = | architectural = {{convert|664|ft|m|abbr=on}}<ref name="CTBUH">{{cite web |url=http://skyscrapercenter.com/building/trump-tower/1611 |title=Trump Tower |work=The Skyscraper Center |publisher=Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat |access-date=January 29, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202200631/http://skyscrapercenter.com/building/trump-tower/1611 |archive-date=February 2, 2017}}</ref> | roof = | top_floor = | observatory = | other_dimensions = | structural_system = | material = Concrete | size = | floor_count = 58 | floor_area = | elevator_count = 34 | grounds_area = | architect = Der Scutt | architecture_firm = Poor, Swanke, Hayden & Connell | developer = Donald Trump | engineer = | structural_engineer = Irwin G. Cantor | services_engineer = | civil_engineer = | other_designers = | quantity_surveyor = | main_contractor = | awards = | known_for = | number_of_units = 232 | parking = | number_of_restaurants = 3 | number_of_bars = 1 | facilities = | website = {{URL|https://www.trumptowerny.com/|trumptowerny.com}} | embed = | embedded = | references = | footnotes = }}
'''Trump Tower''' is a 58-story, {{convert|664|ft|m|-tall|adj=mid}} mixed-use condominium skyscraper at 721–725 Fifth Avenue in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, between East 56th and 57th Streets. The building contains the headquarters for the Trump Organization, as well as the penthouse residence of its developer, the businessman, and now U.S. president Donald Trump. Several members of the Trump family also live, or have lived, in the building. The tower stands on a plot where the flagship store of the department-store chain Bonwit Teller was formerly located.
Der Scutt of Swanke Hayden Connell Architects designed Trump Tower, and Trump and the Equitable Life Assurance Company (now the AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company) developed it. Although it is in one of Midtown Manhattan's special zoning districts, the tower was approved because it was to be built as a mixed-use development. Trump was permitted to add more stories to the tower in return for additional retail space and for providing privately owned public space on the ground floor, the lower level, and two outdoor terraces. There were controversies during construction, including the destruction of historically important sculptures from the Bonwit Teller store; Trump's alleged underpaying of contractors; and a lawsuit that Trump filed because the tower was not tax-exempt.
Construction on the building began in 1979. The atrium, apartments, offices, and stores opened on a staggered schedule from February to November 1983. At first, there were few tenants willing to move into the commercial and retail spaces; the residential units were sold out within months of opening. After Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and subsequent election, the tower saw large increases in visitation, though security concerns required the area around the tower to be patrolled for several years.
==<span class="anchor" id="Location"></span>Site==
Trump Tower is at 721–725 Fifth Avenue in the northern section of Midtown Manhattan, on the east side of Fifth Avenue between East 56th and 57th Streets. It is adjacent to the Tiffany & Co. flagship store to the north and 590 Madison Avenue to the east. Other nearby buildings include the LVMH Tower and Fuller Building to the northeast; the L. P. Hollander & Company Building to the north; the Bergdorf Goodman Building and Solow Building to the northwest; the Crown Building to the west; 712 Fifth Avenue and the townhouses at 10 and 12 West 56th Street to the southwest; and 550 Madison Avenue to the southeast.<ref>{{Cite web |title=NYCityMap |url=http://maps.nyc.gov/ |access-date=March 20, 2020 |website=NYC.gov |publisher=New York City Department of Information Technology and Telecommunications}}</ref>
The building's main entrance is on Fifth Avenue,<ref name="Goldstein 2016">{{Cite news |last=Goldstein |first=Joseph |date=November 16, 2016 |title=Shopping at Gucci? Tiffany's? You May Proceed to Trump Tower |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/nyregion/shopping-at-gucci-tiffanys-you-may-proceed-to-trump-tower.html |url-status=live |access-date=December 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161208080452/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/17/nyregion/shopping-at-gucci-tiffanys-you-may-proceed-to-trump-tower.html |archive-date=December 8, 2016}}</ref> with a side entrance on 56th Street only for residents.<ref>{{cite web |title=14 Trump Tower Secrets You Should Know |website=am New York |date=January 20, 2017 |url=https://www.amny.com/secrets-of-new-york/secrets-of-trump-tower-new-york-1.11835272 |access-date=November 29, 2017}}</ref> On the sidewalk opposite the main entrance, there is a four-sided brown-and-beige clock, which was created by the Electric Time Company and is nearly {{Convert|16|ft|m}} tall.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Roberts |first=Sam |date=March 3, 2016 |title=New York's Sidewalks, Unsung Moneymakers |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/04/nyregion/new-yorks-sidewalks-unsung-moneymakers.html |access-date=April 9, 2018}}</ref> In August 2023, ''The New York Times'' wrote that the clock had been installed illegally, as the building's owner, the Trump Organization, had neither applied for nor received a permit. The Trump Organization finally applied for a permit in 2015, but the New York City Department of Transportation reminded the Trump Organization of its "2015 notification regarding unauthorized structures" in July 2023.<ref name="nyt-2023-08-27">{{Cite news |last=Roberts |first=Sam |date=August 27, 2023 |title=Did You Know About the 16-Foot Trump Tower Clock? Neither Did the City. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/27/nyregion/trump-tower-clock-nyc.html |access-date=August 28, 2023}}</ref>
== <span class="anchor" id="Design"></span>Architecture == The 58-story<ref name="Cheshes 2001">{{cite magazine |last=Cheshes |first=Jay |date=November 30, 2001 |title=New York Metro Short List: Trump's Edifice Complex |url=http://nymag.com/news/articles/shortlist/trump/ |url-status=live |magazine=New York |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160624201201/http://nymag.com/news/articles/shortlist/trump/ |archive-date=June 24, 2016 |access-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> Trump Tower was designed by Der Scutt of Swanke Hayden Connell Architects.<ref name="Berenholtz Reynolds 1988 p.">{{cite book |last1=Berenholtz |first1=Richard |title=Manhattan Architecture |last2=Reynolds |first2=Donald M. |date=1988 |publisher=Prentice Hall Press |isbn=0-13-551987-X |publication-place=New York |page=174 |oclc=17732386}}</ref> Developed by the real-estate developer and later U.S. president Donald Trump, it is {{convert|664|ft|m}} high.<ref name="CTBUH" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=4113 |title=Trump Tower |website=SkyscraperPage.com |publisher=Skyscraper Page |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071124070624/http://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=4113 |archive-date=November 24, 2007 |url-status=live |access-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> The top story is marked as "68" because, according to Trump, the five-story-tall public atrium occupied the height of ten ordinary stories.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=}}<ref name="nyt19840101">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/01/sports/trump-building-the-generals-in-his-own-style.html |title=Trump Building the Generals in His Own Style |last=Berkow |first=Ira |date=January 1, 1984 |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |access-date=August 11, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160906171602/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/01/01/sports/trump-building-the-generals-in-his-own-style.html |archive-date=September 6, 2016}}</ref><ref name="Usborne 2016">{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/shortcuts/2016/dec/04/white-house-north-is-trump-tower-the-new-west-wing |title=White House North – Is Trump Tower the New West Wing? |last=Usborne |first=Simon |date=December 4, 2016 |work=The Guardian |access-date=October 20, 2017 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> However, several Bloomberg L.P. writers later determined that Trump's calculations did not account for the fact the ceiling heights in Trump Tower were much taller than in comparable buildings, and the tower did not have any floors numbered 6–13.<ref name="Abelson 2016">{{cite web |last1=Abelson |first1=Max |last2=Drucker |first2=Jesse |last3=Mider |first3=Zachary R. |title=Inside Trump Tower, The Center of the Billionaire's Universe |website=Bloomberg.com |date=October 25, 2016 |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-trump-tower/ |access-date=January 31, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202004142/https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-trump-tower/ |archive-date=February 2, 2017}}</ref> According to one author, the building may have as few as 48 usable stories.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Reilly |first1=Rick |author-link1=Rick Reilly |title=Commander in Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump |date=April 2, 2019 |publisher=Hachette Books |location=New York, NY |url=https://www.amazon.com/Commander-Cheat-Golf-Explains-Trump-ebook/dp/B07H4Z26T7}}</ref> {{As of|2021}}, the building's official owner is GMAC Commercial Mortgage, according to the New York City Department of City Planning.<ref name="ZoLa">{{Cite web |title=721 5 Avenue, 10022 |url=https://zola.planning.nyc.gov/l/lot/1/1292/7501#17.99/40.762314/-73.972976 |access-date=January 1, 2021 |publisher=New York City Department of City Planning}}</ref>
===Form and facade=== The 28-sided massing was intended to give the tower more window exposure.<ref name="nyt19790301">{{Cite news |last=Wedemeyer |first=Dee |date=March 1, 1979 |title=60-Story Tower Sought For Bonwit-Teller Site |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/03/01/archives/60-story-tower-sought-for-bonwitteller-site-mixeduse-building.html |access-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> The large number of sides arises from Trump Tower's horizontal setbacks; this contrasts with other buildings, which typically have vertical setbacks.<ref name="Nash 2005">{{cite book |last=Nash |first=Eric |title=Manhattan Skyscrapers |url=https://archive.org/details/manhattanskyscra00nash_0 |url-access=registration |publisher=Princeton Architectural Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-1-56898-652-4 |publication-place=New York |page=143 |oclc=407907000}}</ref> The exception is at the base, where the southwest corner has several stepped setbacks.<ref name="Nash 2005" /><ref name="Stichweh 2016">{{cite book |last=Stichweh |first=Dirk |title=New York Skyscrapers |publisher=Prestel Publishing |year=2016 |isbn=978-3-7913-8226-5 |page=141 |oclc=923852487}}</ref> The Trump Organization constructed terraces on the building's setbacks in exchange for extra floor area.<ref name="nyt19790301" /> These were included as part of Trump's agreement with the city during construction. There is a terrace on the fifth floor on the northern (57th Street) side of the building, with a smaller fourth-floor terrace on the southern (56th Street) side.<ref name="Elstein">{{Cite news |last=Elstein |first=Aaron |title=Donald Trump Has a Secret Garden |newspaper=Crain's New York Business |url=http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20160619/REAL_ESTATE/160619862/in-1979-donald-trump-made-a-deal-with-new-york-city-that-hed-provide |url-status=live |access-date=January 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170330004216/http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20160619/REAL_ESTATE/160619862/in-1979-donald-trump-made-a-deal-with-new-york-city-that-hed-provide |archive-date=March 30, 2017}}</ref><ref name="untapped20161209">{{Cite web |date=December 9, 2016 |title=The Privately Owned Public Space Inside Trump Tower Is Already Less Accessible |url=http://untappedcities.com/2016/12/09/the-privately-owned-public-space-inside-trump-tower-is-already-less-inaccessible/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202064806/http://untappedcities.com/2016/12/09/the-privately-owned-public-space-inside-trump-tower-is-already-less-inaccessible/ |archive-date=February 2, 2017 |access-date=January 28, 2017 |website=Untapped Cities}}</ref> The fifth-floor north-side terrace had several trees and a fountain, while the fourth-floor south-side terrace has little more than a few granite benches.<ref name="Elstein" /> The curtain wall of the facade is made entirely of gold-tinted, reflective glass. ''The Structurist'' magazine wrote in 1987 that the curtain wall "flaunts its status [...] and denies visual access with its reflective glistening surface".<ref name="p1297884304">{{Cite magazine |last=Bell |first=Keith |date=Jan 1, 1987 |title=Glass in Architecture |work=The Structurist |page=77 |volume=0 |issue=27 |id={{pq|1297884304}}}}</ref>
Above the main entrance is a logo with {{convert|34|in|cm|-high|adj=mid}} brass capital letters in Stymie Extra Bold font,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Cantwell |first=John |date=May 7, 2009 |title=Trump, The Logo |work=Design Observer |url=http://designobserver.com/feature/trump-the-logo/8477 |url-status=live |access-date=March 9, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161016170440/http://designobserver.com/feature/trump-the-logo/8477 |archive-date=October 16, 2016}}</ref> which reads "Trump Tower".<ref name="nyt19840408">{{Cite news |last=Geist |first=William E. |date=April 8, 1984 |title=The Expanding Empire of Donald Trump |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/04/08/magazine/the-expanding-empire-of-donald-trump.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 30, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201175810/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/04/08/magazine/the-expanding-empire-of-donald-trump.html |archive-date=February 1, 2017}}</ref> A concrete hat-truss at the top of the building, similar to one used in the Trump World Tower,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=trumpworldtower-newyorkcity-ny-usa |title=Trump World Tower, New York City |work=Emporis Buildings |access-date=December 2, 2007 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930065655/http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/bu/?id=trumpworldtower-newyorkcity-ny-usa |archive-date=September 30, 2007}}</ref> ties exterior columns with the concrete core. This hat-truss increases the effective dimensions of the core to that of the building allowing the building to resist the overturning of lateral forces such as those caused by wind, minor earthquakes, and other impacts perpendicular to the building's height.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.mimoa.eu/projects/United%2520States/New%2520York/Trump%2520Tower/ |title=Trump Tower, Der Scutt {{!}} New York {{!}} United States {{!}} MIMOA |website=mimoa.eu |publisher=Mi Modern Architecture |access-date=August 11, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160919170328/http://www.mimoa.eu/projects/United%20States/New%20York/Trump%20Tower/ |archive-date=September 19, 2016}}</ref>
===Structural features=== The tower is a reinforced concrete shear wall core structure. At the time of its completion, it was the tallest structure of its type in the world.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=16}} Trump Tower used {{convert|45000|yd3|m3}} of concrete and 3,800 tons of steelwork.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=17}} The use of a concrete superstructure was in contrast to many other skyscrapers, which were built on steel frames. Scutt said a concrete frame was easier to build and was more rigid than a steel frame was.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=35}} More specifically, it employed a concrete tube structure,<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Seinuk |first1=Ysrael A. |last2=Cantor |first2=Irwin G. |date=March 1984 |title=Trump Tower: Concrete Satisfies Architectural, Design, And Construction Demands |url=http://www.concrete.org/Publications/InternationalConcreteAbstractsPortal.aspx?m=details&i=9220 |journal=Concrete International |volume=6 |issue=3 |pages=59–62 |issn=0162-4075}}</ref> which had been pioneered by Bangladeshi-American structural engineer Fazlur Rahman Khan in the 1960s.<ref name="Ali 2001">{{cite magazine |last=Ali |first=Mir M. |year=2001 |title=Evolution of Concrete Skyscrapers: From Ingalls to Jin Mao |url=http://www.ejse.org/Archives/Fulltext/200101/01/20010101.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040608143600/http://www.ejse.org/Archives/Fulltext/200101/01/20010101.htm |url-status=usurped |archive-date=June 8, 2004 |journal=Electronic Journal of Structural Engineering |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=2–14 |access-date=November 30, 2008}}</ref>
Trump Tower has been described as one of the city's least energy-efficient buildings per square foot.<ref name="Silverstein 2019">{{cite web |last=Silverstein |first=Jason |date=April 21, 2019 |title=Trump Buildings Could Be Forced to Go Green Under Sweeping New York City Climate Bill |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-climate-change-trump-tower-and-other-buildings-could-go-green-under-new-york-city-climate-mobilization-act/ |access-date=May 14, 2019 |publisher=CBS News}}</ref> In 2017, Trump Tower's Energy Star score was 44 out of 100, below the city's overall median Energy Star score<ref name="Silverstein 2019" /><ref>{{cite web |date=December 10, 2018 |title=Donald Trump's Trump Tower at 521 Fifth Avenue Is a Conspicuous Consumer of Energy |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/trump-tower-one-citys-least-energy-efficient-buildings |access-date=May 14, 2019 |website=Crain's New York Business}}</ref> and lower than the 48 out of 100 score recorded in 2015.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Frisbie |first1=Ciara Bri'd |last2=Kantor |first2=Alice |date=April 25, 2017 |title=Trump's Plan to Kill Energy Star Could Benefit His Properties |url=https://www.cnn.com/2017/04/25/politics/donald-trump-energy-star-epa/index.html |access-date=May 14, 2019 |publisher=CNN}}</ref> In May 2019 it was reported that eight of Trump's buildings in New York City, including Trump Tower, failed to meet the city's 2030 carbon emission standards, which were implemented as part of the city's "Green New Deal". The city threatened to fine Trump Organization for each year the infractions went unfixed.<ref>{{Cite news |agency=Reuters |date=May 13, 2019 |title=New York Mayor Threatens to Fine Trump Organization Over Pollution |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2019/05/13/us/13reuters-usa-trump-climate.html |access-date=May 14, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Milman |first=Oliver |date=May 13, 2019 |title=Trump Buildings Face Millions in Climate Fines Under New New York Rules |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/may/13/trump-buildings-climate-fines-new-york-city |access-date=May 14, 2019 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
===Interior=== ====<span class="anchor" id="Privately owned public space"></span> Lower stories==== thumb|right|upright=0.8|The stepped massing of the building's base supports lighted trees. Originally, Trump only wanted to build an office building on the site, but the plot was in the Fifth Avenue special zoning district, which allowed more floor area for mixed-use towers with public space.<ref name="nyt19790301" />{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=29}} In return for providing privately operated public space (POPS), Trump received floor area ratio (FAR) zoning bonuses that amounted to {{convert|105,436|ft2}}, allowing him to add several floors to the building.<ref name="Young 2017">{{cite web |last=Young |first=Michelle |date=March 10, 2017 |title=Trump Got Millions to Make His Tower "Public"—Let's Remind Him What That Means |url=https://metropolismag.com/viewpoints/trump-got-millions-make-tower-public-lets-remind-him-what-that-means/ |access-date=February 7, 2022 |work=Metropolis (architecture magazine)}}</ref><ref name="Kayden 2016">{{cite web |last=Kayden |first=Jerold S. |title=725 Fifth Avenue / Trump Tower |date=September 3, 2016 |url=https://apops.mas.org/pops/m050014/ |access-date=February 7, 2022 |publisher=Privately owned public space in New York City}}</ref> The public spaces in Trump Tower include the main lobby, the lower-level concourse and restrooms, and two outdoor terraces on the fourth and fifth floor.<ref name="Young 2017" /><ref name="Kayden 2016" /> Under city law, POPS must be accessible from the street, provide a place to sit, and not require the public to purchase anything.<ref>{{cite web |title=New York City's Privately Owned Public Spaces |url=https://www1.nyc.gov/site/planning/plans/pops/pops.page |access-date=February 7, 2022 |publisher=City of New York}} (with interactive map)</ref>
The Trump Organization built a five-story, {{convert|15,000|ft2|m2|adj=on}} atrium, which serves as the tower's main lobby.<ref name="Elstein 2" /> The atrium is connected to the Fifth Avenue lobby to the west<ref name="Maier 2016">{{Cite news |last=Maier |first=Lilly |date=March 24, 2016 |title=We Visited Trump Tower, And It Perfectly Epitomizes Its Eccentric, Contradictory Owner |work=Quartz |url=https://qz.com/646029/we-visited-trump-tower-and-it-perfectly-epitomizes-its-eccentric-contradictory-owner/ |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> and 590 Madison Avenue's atrium to the east.<ref name="untapped20161209" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Roberts |first=Sam |date=June 8, 1983 |title=Vertical Malls: City Sidewalks Move Indoors |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/06/08/nyregion/vertical-malls-city-sidewalks-move-indoors.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Reynolds 1994">{{cite book |last=Reynolds |first=Donald |title=The Architecture of New York City: Histories and Views of Important Structures, Sites, And Symbols |publisher=J. Wiley |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-471-01439-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/architectureofne0000reyn |url-access=subscription |publication-place=New York |page=167 |oclc=45730295}}</ref> Under the POPS agreement, the atrium is supposed to be open to the public from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Kristine F. |title=Trump Tower and the Aesthetics of Largesse |url=https://manifold.umn.edu/read/428f955c-f6b6-4e3d-b9f9-98327d1dc7b7/section/7d33d5d1-d85c-4ac5-b060-d0c4a52c0da5 |access-date=February 7, 2022 |publisher=University of Minnesota Press}}</ref> When the tower opened, the Fifth Avenue Association awarded the first-prize "mixed use building" award to the atrium,{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=16}} the association's first such award in five years.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Gruson |first=Lindsey |date=October 2, 1983 |title=Fifth Avenue Assn. Resumes Architecture Awards |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/10/02/realestate/fifth-avenue-assn-resumes-architecture-awards.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> Sometime prior to 2008, the Trump Organization removed the public bench and installed a counter selling Trump-branded merchandise in the public space passageway inside the Fifth Avenue entrance. They were fined $2,500 in 2008 but the counter remained.<ref>{{cite news |last=Chaban |first=Matt A. V. |date=July 13, 2015 |title=An Altar to Donald Trump Swallows Up Public Space in Manhattan |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/14/nyregion/an-altar-to-donald-trump-swallows-up-public-space-in-manhattan.html |access-date=February 20, 2022}}</ref> By 2015, a second counter had been added.<ref name="Chaban 2016">{{cite news |last=Chaban |first=Matt A. V. |date=July 22, 2016 |title=Disputed Benches Quietly Return to Trump Tower |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/23/nyregion/disputed-benches-quietly-return-to-trump-tower.html |access-date=February 20, 2022}}</ref> In 2016, the Trump Organization was fined $14,000 and ordered to remove the sales counters and reinstall the bench.<ref name="Chaban 2016" /><ref>{{cite news |date=August 17, 2016 |title=Trump Fined $10,000 For Bench, Kiosks in Trump Tower Lobby |publisher=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/donald-trump-fined-10000-public-space-violation-trump-tower-lobby-new-york-city/686656/ |access-date=February 20, 2022}}</ref>
The tower's public spaces are clad in 240 tons of Breccia Pernice, a pink white-veined marble.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=17}}<ref name="Maier 2016a">{{Cite web |last=Maier |first=Lilly |date=March 24, 2016 |title=We Visited Trump Tower, And It Perfectly Epitomizes Its Eccentric, Contradictory Owner |url=http://qz.com/646029/we-visited-trump-tower-and-it-perfectly-epitomizes-its-eccentric-contradictory-owner/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809013732/http://qz.com/646029/we-visited-trump-tower-and-it-perfectly-epitomizes-its-eccentric-contradictory-owner/ |archive-date=August 9, 2016 |access-date=August 11, 2016 |work=Quartz}}</ref> The atrium contains a {{convert|60|ft|m|-tall|adj=mid}} indoor waterfall along its east wall,<ref name="Maier 2016" /> which is spanned by a suspended walkway, shops, and cafes.<ref name="Reynolds 1994" /> The atrium's escalators and structural columns are clad with mirrored panels.<ref name="Nash 2005" /><ref name="Reynolds 1994" /> Six levels of balconies overlook the atrium.<ref name="Berenholtz Reynolds 1988 p." /><ref name="Reynolds 1994" />
Four gold-painted elevators transport visitors from the lobby to higher floors. A dedicated elevator leads directly to the penthouse where the Trump family lived.<ref name="Maier 2016a" /> The atrium was originally supposed to be furnished with multiple {{convert|40|ft|m|adj=on}}, {{convert|3,000|lb|kg|adj=on}} trees, which were transported at a cost of $75,000. Trump, who supposedly did not like how the trees looked, personally cut them down after impatiently waiting for contractors to remove them via a tunnel.<ref name="newsweek20150730">{{Cite news |date=July 30, 2015 |title=The Other Time Trump Was Huge: Newsweek's 1987 Look at the Presidential Candidate |newspaper=Newsweek |url=http://www.newsweek.com/rise-trump-357533 |url-status=live |access-date=January 30, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170204003523/http://www.newsweek.com/rise-trump-357533 |archive-date=February 4, 2017}}</ref><ref name="nyt19840408" /> Retail outlets include Gucci's flagship store at ground level.<ref name="Goldstein 2016" />
The terrace accessible from the fifth floor of Trump Tower is located on the roof (sixth floor) of 6 East 57th Street, with entrances from that building and from Trump Tower.<ref name="Kayden 2016" /> The terraces on the upper floors are open during the opening hours of the retail businesses. Due to poor signage in the lobby, the upper-story POPs are difficult to find.<ref name="Kayden 2016" />
====Restaurants====
The building contains several establishments for eating or drinking, including 45 Wine and Whiskey (formerly Trump Bar) in the lobby,<ref name="Gabbatt 2021">{{Cite news |last=Gabbatt |first=Adam |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/jan/12/trump-bar-manhattan-new-york-45-wine-and-whiskey |title=Trump's New Manhattan Bar: Serving Rip-Off Drinks and a Side of Narcissism |work=The Guardian |date=January 12, 2021 |access-date=August 12, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Keith 2021">{{cite news |last=Keith |first=Morgan |title=Trump Tower's New Bar Has Cocktails Themed Around the Trump Presidency, Including a $45 Whiskey Special Served with a Diet Coke and Beef Sliders |work=Business Insider |date=November 28, 2021 |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-tower-bar-presidential-white-house-themed-specialty-cocktails-2021-11 |access-date=August 12, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Goldmacher 2022">{{cite news |last1=Goldmacher |first1=Shane |last2=Lipton |first2=Eric |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/12/us/politics/donald-trump-business-interests.html |title=Selling Trump: A Profitable Post-Presidency Like No Other |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |date=February 12, 2022 |access-date=August 12, 2022}}</ref> and Trump's Ice Cream Parlor,<ref name="Sietsema 2016">{{Cite web |last1=Sietsema |first1=Robert |last2=Solares |first2=Nicj |url=https://ny.eater.com/2016/1/21/10809092/nyc-donald-trump-restuarant |title=Diving Head First Into Donald Trump's Culinary Abyss |website=Eater |date=January 21, 2016 |access-date=August 12, 2022}}</ref> Trump Cafe,<ref name="Sietsema 2016"/> and Trump Grill in the basement.<ref name="Sietsema 2016"/><ref name="Nguyen 2016">{{Cite news |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/12/trump-grill-review |title=Trump Grill Could Be the Worst Restaurant in America |last=Nguyen |first=Tina |date=December 14, 2016 |work=The Hive |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Sommerfeldt">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/ny-pol-trump-restaurants-mice-health-20190207-story.html |title=Trump's NYC Eateries Written up for 'Live Mice,' Other 'Critical' Health Code Violations in Recent Months |last=Sommerfeldt |first=Chris |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |access-date=August 12, 2022}}</ref>
Trump Grill was generally panned as gaudy-looking and the food bland-tasting. ''Vanity Fair'' called it a contender for "the worst restaurant in America," with different menus for different customers and "steakhouse classics doused with unnecessarily high-end ingredients."<ref name="Nguyen 2016"/> ''Eater'' rated the food as "totally unadventuresome and predictable, though competently prepared, like food you might find in a country club."<ref name="Sietsema 2016"/> ''New York'' magazine wrote that "despite what the sign reads, countless restaurants trump this spot."<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://nymag.com/listings/restaurant/trump-grill/ |title=Trump Grill |last=Squires |first=Kathleen |website=New York |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> In December 2016, Yelp reviews of Trump Grill averaged two-and-a-half out of five stars, while Google reviews averaged three of five stars.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/gossip/la-et-mg-trump-grill-reviews-vanity-fair-20161215-story.html |title=So How Bad Is Trump Grill? Yelp Gives It 2 1/2 Stars — and Lots of Grief |last=Brown |first=Tracy |date=December 15, 2016 |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> Health inspections in 2018 reported "evidence of mice or live mice" in and around the kitchen, according to records obtained by the ''New York Daily News'', in violations the inspectors called "critical".<ref name="Sommerfeldt"/>
The Trump Bar in the lobby of the tower was remodeled and renamed 45 Wine and Whiskey in 2021 and opened in November. It featured 39 photos of Trump, and the drinks were described as overpriced.<ref name="Gabbatt 2021"/><ref name="Keith 2021"/><ref name="Goldmacher 2022"/>
''Eater'' reviewed the three other establishments as well, finding them to be commonplace compared to Trump Tower's stature. The ice cream was described as "almost too soft to be scooped," and the cafe contained food such as a "rubbery and overcooked" hamburger patty and some "inedible" steak fries. The reviewers at ''Eater'' also wrote that the bar offered a small, overpriced drink menu and snacks that "do little to affirm the luxury that the place aspires to."<ref name="Sietsema 2016"/> ''Vice'' magazine also reviewed the bar and found it to be overpriced, with "a strong pour of watered-down vodka and a few Manzanilla olives" costing twenty dollars.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/getting-drunk-at-the-trump-tower-bar-was-the-worst-night-of-my-life/ |title=I Got Drunk at the Trump Bar in Trump Tower and It Was Predictably Terrible |last=Pollack |first=Hilary |date=January 20, 2017 |work=Munchies |access-date=October 20, 2017 |publisher=Vice}}</ref> ''New York'' magazine, reviewing the cafe, found the food to be "safe classics" that contrasted with the cafe's grandeur.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://nymag.com/listings/restaurant/trump-tower-cafe/ |title=Trump Café |last=Shallwani |first=Pervaiz |website=New York}}</ref>
====Upper stories==== The building has thirteen office stories spanning floors 14 to 26, then another thirty-nine stories containing 263 residential condominiums on floors 30 to 68.<ref name="tc20170816">{{Cite news |date=August 16, 2017 |title=Everything You Should Know About Trump Tower |work=Town & Country |url=http://www.townandcountrymag.com/society/politics/a12015156/trump-tower-new-york-facts/ |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> Trump said he had placed the lowest residential story on floor 30 as part of a marketing strategy for all his towers, and that he "did not see why he should be forced to call the first residential floor something mundane like the second floor, or even the 20th floor."<ref>{{Cite news |first=Ralph Jr. |last=Gardner |date=May 8, 2003 |title=For Tower Residents, A New Math |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/08/garden/for-tower-residents-a-new-math.html |access-date=August 23, 2021}}</ref> Trump may also have numbered the residential floors because he disliked the fact that the nearby General Motors Building was {{convert|41|ft}} taller.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Yee |first=Vivian |date=November 1, 2016 |title=Donald Trump's Math Takes His Towers to Greater Heights |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/02/nyregion/donald-trump-tower-heights.html |access-date=August 23, 2021}}</ref> Many of the apartments are furnished,<ref name="Maier 2016a" /> but some of the upper-floor commercial spaces come unfurnished.<ref name="Elkin 2015" /> In the apartments, mirrors and brass are used throughout, and the kitchens are outfitted with "standard suburban" cabinets.<ref name="Daly 2016">{{Cite news |last=Daly |first=Michael |date=February 25, 2016 |title=Trump's Female Tower Boss Talks About His Half-Billion Dollar Debt, Womanizing, And How He Learned to Be Shameless |newspaper=The Daily Beast |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/25/donald-trump-s-tower-boss.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809092236/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/25/donald-trump-s-tower-boss.html |archive-date=August 9, 2016}}</ref>
The NBC television show ''The Apprentice'' was filmed in Trump Tower, on the fifth floor, in a fully functional television studio. The set of ''The Apprentice'' included the famous boardroom, which was prominently featured in the television show, where at least one person was fired at the end of each episode.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/national/wp/2016/01/27/2016/01/27/deciders-trump/ |title=Donald Trump Ignored His Agent and Did Reality TV. It Changed Everything. |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286 |access-date=August 11, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160814093609/http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/national/wp/2016/01/27/2016/01/27/deciders-trump/ |archive-date=August 14, 2016}}</ref> Donald J. Trump for President, Inc., founded in 2015 to manage Trump's 2016 U.S. presidential campaign, was headquartered within part of the space where ''The Apprentice'' was filmed; unlike the former boardroom, the headquarters is unfurnished, with some offices containing "only drywall and no door".<ref name="Elkin 2015">{{Cite web |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-08-26/a-look-inside-donald-trump-s-campaign-headquarters |title=A Look Inside Donald Trump's Campaign Headquarters |last=Elkin |first=Ali |date=August 26, 2015 |website=Bloomberg.com/politics |publisher=Bloomberg L.P. |access-date=August 11, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160812154658/http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-08-26/a-look-inside-donald-trump-s-campaign-headquarters |archive-date=August 12, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Forgey |first=Quint |date=November 3, 2020 |title=Visiting Campaign Headquarters, Trump Says 'Losing Is Never Easy' |work=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2020/11/03/trump-visits-campaign-headquarters-433953 |access-date=November 8, 2020}}</ref> After Trump's successful election, the campaign was moved out of the tower and into office space in Arlington, Virginia, where his unsuccessful 2020 re-election campaign was headquartered.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2020/11/03/trump-visits-campaign-headquarters-433953 |title=Visiting Campaign Headquarters, Trump Says 'Losing Is Never Easy' |last=Forgey |first=Quint |date=November 3, 2020 |work=Politico |access-date=November 8, 2020}}</ref>
==History==
===Planning===
==== Site acquisition and rezoning ==== [[File:New York City Mai 2009 PD 045.JPG|thumb|left|Looking upward from the Fifth Avenue entrance]]
Donald Trump had envisioned building a tower at 56th Street and Fifth Avenue in Manhattan since childhood, but formulated plans to develop the site only in the mid-1970s, when he was in his thirties.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=15}} At the time, the flagship store of Bonwit Teller, an architecturally renowned building built in 1929, occupied the lot.<ref name="nyt20141003">{{cite news |last=Gray |first=Christopher |date=October 3, 2014 |title=The Store That Slipped Through the Cracks |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/05/realestate/fifth-avenue-bonwit-teller-opulence-lost.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 22, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150907210338/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/05/realestate/fifth-avenue-bonwit-teller-opulence-lost.html |archive-date=September 7, 2015}}</ref> The site was next to Tiffany & Co.'s flagship building,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Reysen |first=Jamie |date=January 20, 2017 |title=Secrets of Tiffany's: The Trump Connection, More |newspaper=am New York |url=http://www.amny.com/secrets-of-new-york/secrets-of-the-tiffany-co-fifth-avenue-flagship-store-1.10962139 |url-status=live |access-date=February 22, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223125104/http://www.amny.com/secrets-of-new-york/secrets-of-the-tiffany-co-fifth-avenue-flagship-store-1.10962139 |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Bagli |first=Charles V. |date=November 23, 1999 |title=Tiffany's Owns the Building Once Again |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/11/23/nyregion/tiffany-s-owns-the-building-once-again.html |url-status=live |access-date=February 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170224133554/http://www.nytimes.com/1999/11/23/nyregion/tiffany-s-owns-the-building-once-again.html |archive-date=February 24, 2017}}</ref> which Trump considered the city's best real-estate property.<ref>{{cite web |date=February 9, 1987 |title=A Builder Who Trumps His Peers |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1987/02/09/a-builder-who-trumps-his-peers/ |access-date=November 29, 2017 |website=Chicago Tribune}}</ref> Approximately twice every year, Trump contacted Bonwit Teller's parent company, Genesco, to ask whether they were willing to sell Bonwit Teller's flagship store. Trump said the first time he contacted Genesco, "they literally laughed at me."{{sfn|Tuccille|1985|p=150}} Genesco continued to decline his offers and, according to Trump, "they thought I was kidding."{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=15}}
In 1977, John Hanigan became the new chairman of Genesco.<ref>{{cite web |date=May 3, 1977 |title=New Genesco Chief Aims to Consolidate Divisions |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1977/05/03/archives/new-genesco-chief-aims-to-consolidate-divisions.html |access-date=November 29, 2017 |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> He looked to sell off some assets to pay debts, and Trump approached him with an offer to buy the Bonwit Teller building.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=15–16}} In early 1979, Genesco sold off many of the Bonwit Teller locations to Allied Stores,<ref>{{cite web |last=Barmash |first=Isadore |date=February 6, 1979 |title=45 Genesco Shops to Go To Allied |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/02/06/archives/45-genesco-shops-to-go-to-allied-bonwits-erratic-record-allied.html |access-date=November 29, 2017 |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> and the brand's flagship building was sold to the Trump Organization for about $10 million.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Merris |first=Mary |date=January 29, 1979 |title=Say Allied Stores Negotiating to Acquire Bonwit's: Report Allied Stores Seeks to Acquire Bonwit's |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=1, 6, 11 |volume=138 |issue=20 |id={{ProQuest|1627367179}}}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Wedemeyer |first=Dee |date=January 26, 1979 |title=Bonwit Teller Building to Be Sold |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/01/26/archives/bonwit-teller-building-to-be-sold-genesco-owns-bonwit-chain.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |language=en-US}}</ref> At the time, the Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States owned the land,<ref>{{cite web |last=Barmash |first=Isadore |date=February 6, 1979 |title=45 Genesco Shops to Go To Allied |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/02/06/archives/45-genesco-shops-to-go-to-allied-bonwits-erratic-record-allied.html |access-date=November 29, 2017 |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> while Genesco had a long-term lease on the land, with 29 years remaining. If Trump were to buy the building, his tower's ownership could be transferred to Equitable in 2008, once the lease expired.{{sfn|Tuccille|1985|p=150}}{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=22}} Equitable initially refused to sell the land to Trump, but the Trump Organization bought the lease instead, and Equitable exchanged the land in return for a 50% stake in the construction project itself. This was more profitable for Equitable, since they were getting only $100,000 per year from Genesco for the use of the land, while a single residential condominium in the tower could be sold for millions of dollars.{{sfn|Tuccille|1985|p=151}}{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|pp=22–23}} Trump also bought the air rights over Tiffany's flagship store{{sfn|Tuccille|1985|p=150}}<ref name="nyt19790301" /><ref name="Elstein 2">{{Cite news |last=Elstein |first=Aaron |title=Trump's Lost Empire: The Deal That Marked the Donald's Turn from New York Real Estate |newspaper=Crain's New York Business |url=http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20160417/REAL_ESTATE/160419898/trumps-lost-empire-the-deal-that-marked-the-donalds-turn-from-new-york-real-estate |url-status=live |access-date=January 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170328234446/http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20160417/REAL_ESTATE/160419898/trumps-lost-empire-the-deal-that-marked-the-donalds-turn-from-new-york-real-estate |archive-date=March 28, 2017}}</ref> to prevent another developer from tearing down the store and building a taller building.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=23}}
Trump then needed to convince the New York City Department of City Planning, Manhattan Community Board 5, and the New York City Board of Estimate to rezone the area for his planned tower.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=23}} In 1979, the New York Committee for a Balanced Building Boom had opposed the planned rezoning over fears Fifth Avenue's character would be changed by the construction of skyscrapers.<ref name="nyt19790906">{{Cite news |date=September 6, 1979 |title=Zoning Change Opposed For Tower at Bonwit Site |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/09/06/archives/zoning-change-opposed-for-tower-at-bonwit-site.html |access-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> Trump later said a positive review of the building by Ada Louise Huxtable, ''The New York Times''{{'}} architectural critic, had helped secure the support of some of the more skeptical members on each committee.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=25}} The deal attracted some criticism from the media. A writer for ''New York'' magazine said the approval of Trump Tower has "legitimized a pushy kid nobody took seriously,"<ref>{{Cite book |last=Brenner |first=Marie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a-UCAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA26 |title=Trumping the Town |date=November 17, 1980 |publisher=New York Media, LLC |pages=27}}</ref> while ''The Wall Street Journal'' wrote that Trump combined "a huckster's flair for hyperbole with a shrewd business and political sense," and ''The Village Voice'' said Trump "turn[s] political connections into private profits at public expense."{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=25}}
====Design process====
The Trump Organization closed Bonwit Teller's flagship store in May 1979,<ref>{{cite web |last=Fowler |first=Glenn |date=June 5, 1979 |title=Bonwit Seeks to Return To a Fifth Avenue Site |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/06/05/archives/bonwit-seeks-to-return-to-a-fifth-avenue-site-favorable-action.html |access-date=November 29, 2017 |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> and the store was demolished by the next year.<ref name="nyt20141003" /> By late 1979, Allied had leased space for a Bonwit Teller store at the building's base.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Anderson |first=Lisa |date=September 6, 1979 |title=Bonwit Teller Scheduled to Reopen on 57th St. In 1980 |magazine=Women's Wear Daily |pages=2 |volume=139 |issue=47 |id={{ProQuest|1627268531}}}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=September 6, 1979 |title=Fifth Ave. Space Leased for Bonwit |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/09/06/archives/fifth-ave-space-leased-for-bonwit.html |access-date=June 17, 2024 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |language=en-US}}</ref> Meanwhile, Trump hired Der Scutt as the architect of Trump Tower in July 1978, a year before the Bonwit Teller site was purchased. Scutt had collaborated with Trump before to develop Grand Hyatt New York and several other projects. The architect initially proposed a design similar to Boston's John Hancock Tower, but Trump strongly objected.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=28}} He preferred a building that was both expensive and very tall, with a design that both critics and potential tenants would approve of. Trump later said that "the marble in Trump Tower would cost more than the entire rent from one of my buildings in Brooklyn."{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=29}}
Two major factors affected Trump Tower's construction. One was the decision to use a concrete superstructure.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=35}} The other was the decision to design it as a mixed-use building as part of the Fifth Avenue special zoning district.<ref name="nyt19790301" /> As originally planned, the tower was to have 60 stories consisting of 13 office floors, 40 residential floors, and two floors for mechanical uses, but this was later amended.<ref name="nyt19790301" /> The base was to be made of limestone, while the building's elevators were to be in a separate glass structure outside the main tower.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=30}} The final plan called for the building to contain 58 stories.<ref name="Cheshes 2001" /><ref name="nyt19790701">{{cite web |last=Huxtable |first=Ada Louise |date=July 1, 1979 |title=Architecture View |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1979/07/01/archives/architecture-view-a-new-york-blockbuster-of-superior-design.html |access-date=December 18, 2017 |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The lowest six floors were to be occupied by the atrium, followed by 13 office floors above it, and 39 residential floors above the office floors.<ref name="tc20170816" />
While creating the final design for Trump Tower, Scutt studied the designs of other skyscrapers, almost all having a similar architectural form. To make Trump Tower stand out from the "boxy" International Style buildings being erected at the time, Scutt designed the tower as a 28-faced edifice with an "inverted pyramid of cubes" at the base.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|pp=32–33}} This design received mixed reviews from critics: although it was widely praised as creative, many reviewers also believed the tower could be covered in masonry to blend in with neighboring buildings, or that its height should be reduced for the same reason.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=36}} The city ultimately accepted this design.<ref name="nyt19790701" />
=== Construction === HRH Construction was hired as the contractor on Trump Tower.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=}} The company would go on to build many of Trump's other real-estate developments.<ref>{{cite news |date=September 23, 1989 |title=The Manager Behind the Mogul |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/realestate/1989/09/23/the-manager-behind-the-mogul/56c7cfba-261b-4c4b-a197-557f40ae4b89/ |access-date=December 19, 2017 |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> HRH hired several dozen subcontractors to work on different aspects of the building.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=100}} Barbara Res, who had worked on some of Trump's other projects,<ref name="Daly 2016" /> was hired as the construction executive in October 1980.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=75}}<ref name="Res2013">Res, Barbara A. (July 2013) ''All Alone on the 68th Floor: How one Woman Changed the Face of Construction''. Createspace Publishing, New Jersey.</ref> She had previously worked for HRH Construction during the building of the Citigroup Center and the Grand Hyatt.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=74}} Res was the first woman assigned to oversee a major New York City construction site.<ref name="Daly 2016" /><ref name="Res2013" /> She was often ignored by subcontractors and suppliers who were new to the project, as they thought the person in charge of construction was a man.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=75}}
The head superintendent of the project was Anthony "Tony Raf" Rafaniello,{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=95}} who worked for HRH Construction.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=97}} He was in charge of coordinating construction based on the site's blueprints.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=97}} Rafaniello was supported by five assistant superintendents, including Jeff Doynow, who was one of the first "concrete supervisors" to be hired for the construction of a skyscraper.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=111}} After Rafaniello was hired for the Trump Tower project in September 1980, he spent a week planning a three-phase construction schedule.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=100}} Once the subcontractors were hired, Rafaniello made sure they met once a week to ensure they were working on the same phase.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=101}}
Trump Tower's proposed mixed-use status posed obstacles during construction since there were different regulations for residential, commercial, and retail spaces.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=76}} Several prospective commercial and residential tenants requested custom-made features, including the installation of a swimming pool for one unit, and the removal of a wall with utilities inside it for another.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=76}} Trump's then-wife, Ivana Trump, was involved in selecting some of the tower's minor details.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=100}} Donald Trump and Res agreed to fulfill many of these requests, but they did not always agree on matters of design. In one case, Trump so hated the marble slabs at some of the tower's corners that he demanded they be removed completely, even at great cost; he eventually decided bronze panels should be placed over the marble, but Res later said she refused to buy them.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|pp=77–78}}
Trump Tower was one of the first skyscrapers with a concrete frame,{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=76}} along with Chicago's One Magnificent Mile engineered by Fazlur Rahman Khan in 1983.<ref name="Ali 2001" /> The contractors had to complete a floor before they started erecting the floor above it. Concrete was more expensive in New York City than anywhere else in the United States, which raised the construction costs.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=119}} All the floors above the 20th used a roughly similar design, and each of these floors could be completed within two days. However, the floors below the 20th floor were all different, so each took several weeks to erect.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|pp=120–121}} Trump Tower had a low number of worker fatalities during construction. One worker died during the tower's excavation after a neighboring sidewalk collapsed.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=136}} Another incident occurred when the tower's 25th through 27th floors accidentally caught fire, slightly damaging a construction crane<ref>{{cite web |date=January 29, 1982 |title=Fire Officials Said Today the Four-Alarm Fire That Roared ... |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/01/29/Fire-officials-said-today-the-four-alarm-fire-that-roared/6794381128400/ |access-date=December 19, 2017 |agency=United Press International}}</ref>{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=139}} and delaying construction for two months.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=139}} In May 1983, a glass windowpane fell from a crane installing windows on the tower, hitting two pedestrians,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Buder |first=Leonard |date=May 13, 1983 |title=2 Hurt as Glass Falls from Hoist at Trump Tower |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/05/13/nyregion/2-hurt-as-glass-falls-from-hoist-at-trump-tower.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> one of whom later died from a skull fracture.<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 28, 1983 |title=THE CITY; Man Hit by Glass From Tower Dies |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/06/28/nyregion/the-city-man-hit-by-glass-from-tower-dies.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref>
Trump Tower was topped out by July 1982, two-and-a-half years after the start of construction.<ref>{{cite web |date=July 11, 1982 |title=POSTINGS; Tower Topped Off |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/11/realestate/postings-tower-topped-off.html |access-date=December 19, 2017 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Originally, it was estimated the tower would cost $100 million to build.<ref name="nyt19790301" /> The total cost ended up being approximately twice that; this included $125 million in actual construction costs and $75 million for other expenditures such as insurance.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=16}}
===Operation=== ==== 1980s ==== thumb|upright=0.7|Trump Tower atrium in 2013 Trump bought full-page advertisements in multiple newspapers and magazines to advertise his new tower.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=16}} The first tenants included Asprey<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barmash |first=Isadore |date=May 3, 1985 |title=Asprey Plans to Open a 5Th Ave. Storefront |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/05/03/business/asprey-plans-to-open-a-5th-ave-storefront.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 31, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524162825/http://www.nytimes.com/1985/05/03/business/asprey-plans-to-open-a-5th-ave-storefront.html |archive-date=May 24, 2015}}</ref> and Ludwig Beck,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Slesin |first=Suzanne |date=April 2, 1983 |title=Bavarian Wares Come to 5Th Ave. In a New Store |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/04/02/style/bavarian-wares-come-to-5th-ave-in-a-new-store.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 31, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524133533/http://www.nytimes.com/1983/04/02/style/bavarian-wares-come-to-5th-ave-in-a-new-store.html |archive-date=May 24, 2015}}</ref> who moved into the building before its planned opening in early 1983.{{sfn|Tuccille|1985|pp=196–197}} The grand opening of the atrium and stores was held on February 14, 1983, with the apartments and offices following shortly afterwards. The tower's forty ground-level stores opened for business on November 30, 1983.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=}} At the building's dedication, Mayor Koch said, "This is not your low-income housing project ... of which we need many. But we also need accommodations, uh, for those who can afford to pay a lot of money and bring a lot of taxes into the city."{{sfn|Miller|2007|p=117}} By August 1983, the construction loan for Trump Tower's construction had been paid off using the $260 million revenue from the sale of 85% of the 263 condominium units. Ninety-one units, representing over a third of the tower's total housing stock, had sold for more than $1 million. The first residents were set to begin moving in that month.<ref name="nyt19830807">{{cite web |last=Bender |first=Marylin |date=August 7, 1983 |title=The Empire and Ego of Donald Trump |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/08/07/business/the-empire-and-ego-of-donald-trump.html |access-date=April 9, 2018 |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
Despite the destruction of the Bonwit Teller store's building, the flagship store itself was able to keep operating at the site, having signed a lease for {{convert|80,000|sqft|m2}} within the lower-levels' shopping area.<ref name="nyt19790906" /> The controversy over the destruction of the Bonwit Teller decorations had largely subsided: In August 1983, one ''New York Times'' reporter wrote that "the only negative comments about Donald Trump these days are given off the record."<ref name="nyt19830807" /> By then, there were forty high-end outfits that had opened stores in the tower.<ref name="nyt19830807" /> These included Buccellati, Charles Jourdan brands, Mondi, and Fila.{{sfn|Tuccille|1985|p=197}} Trump said in 1985 that there were more than a hundred stores wanting to move into a space in the tower.<ref name="nyt19840408" /> Around this time, he began describing the tower as "something of a New York landmark."<ref name="nyt19840408" /> By 1986, between 15% and 20% of the tower's original stores had closed or moved to another location. The commercial rents were the highest of any building along Fifth Avenue at the time, with retail space in the atrium costing {{convert|450|$/ft2|$/m2}} per year.<ref>{{Cite news |date=February 8, 1986 |title=High Rents, But High Sales, Too |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/02/08/business/high-rents-but-high-sales-too.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 12, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822073930/http://www.nytimes.com/1986/02/08/business/high-rents-but-high-sales-too.html |archive-date=August 22, 2016}}</ref> One writer for ''Vanity Fair'' magazine noted that as tenants were evicted from the tower's atrium due to high rents, several of them sued the Trump Organization for issues such as overbilling and illegal lease termination.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Nguyen |first=Tina |date=November 7, 2016 |title=How Donald Trump Bullied His Own Trump Tower Tenants |work=The Hive |url=http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/11/trump-tower-atrium-lawsuits |url-status=live |access-date=July 4, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161111104043/http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/11/trump-tower-atrium-lawsuits |archive-date=November 11, 2016}}</ref>
thumb|upright=1.3|left|View of the atrium from its base in 2010 The residential units were more successful, and 95% of the residential condominiums were sold in the first four months after it opened, despite their high prices. The cost of condominiums at the tower started at $600,000 and ranged up to $12 million,<ref name="nyt19840101" /> and the penthouse was sold for $15 million in 1985.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Plunz |first=Richard |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fcKlDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA319 |title=A History of Housing in New York City |date=September 6, 2016 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-231-54310-1 |pages=318 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170312134926/https://books.google.com/books?id=fcKlDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA319&lpg=PA319 |archive-date=March 12, 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> The tower attracted many rich and famous residents,<ref name="nyt19840408" /> including Johnny Carson, David Merrick, Sophia Loren, and Steven Spielberg.{{sfn|Tuccille|1985|p=197}} In total, Trump received $300 million from the sale of the condominiums, which more than offset the $200 million cost of construction.{{sfn|Tuccille|1985|p=197}} By 1991, Trump was involved in lawsuits against residents: in October of that year, he successfully sued actress Pia Zadora and her husband, businessman Meshulam Riklis, to collect $1 million in unpaid rent.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brozan |first=Nadine |date=January 10, 1992 |title=Chronicle |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/01/10/style/chronicle-674392.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Hylton |first=Richard D. |date=October 5, 1991 |title=Trump, The Landlord, Seeks Rent From $100,000-A-Month Guests |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/10/05/nyregion/trump-the-landlord-seeks-rent-from-100000-a-month-guests.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref>
The city government, under mayor Ed Koch, challenged the validity of the tax breaks given to Trump Tower. The government originally tried to deny a tax break on the basis that Trump Tower did not replace an "underused" site, as was required under the 421-a tax exemption program. The New York Court of Appeals rejected the city's argument in 1984.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Margolick |first=David |date=July 6, 1984 |title=Top State Court Rules Trump Is Entitled to Tax Break for Modtown Tower |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/07/06/nyregion/top-state-court-rules-trump-is-entitled-to-tax-break-for-modtown-tower.html |access-date=June 23, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=July 6, 1984 |title=Trump Ruling to Cost NYC $22M in Taxes |pages=6 |work=The Daily Times |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80125306/trump-ruling-to-cost-nyc-22m-in-taxes/ |access-date=June 23, 2021}}</ref> Afterward, the city claimed Trump Tower's commercial space did not qualify for the exemption, but the Court of Appeals also rejected this argument in 1988.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lyons |first=Richard D. |date=February 18, 1988 |title=Top New York Court Backs Tas Break for Developers |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/02/18/nyregion/top-new-york-court-backs-tas-break-for-developers.html |access-date=June 23, 2021}}</ref> The city government then tried to reduce the amount of the exemption based on a more stringent method of calculation. In 1990, the New York Court of Appeals ruled that the New York City government had to give Trump $6.2 million in tax rebates.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Berkowitz |first=Harry |date=July 28, 1990 |title=City Owes Trump a Towering Sum |pages=4, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80125461/trump-owed-a-towering-sum/ 11] |work=Newsday |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/80124810/city-owes-trump-a-towering-sum/ |access-date=June 23, 2021}}</ref>
==== 1990s ====
The flagship Bonwit Teller store remained as one of Trump Tower's retail offerings until March 1990, when its parent company declared bankruptcy and closed the Trump Tower location.<ref>{{Cite news |last=James |first=George |date=March 10, 1990 |title=Bonwit Stores To Be Sold |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/10/business/bonwit-stores-to-be-sold.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822061222/http://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/10/business/bonwit-stores-to-be-sold.html |archive-date=August 22, 2016}}</ref> In July of that year, Galeries Lafayette announced that it would sign a 25-year lease to move into the space previously occupied by Bonwit Teller, a move that expanded its business to the United States while helping Trump pay off the debts incurred by the tower's construction and operation.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barmash |first=Isadore |date=July 10, 1990 |title=French Seek Niche With Trump Site |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/10/business/french-seek-niche-with-trump-site.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> The new store opened in September 1991 after a $13.7 million renovation,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Strom |first=Stephanie |date=September 26, 1991 |title=COMPANY NEWS; French Retailer Seeks Piece Of the Fifth Avenue Trade |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/09/26/business/company-news-french-retailer-seeks-piece-of-the-fifth-avenue-trade.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> but was unprofitable and lost a net $3.6 million in the first year alone because it had made only $8.4 million in sales.<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 25, 1992 |title=Loss Grows At French Store |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/06/25/business/loss-grows-at-french-store.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref>
Galeries Lafayette announced that it would be closing the Trump Tower location in August 1994, less than three years after it opened, due to its inability to pay the $8 million annual rent and taxes. Critics cited other factors, including the decision not to include merchandise from top French designers as the company's French locations had done.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zuckerman |first=Laurence |date=August 31, 1994 |title=Galeries Lafayette to Close Its Doors |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/08/31/business/galeries-lafayette-to-close-its-doors.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> The Galeries Lafayette store was replaced with a Niketown location.<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1994">{{Cite news |date=August 30, 1994 |title=A Bigger Niketown: The Trump Organization Said Tuesday It ... |work=Chicago Tribune |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1994/08/30/a-bigger-niketown-the-trump-organization-said/ |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> By this time, most of the high-end retailers had moved out of Trump Tower, having been replaced with more upper-middle-class outlets such as Coach and Dooney & Bourke.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Deutsch |first=Claudia H. |date=April 24, 1994 |title=Commercial Property/Trump Tower; New Tenant Mix, New Image and New Revenues |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/04/24/realestate/commercial-property-trump-tower-new-tenant-mix-new-image-and-new-revenues.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref>
==== 2000s to present ==== thumb|upright=0.7|Clock in front of Trump Tower in 2012 In 2006, ''Forbes'' magazine valued the {{convert|300,000|sqft|m2}} of office space at up to $318 million; the tower itself was valued at $288 million.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fitch |first=Stephane |date=September 20, 2006 |title=What Is Trump Worth?—Forbes |website=Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/2006/09/20/trump-wealth-biz_06rich400_0921trump.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160712040742/http://www.forbes.com/2006/09/20/trump-wealth-biz_06rich400_0921trump.html |archive-date=July 12, 2016 |access-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> Trump took a ten-year, personally guaranteed $100 million mortgage loan on the building in 2012.<ref>{{cite web |first=Katherine |last=Clarke |date=July 1, 2013 |title=What Does Donald Trump Really Own |url=http://therealdeal.com/issues_articles/the-8-billion-dollar-man/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160115010144/http://therealdeal.com/issues_articles/the-8-billion-dollar-man/ |archive-date=January 15, 2016 |access-date=January 18, 2016 |publisher=The Real Deal}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Alexander |first=Dan |date=October 16, 2020 |title=Donald Trump Has At Least $1 Billion In Debt, More Than Twice The Amount He Suggested |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/danalexander/2020/10/16/donald-trump-has-at-least-1-billion-in-debt-more-than-twice-the-amount-he-suggested/ |access-date=October 18, 2020 |website=Forbes}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Acitelli |first=Tom |date=September 27, 2020 |title=Trump Tower Remains Its Namesake's No. 1 Cash Cow |url=https://commercialobserver.com/2020/09/trump-tower-mortgage-due-finances/ |access-date=October 18, 2020 |website=Commercial Observer}}</ref> Between 2014 and 2015, the building's valuation rose from $490 million to $600 million, making the tower the single most expensive property under Trump's ownership.<ref name="Abelson 2016" /> In 2016, the tower's value dropped from $630 million to $471 million due to a 20% reduction in the tower's operating income and a further 8% decline in the overall value of real estate in Manhattan. Because of the $100 million debt, ''Forbes'' magazine calculated that Trump's equity stake in the tower stood at $371 million, excluding the Trumps' three-story penthouse,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Wang |first=Jennifer |date=September 28, 2016 |title=Donald Trump's Fortune Falls $800 Million To $3.7 Billion |work=Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferwang/2016/09/28/the-definitive-look-at-donald-trumps-wealth-new/ |url-status=live |access-date=March 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322021207/https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferwang/2016/09/28/the-definitive-look-at-donald-trumps-wealth-new/ |archive-date=March 22, 2017}}</ref> which has a net floor area of {{convert|10,996|ft2|m2}}.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Peterson-Withorn |first=Chase |date=May 3, 2017 |title=Donald Trump Has Been Lying About The Size Of His Penthouse |work=Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2017/05/03/donald-trump-has-been-lying-about-the-size-of-his-penthouse/ |url-status=live |access-date=May 9, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170508234520/https://www.forbes.com/sites/chasewithorn/2017/05/03/donald-trump-has-been-lying-about-the-size-of-his-penthouse/ |archive-date=May 8, 2017}}</ref>
After Trump launched his 2016 presidential campaign at Trump Tower in 2015, the number of visits to the tower had risen drastically, with many of the visitors being supporters of Trump's candidacy.<ref name="Maier 2016a" /> Stores in the atrium sold campaign memorabilia such as hats, with the proceeds going toward funding his campaign.<ref name="Maier 2016a" /> The tower gained popularity among New York City tourists in 2016, especially after Trump was elected president.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ngo |first=Emily |date=December 25, 2016 |title=NYC Tourists Flocking to Trump Tower |newspaper=Newsday |url=https://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/tourists-are-flocking-to-a-new-nyc-destination-trump-tower-y06686 |url-status=live |access-date=January 28, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202075306/http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/tourists-are-flocking-to-a-new-nyc-destination-trump-tower-1.12806059 |archive-date=February 2, 2017}}</ref> In 2017, the city ordered the removal of two unauthorized kiosks in Trump Tower selling Trump's merchandise.<ref>{{cite web |last=Barbanel |first=Josh |date=February 2, 2016 |title='Trump Store' Kiosks Must Go, City Says |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-store-kiosks-must-go-city-says-1454463299 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170305191707/https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-store-kiosks-must-go-city-says-1454463299 |archive-date=March 5, 2017 |access-date=March 4, 2017 |website=The Wall Street Journal |issn=0099-9660}}</ref> ''The New York Times'' reported in 2020 that rent from the building's commercial spaces had earned Trump $336 million from 2000 through the end of 2018, amounting to over $20 million per year.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Buettner |first1=Russ |last2=Craig |first2=Susanne |last3=McIntire |first3=Mike |date=September 27, 2020 |title=Trump's Taxes Show Chronic Losses and Years of Income Tax Avoidance |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/09/27/us/donald-trump-taxes.html |access-date=October 18, 2020}}</ref>
Wells Fargo & Co., the master servicer of the $100 million mortgage loan Trump took out in 2012,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Tayeb |first1=Zarah |last2=Onanuga |first2=Tola |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-tower-loan-bank-watch-list-wells-fargo-occupancy-slumps-2021-9 |title=A $100 Million Loan on Trump Tower in Manhattan Has Been Placed on a Bank Watch List, Due to a Slump in Occupancy, Reports Say |work=Business Insider |date=September 18, 2021 |access-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref> placed the tower on a debt watch list in September 2021 because its average occupancy had fallen to 78.9% from 85.9% at the end of 2020. Revenue was $33.7 million in 2020, $7.5 million in the first quarter of 2021.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Alexander |first1=Sophie |last2=Gittelsohn |first2=John |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-09-17/trump-tower-loan-moved-to-watch-list-as-retail-occupancy-falls |title=Trump NYC Tower Debt Hits Watch List With Vacancies Rising |work=Bloomberg News |date=September 17, 2021 |access-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref> By early 2024, Gucci was the only large retailer in the tower's retail atrium, which had once contained up to 60 stores.<ref>{{cite web |last=Hughes |first=C. J. |title=Trump Tower mall faces a crossroads, four decades after its splashy debut |website=Crain's New York Business |date=February 1, 2024 |url=https://www.crainsnewyork.com/real-estate/trump-tower-mall-midtown-faces-crossroads-four-decades-after-its-splashy-debut |access-date=February 10, 2024}}</ref> Another analysis, publicized in February of the same year, found that the average per-square-foot cost of a condominium at Trump Tower had nearly halved from 2013 to early 2024.<ref name="Callimachi 2024">{{cite web |last=Callimachi |first=Rukmini |title=In New York, the Trump Brand Is Costing Some Condo Owners |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |date=February 18, 2024 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/18/realestate/trump-condos-prices-nyc.html |access-date=February 19, 2024}}</ref><ref name="Rissman 2024 v265">{{cite web |last=Rissman |first=Kelly |title=Trump-branded condos sell for less than properties that remove his name, says report |website=The Independent |date=February 18, 2024 |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-brand-condos-properties-b2498272.html |access-date=February 19, 2024}}</ref> The decline in condo prices was attributed to competition from newer towers nearby, the age of the building, and the protests that regularly occurred outside it.<ref name="Callimachi 2024"/> In 2022, Trump refinanced the building with $100 million from Axos Bank.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Dilakian |first1=Steven |last2=Walter-Warner |first2=Holden |title=Trump Tower Mortgage Refinanced for $100M |website=The Real Deal |date=March 9, 2022 |url=https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2022/03/09/trump-tower-scores-mortgage-100m-refi/ |access-date=June 17, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Scannell |first=Kara |title=Trump refinances mortgage on Trump Tower with $100 million loan |publisher=CNN |date=March 10, 2022 |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/03/09/politics/trump-tower-refinance-mortgage-loan/index.html |access-date=June 17, 2024}}</ref>
==Tenants==
=== Commercial tenants === The Italian fashion retailer Gucci is the biggest commercial tenant, renting {{Convert|48,667|ft2}} along Fifth Avenue since 2007.<ref name="Bernstein 2021">{{cite news |last=Bernstein |first=Jacob |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/23/fashion/trump-gucci.html |title=Gucci Is Staying in Trump Tower |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |date=February 24, 2021 |access-date=February 19, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Alexander 2020">{{cite news |last=Alexander |first=Dan |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/danalexander/2020/10/23/forbes-estimates-china-paid-trump-at-least-54-million-since-he-took-office-via-mysterious-trump-tower-lease/ |title=Forbes Estimates China Paid Trump At Least $5.4 Million Since He Took Office, Via Mysterious Trump Tower Lease |work=Forbes |date=October 23, 2020 |access-date=January 31, 2022}}</ref> Their rent in 2019 was $440 per square foot;<ref name="Alexander 2020" /> Gucci renegotiated the lease in 2020 and received a reduction in rent for agreeing to extend the lease beyond 2026.<ref name="Bernstein 2021" /> CONCACAF, the governing body of association football in North and Central America and the Caribbean, used to occupy the entire 17th floor.<ref name="wp20150527">{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/early-lead/wp/2015/05/27/ex-fifa-official-had-6000-a-month-trump-tower-apartment-for-unruly-cats/ |title=Ex-FIFA Official Had $6,000-A-Month Trump Tower Apartment for Unruly Cats |date=May 27, 2015 |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286 |author=Cindy Boren |access-date=June 18, 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528055403/http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/early-lead/wp/2015/05/27/ex-fifa-official-had-6000-a-month-trump-tower-apartment-for-unruly-cats/ |archive-date=May 28, 2015}}</ref> Qatar Airways, owned by the Qatari government, has rented commercial space in the tower since at least 2008,<ref name="Timmons 2015" /> a fact that news media outlets noted when Executive Order 13769 suspended immigration from seven majority-Muslim countries but not from Qatar.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/1/28/14425504/trump-refugee-travel-ban-business-countries/ |title=President Trump's Travel Ban Will Leave His Business Partners Untouched |date=January 28, 2017 |author=Libby Nelson |access-date=January 30, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170129161440/http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/1/28/14425504/trump-refugee-travel-ban-business-countries |archive-date=January 29, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-travel-briefcase-trump-20161112-story.html |title=Will Trump Side with U.S. Airlines Against Middle Eastern Rivals? |date=November 12, 2016 |author=Huge Martin |access-date=January 30, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128183133/http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-travel-briefcase-trump-20161112-story.html |archive-date=January 28, 2017}}</ref> In July 2025, FIFA leased offices at Trump Tower for the FIFA Club World Cup.<ref>{{cite web |last=Jones |first=Ja'han |date=July 8, 2025 |title=Ahead of next year's World Cup, FIFA takes up residence in Trump Tower |url=https://www.msnbc.com/top-stories/latest/fifa-trump-tower-world-cup-2026-soccer-rcna217622 |access-date=July 9, 2025 |website=MSNBC}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Slater |first=Matt |date=2025-07-08 |title=FIFA opens New York office in U.S. president's Trump Tower |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6479639/2025/07/08/fifa-trump-tower-new-york-club-world-cup/ |access-date=2025-07-09 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
From 2008 to October 2019, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China operated a bank branch with 100 employees on three rented floors of Trump Tower, for approximately $2 million a year.<ref>{{cite news |date=January 9, 2019 |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-09/china-s-biggest-bank-said-to-reduce-space-at-nyc-s-trump-tower |title=China's Biggest Bank to Reduce Its Space at Trump Tower |work=Bloomberg News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190316141136/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-01-09/china-s-biggest-bank-said-to-reduce-space-at-nyc-s-trump-tower |archive-date=March 16, 2019 |access-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/as-tariffs-near-trumps-business-empire-includes-china-ties/2018/07/05/9bfd1056-7956-11e8-aeee-4d04c8ac6158_story.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286 |title=As Tariffs Near, Trump's Business Empire Retains Ties to China |first1=Jonathan |last1=O'Connell |first2=David A. |last2=Fahrenthold |date=July 5, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180818140732/https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/as-tariffs-near-trumps-business-empire-includes-china-ties/2018/07/05/9bfd1056-7956-11e8-aeee-4d04c8ac6158_story.html |archive-date=August 18, 2018 |access-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref> The bank rented 25,356 square feet, making it the third-largest tenant after Gucci and the Trump Corporation. It paid $95.48 per square foot in 2012.<ref>{{cite news |last=Bockmann |first=Rich |url=https://therealdeal.com/2018/09/05/one-of-trump-towers-largest-commercial-tenants-inks-100k-sf-lease-on-sixth-ave/ |title=One of Trump Tower's Largest Commercial Tenants Inks 100K Sf Lease on Sixth Ave |date=September 5, 2018 |work=The Real Deal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190430122823/https://therealdeal.com/2018/09/05/one-of-trump-towers-largest-commercial-tenants-inks-100k-sf-lease-on-sixth-ave/ |archive-date=April 30, 2019 |access-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref> ''Forbes'' estimated that the bank paid about $3.9 million in rent in 2017 and 2018. Eric Trump said in October 2019 that the bank was continuing to rent two floors.<ref name="Alexander 2020" /> According to ''Forbes'' staff, by October 2020, Trump had received approximately $5.4 million from the China state-owned bank ICBC through its $1.9 million annual rent in Trump Tower.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Alexander |first=Dan |title=Forbes Estimates China Paid Trump At Least $5.4 Million Since He Took Office, Via Mysterious Trump Tower Lease |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/danalexander/2020/10/23/forbes-estimates-china-paid-trump-at-least-54-million-since-he-took-office-via-mysterious-trump-tower-lease/ |access-date=April 3, 2023 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref>
The monthly rent paid by the Donald Trump 2016 presidential campaign for its Trump Tower headquarters increased from $35,458 in March 2016 to $169,758 in August.<ref>{{cite news |last=Kludt |first=Tom |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2016/08/23/politics/trump-tower-rent/index.html |title=Campaign Defends Paying Steep Rent Increase at Trump Tower |publisher=CNN |date=August 23, 2016 |access-date=February 19, 2022}}</ref> From its launch in January 2017 until the end of 2018, the Donald Trump 2020 presidential campaign paid more than $890,000 in rent.<ref>{{cite web |last=Longman |first=Martin |url=https://washingtonmonthly.com/2019/05/14/as-trump-tower-struggles-the-president-rents-office-space-to-himself/ |title=As Trump Tower Struggles, The President Rents Office Space to Himself |website=Washington Monthly |date=May 14, 2019 |access-date=June 1, 2019}}</ref><ref name="Alexander 2020" /> In March 2021, the campaign's space on the 15th floor was taken over by one of Trump's PACs for $37,541.67 per month.<ref name="Jacobs" /> The Trump Organization has its headquarters on the 25th and 26th floors.<ref name="Jacobs" /> ''The New York Times'' reported in July 2025 that the retail space was mostly vacant except for the Gucci store and two stores on the basement and ground levels selling Trump-branded merchandise. The waterfall was turned off, and the escalators to the upper levels of the retails space were roped off.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Buettner|first=Russ|date=2025-07-02|title=Trump’s Finances Were Shaky. Then He Began to Capitalize on His Comeback.|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/02/us/trump-finances-crypto.html|access-date=2025-07-09|work=The New York Times|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
==== 6 East 57th Street ==== The Trump Organization holds a ground lease on an adjacent building, 6 East 57th Street.<ref>{{cite web |last=Clarke |first=Katherine |title=What does Donald Trump really own? |website=The Real Deal |date=February 27, 2024 |url=https://therealdeal.com/magazine/new-york-july-2013/the-8-billion-dollar-man/ |access-date=January 31, 2025}}</ref> One of Trump Tower's privately owned public spaces is located on top of this building, which housed the Niketown store starting in 1994.<ref name="Chicago Tribune 1994" /> During and after the 2016 U.S. presidential election, opponents of Trump's election created petitions to relocate the Niketown store, whose lease ran through 2022.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Dua |first=Tanya |date=August 17, 2017 |title=Nike Is Under Fire for 'Supporting' Trump |work=Business Insider |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/an-online-petition-is-calling-for-nike-to-stop-supporting-trump-2017-8 |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Kaufman |first=Sarah |date=October 24, 2016 |title=Nike Should Remove Flagship Store From Trump Tower, Petition Says |work=Patch |url=https://patch.com/new-york/midtown-nyc/nike-should-remove-flagship-store-trump-tower-petition-says |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> Nike closed the store in early 2018 as previously planned and moved to its new flagship store on Fifth Avenue in November.<ref>{{cite news |last=Green |first=Dennis |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/nike-is-leaving-its-iconic-niketown-property-2017-12 |title=Nike Is Leaving Its Iconic Niketown Property — and the Fact That Trump Owns It Is Reportedly a Factor |work=Business Insider |date=December 6, 2017 |access-date=February 20, 2022}}</ref> In 2018, Tiffany & Co. subleased the space until 2022 while the neighboring Tiffany & Co. flagship store was being renovated.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wong |first1=Natalie |last2=Alexander |first2=Sophie |last3=Bhasin |first3=Kim |url=https://www.bloombergquint.com/business/tiffany-vacancy-looms-for-trump-in-weak-midtown-manhattan-market |title=Tiffany Vacancy Looms for Trump in Weak Midtown Manhattan Market |work=Bloomberg News |via=Bloomberg Quint |date=February 19, 2021 |access-date=February 20, 2022}}</ref> The fashion house Louis Vuitton subleased the space in 2025 during the renovation of its own flagship store nearby.<ref>{{cite web |last=Cochran |first=Sam |date=January 24, 2025 |title=Louis Vuitton's Fifth Avenue Flagship Transforms Into Towers of Iconic Trunks |url=https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/louis-vuittons-fifth-avenue-flagship-transforms-into-towers-of-iconic-trunks |access-date=January 31, 2025 |website=Architectural Digest}}</ref>
=== Residential owners and tenants === {{Donald Trump series}}
==== Current ==== Donald Trump, his wife Melania, and their son Barron maintain a three-story residence on the penthouse floors,<ref name="Stichweh 2016" /><ref name="Maier 2016a" /><ref name="Rosenberg 2016">{{cite web |last=Rosenberg |first=Zoe |title=Meet the Notorious Characters Who Call Trump Tower Home |website=Curbed NY |date=October 25, 2016 |url=http://ny.curbed.com/2016/10/25/13405036/trump-tower-residents-list |access-date=December 10, 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220230514/http://ny.curbed.com/2016/10/25/13405036/trump-tower-residents-list |archive-date=December 20, 2016}}</ref> covering about {{Convert|11,000|sqft|m2}}.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ramey |first=Corinne |date=January 19, 2022 |title=New York Attorney General Says Evidence Suggests Trump, Company Falsely Valued Assets |language=en-US |work=The Wall Street Journal |issn=0099-9660 |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-york-attorney-general-evidence-suggests-trump-and-company-falsely-valued-assets-11642573790 |url-status=live |access-date=January 19, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220119152646/https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-york-attorney-general-evidence-suggests-trump-and-company-falsely-valued-assets-11642573790 |archive-date=January 19, 2022 }}</ref> The tower was their primary residence<ref name="nyt20170812">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/12/style/trump-tower-famous-residents.html |title=Trump Tower, A Home for Celebrities and Charlatans |last=Bernstein |first=Jacob |date=August 12, 2017 |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |access-date=September 11, 2017}}</ref><ref name="nyt20160330">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/30/us/politics/new-york-primary.html |title=With the New York Presidential Primary, The Circus Is Coming Home |date=March 29, 2016 |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |last2=Haberman |first2=Maggie |author2-link=Maggie Haberman |first1=Matt |last1=Flegenheimer |access-date=March 29, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160329152235/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/30/us/politics/new-york-primary.html |archive-date=March 29, 2016}}</ref> until October 2019.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Haberman |first=Maggie |author-link=Maggie Haberman |date=October 31, 2019 |title=Trump, Lifelong New Yorker, Declares Himself a Resident of Florida |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/10/31/us/politics/trump-new-york-florida-primary-residence.html |access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref> The Trump Organization offices are on the 25th and 26th floors,<ref name="nyt19840101" /><ref name="Jacobs">{{Cite news |last1=Jacobs |first1=Shayna |last2=Fahrenthold |first2=David A. |last3=O'Connell |first3=Jonathan |last4=Dawsey |first4=Josh |title=Trump Tower's Key Tenants Have Fallen Behind on Rent and Moved Out. But Trump Has One Reliable Customer: His Own PAC. |language=en-US |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-tower-pac-rent-campaign-finance/2021/09/02/dfeae19e-0b2f-11ec-9781-07796ffb56fe_story.html |access-date=February 15, 2022 }}</ref> and there is a private elevator between the penthouse and Trump's office.<ref name="nyt20170812" /> Trump uses the building for meetings, such as in April 2024 with President of Poland Andrzej Duda and former Prime Minister of Japan Taro Aso.<ref name="wsj20240708">{{Cite news |last1=Gordon |first1=Milchael R. |last2=Cullison |first2=Alan |date=July 8, 2024 |title=World Leaders Brace for Trump |url=https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/world-leaders-brace-for-trump-510415cd |access-date=July 8, 2024 |work=The Wall Street Journal |issn=0099-9660}}</ref>
Angelo Donghia provided the original black-and-white, brass-and-mahogany design for the penthouse,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.architecturaldigest.com/story/donald-trump-1985-apartment-looks-exactly-how-youd-imagine-it |title=Donald Trump's 1985 Apartment Looks Exactly How You'd Imagine It |last=Fernandez |first=Jennifer |date=July 27, 2016 |work=Architectural Digest |access-date=September 11, 2017}}</ref> which was later replaced with a gold-and-Greek-column design after Trump reportedly saw the more lavish house of the Saudi businessman Adnan Khashoggi.<ref name="nyt20170812" /> In a 1984 article in ''GQ'' magazine, Trump's first wife Ivana said the first floor of the penthouse had the living, dining, and entertainment rooms and kitchen; the second floor had their bedrooms and bathrooms as well as a balcony over the living room; and the third had bedrooms for the children, maids, and guests.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Carter |first=Graydon |date=May 1, 1984 |title=The Secret to Donald Trump's Success |work=GQ |url=https://www.gq.com/story/donald-trump-gq-profile-graydon-carter |access-date=September 11, 2017}}</ref>
Other residents include the filmmaker Vincent Gallo;<ref>{{cite web |title=Actor Vincent Gallo in Contract for Trump Tower Condo |website=The Real Deal |last=O'Regan |first=Sylvia Varnham |date=August 2, 2019 |url=https://therealdeal.com/2019/08/02/actor-vincent-gallo-in-contract-for-trump-tower-condo/ |access-date=November 16, 2019}}</ref> the art dealer Hillel "Helly" Nahmad,<ref name="Rosenberg 2016" /> who bought a second apartment in the tower in July 2010;<ref>{{cite news |url=http://observer.com/2010/07/in-deed-art-dealer-expands-in-trump-tower-ivanity-fairi-articles-editor-buys-in-chelsea/ |title=In Deed! Art Dealer Expands in Trump Tower; Vanity Fair Articles Editor Buys in Chelsea |date=July 22, 2010 |work=The New York Observer |author=Amanda Julius |access-date=June 18, 2015 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618172845/http://observer.com/2010/07/in-deed-art-dealer-expands-in-trump-tower-ivanity-fairi-articles-editor-buys-in-chelsea/ |archive-date=June 18, 2015}}</ref> Juan Beckmann Vidal, the owner of the tequila brand Jose Cuervo;<ref name="Abelson 2016" /><ref name="Rosenberg 2016" /> and the actor Bruce Willis, who bought a $4.26 million apartment in 2007.<ref>{{cite web |last=Abelson |first=Max |title=Bruce Willis Buys $4.26 M. Spread From Trump Foe |website=Observer |date=November 7, 2007 |url=http://observer.com/2007/11/bruce-willis-buys-426-m-spread-from-trump-foe/ |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223043824/http://observer.com/2007/11/bruce-willis-buys-426-m-spread-from-trump-foe/ |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref>
==== Past ==== Past tenants include Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier, the ex-president of Haiti who died in 2014,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/09/30/trump-tower-dictators-home-away-from-home.html |first1=Betsy |last1=Woodruff |first2=Tim |last2=Mak |date=September 30, 2015 |access-date=September 30, 2015 |title=Trump Tower: Dictators' Home Away From Home |work=The Daily Beast |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151002003010/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/09/30/trump-tower-dictators-home-away-from-home.html |archive-date=October 2, 2015}}</ref> who was discovered to have lived in a $2{{nbsp}}million apartment on the 54th floor in 1989, when public records in Haiti showed that he had forgotten to pay his bills.<ref>{{cite web |last=Margolick |first=David |title=THE LAW: AT THE BAR; Law Firm, In Pursuit of Haitian Property, Finds the Chase Can Be Tedious and Frustrating. |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |date=October 27, 1989 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/27/us/law-bar-law-firm-pursuit-haitian-property-finds-chase-can-be-tedious-frustrating.html |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223051826/http://www.nytimes.com/1989/10/27/us/law-bar-law-firm-pursuit-haitian-property-finds-chase-can-be-tedious-frustrating.html |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref> The singer Michael Jackson rented an apartment on the 63rd floor during the 1990s.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Lawson |first=Richard |title=You Can Live Beneath Donald Trump for Only $23 Million |magazine=Vanity Fair |date=February 2, 2016 |url=http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2016/02/trump-tower-apartment-for-sale-23-million |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160912174227/http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2016/02/trump-tower-apartment-for-sale-23-million |archive-date=September 12, 2016}}</ref> The composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, known for musicals such as ''Cats'', moved out of his 59th and 60th floor apartment in 2010 after 17 years of stating his intention to do so.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704654004575518462031118210 |title=Third Try Is Hit for Lloyd Webber |last=Barbanel |first=Josh |date=October 4, 2010 |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |issn=0099-9660 |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223044407/https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748704654004575518462031118210 |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://ny.curbed.com/2010/9/28/10502306/andrew-lloyd-webber-finally-bows-out-of-trump-tower |title=Andrew Lloyd Webber Finally Bows Out of Trump Tower |last=Arak |first=Joey |date=September 28, 2010 |website=Curbed NY |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223045107/http://ny.curbed.com/2010/9/28/10502306/andrew-lloyd-webber-finally-bows-out-of-trump-tower |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref> Carlos Peralta, a billionaire businessman from Mexico,<ref name="Abelson 2016" /> sold an apartment in Trump Tower in 2009 for $13.5 million.<ref>{{cite web |last=Abelson |first=Max |title=Carlos Peralta's Trump Tower Condo (With Jacuzzi in the Bedroom) Yours for $13.5 M. |website=Observer |date=September 1, 2009 |url=http://observer.com/2009/09/carlos-peraltas-trump-tower-condo-with-jacuzzi-iini-the-bedroom-yours-for-135-m/ |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223044214/http://observer.com/2009/09/carlos-peraltas-trump-tower-condo-with-jacuzzi-iini-the-bedroom-yours-for-135-m/ |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref> Prince Mutaib bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia, reportedly lived on an entire floor in the tower.<ref name="Timmons 2015">{{cite web |url=https://qz.com/568178/donald-trump-owes-much-of-his-fortune-to-wea/ |title=Wealthy Muslims Helped Donald Trump Build His Empire |last=Timmons |first=Heather |date=December 7, 2015 |website=Quartz |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223045207/https://qz.com/568178/donald-trump-owes-much-of-his-fortune-to-wea/ |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref> The mobster Vyacheslav Ivankov reportedly had a residence in Trump Tower in the 1990s until he was arrested and deported.<ref>{{cite web |last=Rotella |first=Sebastian |date=November 10, 2017 |title=A Gangster Place in the Sun: How Spain's Fight Against the Mob Revealed Russian Power Networks |url=https://www.propublica.org/article/fighting-russian-mafia-networks-in-spain |access-date=July 26, 2024 |website=ProPublica}}</ref>
Chuck Blazer, the former president of CONCACAF, rented two apartments on the 49th floor, one occupied by himself and another occupied by his cats, for a combined $24,000 per month.<ref name="Abelson 2016" /><ref name="wp20150527" /><ref name="nydn20141104">{{cite web |last1=Thompson |first1=Teri |last2=Papenfuss |first2=Mary |last3=Red |first3=Christian |last4=Vinton |first4=Nathaniel |title=How ex-U.S. Soccer Exec Chuck Blazer Became an FBI Informant |website=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |date=November 1, 2014 |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/soccer/soccer-rat-ex-u-s-soccer-exec-chuck-blazer-fbi-informant-article-1.1995761 |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170210113533/http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/soccer/soccer-rat-ex-u-s-soccer-exec-chuck-blazer-fbi-informant-article-1.1995761 |archive-date=February 10, 2017}}</ref> The apartments and office space were described as part of an "extravagant" lifestyle that ultimately resulted in Blazer being apprehended and becoming an FBI informant in a corruption investigation into several soccer organizations.<ref name="nydn20141104" /> José Maria Marin, former president of the Brazilian Football Confederation, had been living in a $3.5 million apartment;<ref>{{cite news |last=Hurtado |first=Patricia |url=https://www.bloombergquint.com/onweb/brazilian-soccer-boss-marin-sentenced-to-four-years-in-prison |title=Brazilian Soccer Boss Sentenced to Four Years in Prison |work=Bloomberg News |via=BloombergQuint |date=August 22, 2018 |access-date=February 25, 2022}}</ref> after being sentenced to four years in prison in 2018, he was placed under house arrest at his apartment in 2020.<ref name="Abelson 2016" /><ref name="Rosenberg 2016" /><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-soccer-brazil-idUSKBN21H3FT |title=Jailed CBF President Given Early Release by NY Judge |work=Reuters |date=March 30, 2020 |access-date=February 25, 2022}}</ref> Portuguese soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, who paid $18.5 million for an apartment in August 2015,<ref>{{cite web |last=Green |first=Dennis |date=August 17, 2015 |title=Take a Tour of Cristiano Ronaldo's $18.5 Million Apartment in Trump Tower |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/cristiano-ronaldo-drops-18-point-5-million-on-trump-tower-pad-2015-8 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223044339/http://www.businessinsider.com/cristiano-ronaldo-drops-18-point-5-million-on-trump-tower-pad-2015-8 |archive-date=February 23, 2017 |access-date=February 22, 2017 |website=Business Insider}}</ref> put it on the market for $9 million in 2019 and sold it for $7.18 million in 2022.<ref>{{cite web |last=Zap |first=Claudine |date=February 16, 2022 |title=Why Did Cristiano Ronaldo Sell His Trump Tower NYC Condo for a Loss? |url=https://www.marketwatch.com/story/why-did-cristiano-ronaldo-sell-his-trump-tower-nyc-condo-for-a-loss-11645029149 |access-date=February 18, 2022 |publisher=Marketwatch}}</ref>
Trump's parents, Fred and Mary, had a second home on the 63rd floor they sometimes used when visiting Manhattan.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Berkowitz |first1=Harry |last2=Moss |first2=Michael |date=June 30, 1990 |title=Trump's Bailout: Parents' Condo Helps Back Loan |work=Newsday}}</ref> During Trump's presidency, the Secret Service initially used the apartment directly underneath Trump's triplex penthouse as their command post but moved into a trailer on the sidewalk in July 2017.<ref name="Leonnig 2017">{{Cite news |last1=Leonnig |first1=Carol D. |last2=Fahrenthold |first2=David A. |last3=O'Connell |first3=Jonathan |date=August 3, 2017 |title=Secret Service Vacates Trump Tower Command Post in Lease Dispute with President's Company |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/secret-service-vacates-trump-tower-command-post-in-lease-dispute-with-presidents-company/2017/08/03/7338de16-785d-11e7-8f39-eeb7d3a2d304_story.html |access-date=February 19, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Fandos |first=Nicholas |date=August 3, 2017 |title=Secret Service Vacates Trump Tower Command Post in Lease Dispute with President's Company |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/03/us/politics/secret-service-trump-tower.html |access-date=February 19, 2022}}</ref> In April 2017, the United States Department of Defense signed an 18-month lease for space in Trump Tower to house "personnel and equipment" dedicated to protecting the president, paying more than $130,000 per month to an owner other than Trump or the Trump Organization.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hannon |first=Elliott |url=https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2017/07/dods-paying-2-4-million-to-lease-space-in-trump-tower.html |title=DOD's Paying $2.4 Million to Lease Space in Trump Tower, Where President Trump Has Not Slept Once |work=Slate |date=July 18, 2017 |access-date=February 19, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Leonnig 2017" /> The former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, who lived in the tower when he was Trump's campaign manager,<ref name="Rosenberg 2016" /> agreed to forfeit his Trump Tower condo in September 2018, as part of a plea deal made during the Special Counsel investigation of Russian ties to the 2016 election.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Cummings |first1=William |last2=Johnson |first2=Kevin |title=Paul Manafort to Hand over Trump Tower Condo, House in Hamptons in Plea Deal |website=USA Today |date=September 14, 2018 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2018/09/14/paul-manafort-property-forfeiture/1301838002/ |access-date=September 15, 2018}}</ref>
== Incidents ==
=== During construction ===
====Destruction of Bonwit Teller Building features====
The art dealer Robert Miller owned a gallery across Fifth Avenue from the Bonwit Teller Building.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=42}} When Miller heard the building was to be demolished, he contacted Penelope Hunter-Stiebel, a curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. In December 1979, Stiebel and Trump agreed that the Art Deco limestone bas-relief sculptures of semi-nude goddesses on the Bonwit Teller Building's facade, as well as the massive ornate {{convert|15|by|25|ft}} grille above the store's entrance, would be removed and donated to the Metropolitan Museum.<ref name="nyt20141003" /><ref name="Leccese 1980">{{cite news |last=Leccese |first=Michael |date=July 1, 1980 |title=New York City Trumped: Developer Smashes Panels |work=Preservation News |url=https://prn.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/cornell-prn?a=d&d=PRN19800701.2.10&e=-------en-20--1--txt-IN------ |url-status=live |access-date=August 22, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906230243/http://prn.library.cornell.edu/cgi-bin/cornell-prn?a=d&d=PRN19800701.2.10&e=-------en-20--1--txt-IN------ |archive-date=September 6, 2015}}</ref><ref name="ph20160318">{{cite web |last=Borchers |first=Callum |date=March 18, 2016 |title=Trump's First Media Controversy Is a Really Great Story |work=The Portland Press Herald |url=http://www.pressherald.com/2016/03/18/trumps-first-media-controversy-is-a-really-great-story/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160519045923/http://www.pressherald.com/2016/03/18/trumps-first-media-controversy-is-a-really-great-story/ |archive-date=May 19, 2016}}</ref> Miller had appraised the sculptures at between $200,000 and $250,000.<ref name="Leccese 1980" />{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=42}} In February 1980, Trump wrote a letter to an official at the museum, in which he stated, "Our contractor plans to begin demolition on the exterior of the building in approximately three to four weeks. He has been instructed to save these artifacts and take all necessary measures to preserve them."{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=42}} Every week, the Trump Organization and Stiebel would meet to discuss the transport of the sculptures. However, Stiebel later said the Trump Organization never seemed to be able to agree on a specific date for their transport, and the organization had repeatedly dismissed her concerns about not having received the letter.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=43}}
On April 16, 1980, the grille and sculptures were removed from the building. They were set to be transported to a junkyard and destroyed because, according to Trump, there were general hazard concerns, expense, and a possible 10-day construction delay due to the difficulty of removing them.<ref name="nyt20141003" /><ref name="Leccese 1980" /> Stiebel rode by taxicab to the building site and attempted to pay the workmen for the sculptures, but she was rebuffed.<ref>{{cite book |author1=Michael Kranish |title=Trump Revealed: An American Journey of Ambition, Ego, Money, And Power |title-link=Trump Revealed |author2=Marc Fisher |date=August 23, 2016 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-5011-5577-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/trumprevealedame0000kran/page/86 86]}}</ref> The workers in charge of demolition told her she could make an appointment to go see the sculptures, but they then canceled several appointments that Stiebel made.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=43}} The workers later told her the building's decorative grille had been transported to a New Jersey warehouse,{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=43}}<ref name="Leccese 1980" /> but it was never recovered, and on May 28, Stiebel was informed the grille had been "lost".{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=44}}<ref name="Leccese 1980" /> On June 5, the sculptures were destroyed.<ref>{{cite news |date=June 6, 1980 |title=Developer Scraps Bonwit Sculptures; Builder Orders Bonwit Art Deco Sculptures Destroyed |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/06/06/archives/developer-scraps-bonwit-sculptures-builder-orders-bonwit-art-deco.html |access-date=December 19, 2017}}</ref>{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=44}} Stiebel had received notice of the sculptures' pending demolition, but by the time she reached the Trump Tower site, the workmen told her they had been ordered to "destroy it all."{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=44}} Trump later acknowledged he had personally ordered the destruction of the sculptures and grille.<ref name="ph20160318" /> Trump said these "so-called Art Deco sculptures, which were garbage by the way," had been informally appraised by three different individuals as "not valuable," and they had pegged the sculptures' value at $4,000 to $5,000. He also told the media that carefully removing the sculptures would have cost him an extra $500,000 and would have delayed his project.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=45}} In a ''New York Magazine'' article in November 1980, Trump said the decor of his Grand Hyatt New York included "real art, not like the junk I destroyed at Bonwit Teller."<ref name="Brenner 1980">{{cite magazine |last=Brenner |first=Marie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a-UCAAAAMBAJ |title=Trumping the Town |date=November 17, 1980 |magazine=New York |page=26 |issn=0028-7369}}</ref>
''The New York Times'' condemned Trump's actions as "esthetic vandalism,"<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 15, 1980 |title=Topics Crumbling Patrimony; Mr. Trump's Jackhammer Days Beyond Father's |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/06/15/archives/topics-crumbling-patrimony-mr-trumps-jackhammer-days-beyond-fathers.html |access-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> and a spokesman for Mayor Ed Koch said Trump had failed his "moral responsibility to consider the interests of the people of the city."<ref name="ph20160318" /> Scutt was outraged by the destruction, having initially hoped to incorporate the goddess sculptures into the new building's lobby design; Trump had rejected the plan, preferring something "more contemporary."<ref name="Leccese 1980" /> Miller lamented that such things would "never be made again," and Peter M. Warner, a researcher who worked across the street, called the destruction "regrettable."<ref>{{Cite news |last=McFadden |first=Robert D. |date=June 6, 1980 |title=Developer Scraps Bonwit Sculptures; Builder Orders Bonwit Art Deco Sculptures Destroyed |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1980/06/06/archives/developer-scraps-bonwit-sculptures-builder-orders-bonwit-art-deco.html |access-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> However, Trump later said he used the notoriety of that act to advertise more residential units in the tower.<ref name="Brenner 1980" />{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=45}}
====Unpaid laborers==== thumb|left|Main entrance (2019)
In 1983, a class-action lawsuit was filed against the Trump Organization concerning unpaid pension and medical obligations to labor unions whose members helped build the towers.<ref name="nyt19980614">{{cite news |last=Raab |first=Selwyn |date=June 14, 1998 |title=After 15 Years in Court, Workers' Lawsuit Against Trump Faces Yet Another Delay |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/06/14/nyregion/after-15-years-in-court-workers-lawsuit-against-trump-faces-yet-another-delay.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150813080352/http://www.nytimes.com/1998/06/14/nyregion/after-15-years-in-court-workers-lawsuit-against-trump-faces-yet-another-delay.html |archive-date=August 13, 2015}}</ref> Trump had paid $774,000 to a window-cleaning company that employed undocumented Polish immigrants during the renovation of an adjoining building.<ref name="nyt20171128">{{cite news |last1=Bagli |first1=Charles V. |date=November 28, 2017 |title=Trump Paid Over $1 Million in Labor Settlement, Documents Reveal |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/27/nyregion/trump-tower-illegal-immigrant-workers-union-settlement.html |access-date=November 28, 2017}}</ref> According to the laborers, they were paid $4 an hour ({{Inflation|US|4|1983|fmt=eq}}) for 12-hour shifts, and were not told about asbestos in the under-construction structure.<ref name="nyt20171128" />
Trump testified in 1990 he was unaware that 200 undocumented Polish immigrants, some of whom lived at the site during the 1980 New York City transit strike, and worked round-the-clock shifts, were involved in the destruction of the Bonwit Teller building and the Trump Tower project.<ref name="nyt19900713">{{cite news |last=Baquet |first=Dean |date=July 13, 1990 |title=Trump Says He Didn't Know He Employed Illegal Aliens |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/13/nyregion/trump-says-he-didn-t-know-he-employed-illegal-aliens.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 23, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150905151340/http://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/13/nyregion/trump-says-he-didn-t-know-he-employed-illegal-aliens.html |archive-date=September 5, 2015}}</ref> Trump said he rarely visited the demolition site<ref name="nyt19900713" /> and never noticed the laborers, who were visually distinct for their lack of hard hats.<ref name="tb20150708">{{cite news |last=Daly |first=Michael |date=July 8, 2015 |title=Trump Tower Was Built On Undocumented Workers' Backs |work=The Daily Beast |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/08/trump-tower-was-built-on-undocumented-immigrants-backs.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150820034550/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/08/trump-tower-was-built-on-undocumented-immigrants-backs.html |archive-date=August 20, 2015}}</ref> A labor consultant and FBI informant testified that Trump was aware of the illegal workers' status.<ref name="nyt19900713" /> Trump testified that he and an executive used the pseudonym "John Baron" in some of his business dealings,<ref name="nyt19900713" /> although Trump said he did not do so until years after Trump Tower was constructed.<ref name="tb20150708" /> A labor lawyer testified that he was threatened over the phone with a $100 million lawsuit by a John Baron who supposedly worked for the Trump Organization. Donald Trump later told a reporter, "Lots of people use pen names. Ernest Hemingway used one."<ref name="tb20150708" /> After the laborers filed for a mechanic's lien over unpaid wages, they said a Trump Organization lawyer threatened to have the Immigration and Naturalization Service deport them.<ref name="nyt20171128" />
A judge ruled in favor of the Polish laborers in 1991, saying the organization had to pay the workers.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hays |first=Constance L. |date=April 27, 1991 |title=Judge Says Trump Tower Builders Cheated Union on Pension Funds |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1991/04/27/nyregion/judge-says-trump-tower-builders-cheated-union-on-pension-funds.html |access-date=October 1, 2017}}</ref> The contractor was ultimately ordered to pay the laborers $254,000.<ref name="nyt20171128" /><ref>{{cite court |litigants=Donovan v. Kaszycki & Sons Contractors, Inc. |court=S.D.N.Y. |reporter=F.Supp. |vol=599 |opinion=860 |year=1984 |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=9307458585869812272 |quote=The Court finds in favor of plaintiff on all claims and orders as follows: (1) defendants are hereby ordered to pay to plaintiff, for the benefit of the employees listed in Appendix A, $254,523.59 in unpaid wages and overtime compensation, and $254,523.59 as liquidated damages; and (2) defendants are hereby enjoined from future violations of {{USC|29|206(a)}}, {{USC|29|207(a) |notitle=1}}, {{USC|29|211(c) |notitle=1}}, and {{USC|29|215(a) |notitle=1}}. |access-date=November 29, 2017}}</ref> The case went through several appeals by both sides as well as non-jury trials, and was reassigned to different judges several times.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Raab |first=Selwyn |date=June 14, 1998 |title=After 15 Years in Court, Workers' Lawsuit Against Trump Faces Yet Another Delay |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1998/06/14/nyregion/after-15-years-in-court-workers-lawsuit-against-trump-faces-yet-another-delay.html |access-date=October 1, 2017}}</ref><ref>See: #Reversing summary judgment to defendant: {{cite court |litigants=Diduck v. Kaszycki & Sons Contractors, Inc. |court=2nd Cir. |reporter=F.2d |vol=874 |opinion=912 |year=1989 |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=13222531658246194439 |quote=Surmise, conjecture and conclusory allegations are not enough; plaintiff must make an affirmative showing that his version of events is not fanciful. [https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=7979211816723200675&hl=en&as_sdt=6,33 United States v. Potamkin Cadillac Corp., 689 F.2d 379, 381 (2d Cir.1982).] Insofar as the T-E defendants are concerned, plaintiff has failed to satisfy this burden. |access-date=November 29, 2017}} #Granting judgment to plaintiffs: {{cite court |litigants=Diduck v. Kaszycki & Sons Contractors, Inc. |court=S.D.N.Y. |reporter=F.Supp. |vol=774 |opinion=802 |year=1991 |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=278376097772768473 |quote=In sum, plaintiff is awarded the following: 1) unpaid contributions in the amount of $325,415.84; 2) interest from April 1, 1980 calculated at the rate of interest set by the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to {{USC|26|6621}}; and 3) attorney's fees and costs. Plaintiff shall submit a judgment. |access-date=November 29, 2017}} #Partially reversing judgment to plaintiffs: {{cite court |litigants=Diduck v. Kaszycki & Sons Contractors, Inc. |court=2nd Cir. |reporter=F.2d |vol=974 |opinion=270 |year=1992 |url=https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=3747607481164978556 |quote=I respectfully dissent from the remand of the claims against Senyshyn for breach of fiduciary duty and against Trump for participation in that breach. I concur in all other aspects of the Court's judgment. |access-date=November 29, 2017}}</ref> The original named plaintiff, plaintiffs' attorney, and two co-defendants died during the litigation. Judge Kevin Duffy compared the case unfavorably to Charles Dickens' fictional case ''Jarndyce and Jarndyce'' in June 1998, when he was assigned the case after the previous presiding judge had died.<ref name="nyt19980614" /> The lawsuit was ultimately settled in 1999, and its records were sealed.<ref name="tb20150708" /> In November 2017, U.S. District Judge Loretta A. Preska ordered the settlement documents unsealed.<ref name="nyt20171128" /> In the settlement, Trump agreed to pay a total of $1.375 million,<ref name="nyt20171128" /> which, according to the plaintiffs' lawyer, was the full amount that could have been recovered at trial.<ref name="nyt20171128" />
====Other incidents====
[[File:Trump Tower - Gucci.jpg|thumb|alt=The Gucci store in Trump Tower, located at the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue and 56th Street|The Gucci store in Trump Tower is at the northeast corner of Fifth Avenue and 56th Street.]]
In one case, Trump sued a contractor for "total incompetence."<ref name="Finger Lakes Times 1988">{{Cite news |date=February 8, 1988 |title=Tycoon with Towering Ambition |page=10 |work=Finger Lakes Times |location=Geneva, New York |url=http://fultonhistory.com/Newspaper%2011/Geneva%20NY%20Finger%20Lake%20Times/Geneva%20NY%20Finger%20Lake%20Times%201988%20Feb%201988/Geneva%20NY%20Finger%20Lake%20Times%201988%20Feb%201988%20-%200274.pdf |access-date=August 11, 2016 |via=fultonhistory.com}}</ref> Construction was also halted twice because minority rights' groups protested outside the Trump Tower site to condemn the shortage of minority construction workers.{{sfn|Rubin|Mandell|1984|p=101}}
Trump was also involved in a disagreement with Mayor Koch about whether the tower should get a tax exemption.<ref name="Finger Lakes Times 1988" /><ref name="newsweek20150730" /> In 1985, Trump was one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the state in the New York State Court of Appeals concerning the payment of a 10% state tax in the event that a real estate property is transacted for $1 million or more. The exemption was reported as between $15 million and $50 million.<ref name="nyt19840408" /><ref>{{cite news |date=July 6, 1984 |title=Trump Ruling to Cost NYC $22M in Taxes |page=6 |work=Gannett Westchester Newspapers |agency=Associated Press |location=Westchester, New York |url=http://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/highlight-for-xml?altUrl=http%3A%2F%2Ffultonhistory.com%2FNewspaper%252010%2FYonkers%2520NY%2520Herald%2520Statesman%2FYonkers%2520NY%2520Herald%2520Statesman%25201984%2520Grayscale%2FYonkers%2520NY%2520Herald%2520Statesman%25201984%2520a%2520Grayscale%2520-%25202250.pdf |access-date=August 11, 2016 |via=fultonhistory.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Smith |first=Randy |date=February 28, 1981 |title=Trump to Be Dealt $50M Tax Break on Tower |page=3 |journal=Daily News |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=20787200&fcfToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJmcmVlLXZpZXctaWQiOjM5Njg2NjU4OSwiaWF0IjoxNTk3NzMzNjY3LCJleHAiOjE1OTc4MjAwNjd9.k1amArhtGz4S1JiTOk0T_PEKmEC7PEIjXQ4I1af5L6I |access-date=August 18, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> The tax on Trump Tower was upheld in a 4-to-1 decision.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Carroll |first=Maurice |date=May 1, 1985 |title=State's Top Court Rejects Trump Tax Appeal |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/05/01/nyregion/state-s-top-court-rejects-trump-tax-appeal.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 12, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822081155/http://www.nytimes.com/1985/05/01/nyregion/state-s-top-court-rejects-trump-tax-appeal.html |archive-date=August 22, 2016}}</ref>
The City of New York granted Trump permission to build the top twenty stories of the building in exchange for operating the atrium as a city-administered, privately owned public space. In the lobby of the building are two Trump merchandise kiosks (one of which replaced a long public bench) operating out of compliance with city regulations. The city issued a notice of violation in July 2015, demanding the bench be put back in place. Although the Trump Organization initially said the violation was without merit,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barbanel |first=Josh |date=December 10, 2015 |title=Trump and New York City Spar Over Access to Tower Lobby |newspaper=The Wall Street Journal |issn=0099-9660 |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-and-new-york-city-spar-over-access-to-tower-lobby-1449799032 |url-status=live |access-date=December 11, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151211094641/http://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-and-new-york-city-spar-over-access-to-tower-lobby-1449799032 |archive-date=December 11, 2015 }}</ref> a lawyer speaking for Trump's organization stated in January 2016 that the kiosks would be removed in two to four weeks, before an expected court ruling.<ref>{{cite news |last=Chaban |first=Matt A. V. |date=January 28, 2016 |title=Trump Tower to Remove Disputed Kiosks From Public Atrium |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/29/nyregion/trump-tower-to-remove-disputed-kiosks-from-public-atrium.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 30, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160129121516/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/29/nyregion/trump-tower-to-remove-disputed-kiosks-from-public-atrium.html |archive-date=January 29, 2016}}</ref>
Trump maintained a connection with organized crime members to supply the building's concrete. According to former New York mobster Michael Franzese, "the mob controlled all the concrete business in the city of New York," and that while Trump was not "in bed with the mob ... he certainly had a deal with us. ... he didn't have a choice."<ref name="Part 1 2019">{{cite episode |title=Part 1: New Frontiers |series=Biography: The Trump Dynasty |date=February 25, 2019 |time=1:14–1:18 |network=A&E}}</ref> Mafia-connected union boss John Cody supplied Trump with concrete in exchange for giving his mistress a high-level apartment with a pool, which required extra structural reinforcement.<ref name="Part 1 2019" />
A 1992 book by journalist Wayne Barrett concludes that "Trump didn't just do business with mobbed-up concrete companies: he also probably met personally with [Anthony] Salerno at the townhouse of notorious New York fixer Roy Cohn ... at a time when other developers in New York were pleading with the FBI to free them of mob control of the concrete business."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Johnston |first=David Cay |date=May 22, 2016 |title=Just What Were Donald Trump's Ties to the Mob? |newspaper=Politico |url=https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/05/donald-trump-2016-mob-organized-crime-213910/ |url-status=live |access-date=January 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202011359/http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/05/donald-trump-2016-mob-organized-crime-213910 |archive-date=February 2, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Johnston |first=David Cay |author-link=David Cay Johnston |date=July 10, 2015 |title=21 Questions For Donald Trump |work=The National Memo |url=http://www.nationalmemo.com/21-questions-for-donald-trump/ |url-status=live |access-date=August 5, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150804024213/http://www.nationalmemo.com/21-questions-for-donald-trump/ |archive-date=August 4, 2015}}</ref> Barrett questioned some of Trump's business dealings in a ''Daily Beast'' article in 2011, and alleged that concrete was one of "several dozen" suspected mob connections Trump had.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Barrett |first=Wayne |date=May 26, 2011 |title=Inside Donald Trump's Empire: Why He Didn't Run for President in 2012 |newspaper=The Daily Beast |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/05/26/inside-donald-trumps-empire-why-he-wont-run-for-president.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170129045230/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/05/26/inside-donald-trumps-empire-why-he-wont-run-for-president.html |archive-date=January 29, 2017}}</ref> Trump admitted in 2014 that he had "had no choice" but to work with "concrete guys who are mobbed up."<ref name="Part 1 2019" />
=== Issues in Trump's first presidency (2017–2021) ===
==== Claims made by Trump ====
In March 2017, Trump wrote several posts on Twitter claiming former president Barack Obama had wiretapped phones in the tower toward the end of the 2016 campaign.<ref>*{{Cite news |last=Johnston |first=Chris |date=March 4, 2017 |title='This Is McCarthyism!': Trump Accuses Obama of 'Wire-Tapping' His Office Before Election |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/mar/04/donald-trump-accuses-obama-of-wire-tapping-his-office-before-election |url-status=live |access-date=March 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320221953/https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/mar/04/donald-trump-accuses-obama-of-wire-tapping-his-office-before-election |archive-date=March 20, 2017 |issn=0261-3077}} * {{Cite web |author1=Jeremy Diamond |author1-link=Jeremy Diamond (journalist) |author2=Jeff Zeleny |author2-link=Jeff Zeleny |author3=Shimon Prokupecz |author3-link=Shimon Prokupecz |title=Trump's baseless wiretap claim |url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/04/politics/trump-obama-wiretap-tweet/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320222016/http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/04/politics/trump-obama-wiretap-tweet/index.html |archive-date=March 20, 2017 |access-date=March 21, 2017 |publisher=CNN |date=March 4, 2017}} * {{Cite news |date=March 5, 2017 |title=Trump urged to back up claims his phones were tapped by Obama |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-39170985 |url-status=live |access-date=March 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322015628/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-39170985 |archive-date=March 22, 2017}}</ref> An Obama spokesperson refuted the claims<ref>{{Cite magazine |title=Obama Spokesman Says President Trump's Wiretapping Claim Is 'Simply False' |url=https://time.com/4691226/barack-obama-president-donald-trump-wiretap/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322014841/http://time.com/4691226/barack-obama-president-donald-trump-wiretap/ |archive-date=March 22, 2017 |access-date=March 21, 2017 |magazine=Time}} * {{Cite news |title=President accuses Obama of wiretapping Trump Tower during campaign |publisher=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-accuses-obama-wiretapping-residence-during-campaign-n729056 |url-status=live |access-date=March 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320211852/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/trump-accuses-obama-wiretapping-residence-during-campaign-n729056 |archive-date=March 20, 2017}}</ref> and, during a subsequent meeting with the House of Representatives' Intelligence Committee that discussed the issue, FBI Director James Comey informed the committee that there was no evidence of wiretapping in the tower.<ref>*{{Cite news |title=Comey: 'No Information' to Back Trump's Claim Obama Wiretapped Him |publisher=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fbi-s-comey-testifies-house-intel-committee-russia-n735696 |url-status=live |access-date=March 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320233505/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fbi-s-comey-testifies-house-intel-committee-russia-n735696 |archive-date=March 20, 2017}} * {{Cite news |last=Barrett |first=Ellen Nakashima, Karoun Demirjian, Devlin |title=FBI Director Comey: 'No information' to support Trump's wiretapping claims |work=Chicago Tribune |url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-trump-tower-wiretap-claim-20170320-story.html |url-status=live |access-date=March 21, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320224119/http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-trump-tower-wiretap-claim-20170320-story.html |archive-date=March 20, 2017}}</ref>
Trump also claimed to own the painting ''Two Sisters (On the Terrace)'',<ref name="Bilton">{{Cite news |last=Bilton |first=Nick |title=Donald Trump's Fake Renoir: The Untold Story |work=The Hive |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2017/10/donald-trumps-fake-renoir? |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> an 1881 work by the French Impressionist artist Pierre-Auguste Renoir. The original work hangs in the Art Institute of Chicago.<ref>{{cite web |title=Pierre-Auguste Renoir — Two Sisters (On the Terrace), 1881 |year=1881 |url=http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/14655 |access-date=April 30, 2013 |publisher=The Art Institute of Chicago}}</ref> In October 2017, Timothy L. O'Brien said that during his interviews with Trump for the book ''TrumpNation: The Art of Being The Donald'', he asked Trump about the copy of ''Two Sisters'', which was then on Trump's plane. Trump repeatedly said his copy was the genuine work, despite O'Brien's statements to the contrary.<ref name="Bilton" /> By then, the Renoir copy was hanging in Trump's penthouse office.<ref name="Bilton" /> The Art Institute of Chicago released a statement refuting Trump's claim that his Renoir copy was the genuine one.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Alm |first=David |date=October 19, 2017 |title=Donald Trump Insisted He Owns A Renoir That's Hung In Chicago Museum Since 1933 |work=Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidalm/2017/10/19/donald-trump-insisted-he-owns-a-renoir-thats-hung-in-chicago-museum-since-1933/ |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=October 20, 2017 |title=Trump's Renoir Painting Not Real—museum |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41686623 |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref>
====Security issues==== thumb|Zoomed-out view of the Gucci store, showing a security blockade over 56th Street
On August 9, 2016, a man posted a viral video on YouTube, claiming to be an independent researcher who wanted to speak to Donald Trump.<ref>{{cite news |last=Ha |first=Thu-Huong |date=August 10, 2016 |title=Who Is Leven Thumps? |work=Quartz |url=http://qz.com/755681/who-is-leven-thumps/ |url-status=live |access-date=August 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160811193546/http://qz.com/755681/who-is-leven-thumps/ |archive-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> The next day, a man (suspected to be the same person as identified in the YouTube video) climbed from the 5th to the 21st floors using industrial suction cups for aid climbing,<ref>{{cite news |last1=Shrier |first1=Adam |last2=Dimon |first2=Laura |date=August 10, 2016 |title=WATCH LIVE: Donald Supporter Scales Trump Tower with Suction Cups |work=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/man-scales-trump-tower-manhattan-suction-cups-article-1.2746270 |url-status=live |access-date=August 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160810220910/http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/man-scales-trump-tower-manhattan-suction-cups-article-1.2746270 |archive-date=August 10, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Villeda |first1=Ray |last2=Dienst |first2=Jonathan |date=August 10, 2016 |title=WATCH: Man Trying to Scale Trump Tower, Cops Await |work=NBC New York |url=http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Trump-Tower-Man-Climbing-Building-Glass-Windows-Midtown-Manhattan-389775792.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160811162046/http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Trump-Tower-Man-Climbing-Building-Glass-Windows-Midtown-Manhattan-389775792.html |archive-date=August 11, 2016}}</ref> though he was arrested after nearly three hours.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Blake |first1=Paul |last2=Shapiro |first2=Emily |date=August 10, 2016 |title=Police Capture Man Who Scaled Trump Tower |work=ABC News |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/man-spotted-scaling-side-trump-tower-york/story?id=41278389 |url-status=live |access-date=August 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160810213216/https://abcnews.go.com/US/man-spotted-scaling-side-trump-tower-york/story?id=41278389 |archive-date=August 10, 2016}}</ref>
Serious issues concerning safety and security in the building arose after Trump became president-elect of the United States on November 8, 2016.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Marc Ambinder |author1-link=Marc Ambinder |date=November 18, 2016 |title=How Donald Trump Will Retrofit Midtown Manhattan as a Presidential Getaway |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/11/18/how-donald-trump-will-retrofit-midtown-manhattan-as-a-presidential-getaway |url-status=live |access-date=November 20, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161120032647/https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/11/18/how-donald-trump-will-retrofit-midtown-manhattan-as-a-presidential-getaway/ |archive-date=November 20, 2016}}</ref> Trump Tower served as a rallying point for protests against Trump after the election's results were announced, requiring the deployment of security measures.<ref>{{Cite news |first1=Eli |last1=Rosenberg |first2=Jennifer |last2=Medina |last3=Eligon |first3=John |date=November 12, 2016 |title=Protesters Take Anti-Trump Message to His Doorstep, And Plan Next Steps |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/13/us/trump-protest-rallies.html |url-status=live |access-date=November 14, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161114013902/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/13/us/trump-protest-rallies.html |archive-date=November 14, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Alexander Burns |date=December 9, 2016 |title=Donald Trump Loves New York. But It Doesn't Love Him Back. |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/09/nyregion/donald-trump-new-york-protests.html |url-status=live |access-date=December 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161209170703/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/09/nyregion/donald-trump-new-york-protests.html |archive-date=December 9, 2016}}</ref> The block of 56th Street between Fifth and Madison Avenues was closed completely to vehicular traffic, but the eastern part of the street was later reopened to allow local deliveries.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Nir |first=Sarah Maslin |date=December 23, 2016 |title=Businesses Near Trump Tower Say Security Is Stealing Their Christmas |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/23/nyregion/trump-tower-manhattan-fifth-avenue-shopping.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> Customers of the Gucci and Tiffany stores in Trump Tower's lobby were allowed to proceed, while other pedestrians were redirected to the opposite side of the street.<ref name="Goldstein 2016" />
During presidential visits, dump trucks from the New York City Department of Sanitation were parked outside the tower to prevent car bombs.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lockie |first=Alex |date=August 15, 2017 |title=Why Trump Tower Is Surrounded by Dump Trucks Filled with Sand for Trump's Visit to NYC |work=Business Insider |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/why-trump-tower-surrounded-dump-trucks-filled-with-sand-nyc-2017-8 |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> Fire protection was also provided for the tower whenever Trump visited it.<ref name="Peiser 2018">{{cite news |last1=Peiser |first1=Jaclyn |last2=Lucero II |first2=Louis |date=April 7, 2018 |title=Fire at Trump Tower Critically Injures One, Officials Say |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/07/nyregion/trump-tower-fire.html |access-date=April 7, 2018}}</ref> A Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility was set up for the president's use.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Adam |last=Kelsey |date=January 6, 2017 |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/scif-inside-room-intelligence-briefings/story?id=44607588 |title=What Is a SCIF? Inside the Room Used for Intelligence Briefings |website=ABC News}}</ref> The press nicknamed the now-heavily secured building '''White House North''', comparing it to the White House's West Wing.<ref name="Usborne 2016" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Leibovich |first=Mark |date=December 1, 2016 |title=The Trump Transition Reality Show |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/01/podcasts/the-trump-transition-reality-show.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170109123642/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/01/podcasts/the-trump-transition-reality-show.html |archive-date=January 9, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Schwartzman |first=Paul |date=December 18, 2016 |title=On New York's Fifth Avenue, Trump's White House North |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/on-new-yorks-fifth-avenue-trump-tower-is-a-world-away-from-1600-penn/2016/12/18/16ee5480-c30c-11e6-9a51-cd56ea1c2bb7_story.html |access-date=October 20, 2017 |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286}}</ref>
The Federal Aviation Administration imposed a no-fly zone over Trump Tower until January 20, 2017,<ref>{{Cite news |date=November 14, 2016 |title=The FAA Will Limit Flights over New York Until Trump Is Sworn In |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/11/14/the-faa-will-limit-flights-over-new-york-until-trump-is-sworn-in/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220142447/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/11/14/the-faa-will-limit-flights-over-new-york-until-trump-is-sworn-in/ |archive-date=December 20, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2016 |newspaper=The Washington Post |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> and the NYPD stated that it expected to spend $35 million to provide security to the tower,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brown |first=Nicole |date=December 7, 2016 |title=Trump Tower Security by the Numbers |newspaper=am New York |url=http://www.amny.com/news/politics/trump-tower-security-street-closures-cost-to-nyc-taxpayers-and-more-to-know-1.12685401 |url-status=live |access-date=December 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161213140440/http://www.amny.com/news/politics/trump-tower-security-street-closures-cost-to-nyc-taxpayers-and-more-to-know-1.12685401 |archive-date=December 13, 2016}}</ref> subsequently revised to $24 million.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goldstein |first=Joseph |date=February 22, 2017 |title=New York Police Lower Cost Estimate of Guarding Trump and His Tower |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/22/nyregion/nypd-security-trump-tower.html |url-status=live |access-date=February 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223060308/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/22/nyregion/nypd-security-trump-tower.html |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref> As a result of the heavy security, businesses around the tower saw decreased patronage due to less foot traffic in the heavily secured area.<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Izaguirre |first1=Anthony |last2=Rayman |first2=Graham |date=December 8, 2016 |title=Increased Trump Tower Security Is Hurting Local Businesses |newspaper=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/manhattan/increased-trump-tower-security-hurting-local-businesses-article-1.2903828 |url-status=live |access-date=December 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161210001522/http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/manhattan/increased-trump-tower-security-hurting-local-businesses-article-1.2903828 |archive-date=December 10, 2016}}</ref> Despite the heavy security after the 2016 election, there have been some detentions and arrests related to the increased security at the tower. On December 6, 2016, a woman reached the 24th floor—two floors below Donald Trump's office—before being stopped by Secret Service officers.<ref>{{Cite news |date=December 5, 2016 |title=Woman Slips By Security at Trump Tower, Gets to 24th Floor |agency=Associated Press |url=http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Trump-Tower-Woman-Slips-By-Security-NYC-NYPD-Police-404847866.html |url-status=live |access-date=December 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161209090712/http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Trump-Tower-Woman-Slips-By-Security-NYC-NYPD-Police-404847866.html |archive-date=December 9, 2016 |via=NBC New York}}</ref> A week later, a Baruch College student was arrested at Trump Tower and was found with multiple weapons.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Silverman |first=Alex |title=Student Arrested, Accused Of Trying To Bring Weapons Into Trump Tower |date=December 13, 2016 |url=http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/12/13/student-weapons-trump-tower/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161214164031/http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2016/12/13/student-weapons-trump-tower/ |archive-date=December 14, 2016 |access-date=December 16, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Aliyu |first1=Wale |last2=Winter |first2=Tom |title=Student Arrested at Trump Tower With Weapons, Water Gun |newspaper=NBC New York |url=http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/New-York-City-Water-Gun-Fire-Crackers-Trump-Tower-NYC-Police-406292065.html |url-status=live |access-date=December 16, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161217022609/http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/New-York-City-Water-Gun-Fire-Crackers-Trump-Tower-NYC-Police-406292065.html |archive-date=December 17, 2016}}</ref> The day afterward, NYPD detained another man who wanted to meet Trump, reportedly got angry, and threw a wine glass on the lobby floor.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goldman |first=Jeff |title=N.J. Man Reportedly Angry over Not Meeting President-Elect Arrested at Trump Tower |newspaper=The Star-Ledger |url=http://www.nj.com/bergen/index.ssf/2016/12/nj_man_reportedly_angry_about_not_meeting_presiden.html |access-date=December 16, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Rayman |first1=Graham |last2=Parascandola |first2=Rocco |title=Man with Fake ID Smashes Wine Glass in Trump Tower Temper Tantrum |newspaper=New York Daily News |issn=2692-1251 |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/man-fake-id-smashes-wine-glass-trump-tower-temper-tantrum-article-1.2910707 |url-status=live |access-date=December 16, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220144047/http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/man-fake-id-smashes-wine-glass-trump-tower-temper-tantrum-article-1.2910707 |archive-date=December 20, 2016}}</ref>
Protests around the tower subsided after Trump's inauguration in January 2017,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Nir |first=Sarah Maslin |date=April 21, 2017 |title=With Trump Gone, New Yorkers Find Alternatives to Shouting at His Door |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/21/nyregion/new-york-donald-trump-changing-protests.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> and by summer 2017, security measures around the tower had been loosened, as they were only in place when Trump was physically on site.<ref name="Nir 2017">{{Cite news |last1=Nir |first1=Sarah Maslin |last2=Alani |first2=Hannah |date=June 21, 2017 |title=With First Family in Washington, Midtown Tries to Recover |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/21/nyregion/trump-tower-new-york.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> However, several businesses at the tower's base had closed by then because of a reduction in the number of customers.<ref name="Nir 2017" /> After Trump's presidency ended in January 2021, the vehicular barricades blocking access to 56th Street from Fifth to Madison Avenues were removed.<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 18, 2021 |title=Trump Tower Security To Be Reduced After Inauguration |url=https://therealdeal.com/2021/01/18/fifth-avenue-will-look-different-after-trump-leaves-office/ |access-date=May 22, 2021 |website=The Real Deal |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Chapman |first=Ben |date=January 17, 2021 |title=Restrictions Around Trump Tower to Scale Down After Inauguration |language=en-US |work=The Wall Street Journal |issn=0099-9660 |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/restrictions-around-trump-tower-to-scale-down-after-inauguration-11610899200 |access-date=May 22, 2021 }}</ref>
====Other incidents====
At around 5:30 p.m. (EDT) on April 7, 2018, a 4-alarm fire broke out in an apartment in the tower's 50th floor, killing a resident and injuring six firefighters.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Linton |first=Caroline |date=April 8, 2018 |title=Fire at Trump Tower Leaves 1 Civilian Dead, 6 Firefighters with Minor Injuries |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tower-new-york-city-fire-today-manhattan-firefighters-injured-2018-04-07/ |access-date=April 8, 2018 |publisher=CBS News}}</ref> In a Twitter post, Trump attributed the fire's limited damage to the building's design.<ref>See: {{cite news |date=April 7, 2018 |title=Trump Tower Fire: Blaze Breaks out at New York Property |publisher=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-43686271 |access-date=April 7, 2018}}<br />{{cite news |last1=Zwirz |first1=Elizabeth |date=April 7, 2018 |title=Fire erupts at Trump Tower in New York City |publisher=Fox News |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/fire-erupts-at-trump-tower-in-new-york-city-1-fatality-idd-at-least-4-hurt |access-date=April 7, 2018}}<br />{{cite news |last1=Helsel |first1=Phil |last2=Winter |first2=Tom |date=April 7, 2018 |title=Fire breaks out at Trump Tower, blaze is out |publisher=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fire-breaks-out-trump-tower-blaze-out-n863661 |access-date=April 7, 2018}}</ref><ref name="Peiser 2018" /> The only person to die was 67-year-old Todd Brassner, an art dealer known for his association with Andy Warhol.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Fedschun |first=Travis |date=April 8, 2018 |title=Todd Brassner's Death at Trump Tower |url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/trump-tower-fire-victim-was-prominent-art-dealer-friends-with-andy-warhol.amp |access-date=April 8, 2018 |publisher=Fox News}}</ref><ref name="Leland 2018">{{cite web |last1=Leland |first1=John |last2=Ferré-Sadurní |first2=Luis |date=April 7, 2018 |title=Art Collector and Bon Vivant Dies in Trump Tower Home He Couldn't Sell |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/08/nyregion/trump-tower-fire-art-collector.html |access-date=April 9, 2018 |website=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The residential units did not contain sprinklers because the structure had been built before 1999, when the city passed a law requiring sprinklers in residential units;<ref name="Leland 2018" /> Trump had lobbied against the proposal.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Porter |first=Tom |date=April 8, 2018 |title=Trump Tower Fire Death Update: Trump Lobbied Against Proposal to Make Sprinklers Mandatory |url=http://www.newsweek.com/trump-tower-fire-no-sprinklers-lobbied-against-bill-876537 |access-date=April 8, 2018 |website=Newsweek}}</ref> The New York City Fire Department (FDNY) subsequently announced that the fire had been accidentally caused by power wires that had overheated.<ref>{{Cite web |date=April 16, 2018 |title=Trump Tower Fire Was an Accident, Fire Department Says |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tower-fire-was-an-accident-new-york-city-today-2018-04-16-live-updates/ |access-date=April 16, 2018 |publisher=MSN}}</ref> The April 2018 fire followed a minor electrical fire at the tower earlier that year, which had injured three people.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Bromwich |first=Jonah Engel |date=January 8, 2018 |title=Minor Fire Breaks Out Near Top of Trump Tower |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/08/nyregion/trump-tower-fire.html |access-date=April 8, 2018}}</ref>
[[File:BLM mural in front of Trump Tower (90240).jpg|thumb|Black Lives Matter mural in front of Trump Tower in July 2020]] In July 2020, activists including New York City mayor Bill de Blasio painted the words "Black Lives Matter" in giant letters on Fifth Avenue directly in front of the building.<ref>{{cite news |last=Wu |first=Nicholas |date=July 9, 2020 |title=New York City Paints Black Lives Matter Mural in Front of Trump Tower |work=USA Today |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/07/09/nyc-starts-painting-black-lives-matter-mural-front-trump-tower/5404111002/ |access-date=July 9, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last1=Gold |first1=Michael |last2=Slotnik |first2=Daniel E. |date=July 9, 2020 |title=N.Y.C. Paints 'Black Lives Matter' in Front of Trump Tower |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/09/nyregion/blm-trump-tower.html |access-date=July 9, 2020}}</ref> The project was announced in response to the George Floyd protests in New York City, a series of pro-police-reform protests that started after the murder of George Floyd, a black man in Minneapolis, in May 2020. Trump expressed his opposition to the mural after it was announced.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Zaveri |first=Mihir |date=June 25, 2020 |title='Black Lives Matter' Will Be Painted on Street Outside Trump Tower |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/25/nyregion/black-lives-matter-trump-tower-nyc.html |access-date=July 9, 2020}}</ref>
== Impact ==
===Critical reception=== thumb|The waterfall in the atrium In a 1982 review of the building, ''New York Times'' architecture critic Paul Goldberger contrasted the "reflective" Trump Tower with the nearby postmodern 550 Madison Avenue building.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Goldberger |first=Paul |date=September 12, 1982 |title=Architecture View; This Will Be the Year of the Skyscraper |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/09/12/arts/architecture-view-this-will-be-the-year-of-the-skyscraper.html |url-status=live |access-date=August 11, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822052212/http://www.nytimes.com/1982/09/12/arts/architecture-view-this-will-be-the-year-of-the-skyscraper.html |archive-date=August 22, 2016}}</ref> In a 1983 review just before the tower opened, Goldberger said the tower was "turning out to be a much more positive addition to the cityscape than the architectural oddsmakers would have had it". According to Goldberger, the indoor atrium might become "the most pleasant interior public space to be completed in New York in some years" because the marble and brass made it "warm, luxurious and even exhilarating", although it was "a bit too high and narrow" and with little room for crowds.<ref name="nyt-1983-04-042">{{Cite news |last=Goldberger |first=Paul |date=April 4, 1983 |title=Architecture: Atrium of Trump Tower Is a Pleasant Surprise |work=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/04/04/arts/architecture-atrium-of-trump-tower-is-a-pleasant-surprise.html |access-date=October 20, 2017}}</ref> However, he criticized the "hyperactive" exterior of the tower, contrasting it with Tiffany's "serene," solid facade next door, as well as the narrowness of passageways within the atrium, saying it created "little room for milling or casual strolling."<ref name="nyt-1983-04-042" />
In a 1984 article, Ada Louise Huxtable, ''The New York Times'' architecture critic from 1963 to 1982, was quoted by ''New York Times'' writer William E. Geist as saying that the building was a "dramatically handsome structure."<ref name="nyt198404082">{{Cite news |last=Geist |first=William E. |date=April 8, 1984 |title=The Expanding Empire of Donald Trump |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/04/08/magazine/the-expanding-empire-of-donald-trump.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 30, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201175810/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/04/08/magazine/the-expanding-empire-of-donald-trump.html |archive-date=February 1, 2017}}</ref> Huxtable responded that the comment had been written in 1979 about the "proposed faceted shape of the building" and that the finished tower was a "monumentally undistinguished one". She also wrote that the atrium was "an uncomfortable place, awkwardly proportioned in its narrow verticality", calling it a "pink marble maelstrom" and asking Trump to remove the quote from its wall.<ref name="nyt198405062">{{Cite news |date=May 6, 1984 |title=Donald Trump's Tower |newspaper=The New York Times |issn=0362-4331 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/05/06/magazine/l-donald-trump-s-tower-170724.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 31, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170123050559/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/05/06/magazine/l-donald-trump-s-tower-170724.html |archive-date=January 23, 2017}}</ref> Geist called the tower a "Xanadu of conspicuous consumption" and described it as "preposterously lavish" and "showy, even pretentious."<ref name="nyt198404082" /> Architect Gregory Stanford described the atrium as "pretty horrible."<ref>{{Cite news |last=Soter |first=Tom |date=January 16, 1993 |title=The Great Indoors |work=Newsday}}</ref>
The fifth edition of the ''AIA Guide to New York City'', published in 2010, described Trump Tower as a "fantasyland for the affluent shopper" hidden by "folded glass," with the Trump theme evident throughout the building. Comparing the building's interior design to alcoholic drink brands, the authors wrote that the design was less like a high-end "Veuve Clicquot" and more like a generic "malt liquor."<ref>{{Cite aia5|page=336}}</ref> ''Fodor's New York City 2010'' described Trump Tower's "ostentatious atrium" as an example of the "unbridled luxury" of the 1980s, characterized by "expensive boutiques and gaudy brass everywhere."{{sfn|Hart|2009|p=123}} The tower's public atrium, along with that of Citigroup Center a few blocks away, was described as a convenient public area.{{sfn|Hart|2009|p=533}}
''Frommer's'' called the tower a "bold and brassy place" whose golden sign "practically screams 'Look at me!'"<ref>{{cite web |title=Living Large in New York City: The High Life in 8 Sights |url=http://www.frommers.com/slideshows/825076-living-large-in-new-york-city-the-high-life-in-8-sights |access-date=October 20, 2017 |website=Frommer's Travel Guides |page=1}}</ref> Meanwhile, ''Insight Guides''{{'}} 2016 edition mentioned Trump Tower as "worth stopping by for a glimpse of the opulence synonymous with Manhattan in the 1980s" and that viewers of ''The Apprentice'' would recognize the atrium and the waterfall.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OfqSDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT273 |title=Insight Guides City Guide New York |publisher=APA |year=2016 |isbn=978-1-78671-549-4 |series=Insight City Guides |access-date=February 6, 2022}}</ref>
=== In popular culture === Trump Tower served as the location for Wayne Enterprises in Christopher Nolan's ''The Dark Knight Rises''.<ref>{{cite web |title=Filming Locations for Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises (2012), With Christian Bale, In New York, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, The UK and India. |website=The Worldwide Guide to Movie Locations |url=http://www.movie-locations.com/movies/d/Dark_Knight_Rises.html |access-date=August 11, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160816165810/http://www.movie-locations.com/movies/d/Dark_Knight_Rises.html |archive-date=August 16, 2016}}</ref> In a 2012 vlog post on the Trump Organization's YouTube channel, Trump called the film as "really terrific" and that "most importantly Trump Tower—my building—plays a role."<ref>{{cite web |title=Did Trump, Known 'Dark Knight Rises' Fanboy, Channel Bane in His Inauguration Speech? |website=Vice |last=Pearl |first=Mike |date=January 20, 2017 |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/did-trump-known-dark-knight-rises-fanboy-channel-bane-in-his-inauguration-speech/ |access-date=February 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223050347/https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/did-trump-known-dark-knight-rises-fanboy-channel-bane-in-his-inauguration-speech |archive-date=February 23, 2017}}</ref> Other films have used Trump Tower as a filming location as well. For instance, the 2010 comedy film ''The Other Guys'' contains a car chase scene that has Samuel L. Jackson's character drive his car into Trump Tower.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.vulture.com/2015/11/25-best-cold-open-action-scenes-in-movies.html |title=The 25 Best Cold-Open Action Scenes in Film History |last=Ebire |first=Bilge |date=November 9, 2015 |access-date=May 31, 2019}}</ref> The penthouse in Trump Tower was used as a filming location for the action film ''Self/less'' (2015).<ref>{{cite web |title=Selfless Film Locations |website=On the set of New York.com |date=July 26, 2018 |url=http://onthesetofnewyork.com/selfless.html |access-date=September 20, 2018}}</ref>
''Trump Tower'', a romance novel by Jeffrey Robinson, chronicles the sexual activities of fictional characters living in the tower.<ref name="Robinson2012">{{cite book |last=Robinson |first=Jeffrey |title=Trump Tower |publisher=Vanguard Press |location=New York |year=2012 |isbn=978-1-59315-735-7}}</ref> News media reported on the novel's existence during the last week of the 2016 presidential campaign.<ref name="inde20161102">{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/donald-trump-trump-tower-novel-book-sex-and-workplace-racism-a7393041.html |title=Donald Trump Once Authored an Erotic Novel |last=Hooton |first=Christopher |date=November 2, 2016 |newspaper=The Independent |access-date=December 16, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220213931/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/news/donald-trump-trump-tower-novel-book-sex-and-workplace-racism-a7393041.html |archive-date=December 20, 2016}}</ref><ref name="hp20161031">{{Cite web |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-novel_us_580a62bce4b0cdea3d874ca9 |title=The Incredibly Sexist Book Once Billed As Trump's 'Debut Novel' |last=Van Luling |first=Todd |date=October 31, 2016 |work=HuffPost |access-date=December 16, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161212162748/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-novel_us_580a62bce4b0cdea3d874ca9 |archive-date=December 12, 2016}}</ref> The novel was never formally published<ref name="hp20161031" /> but is registered as having an International Standard Book Number.<ref name="Robinson2012" /> For unknown reasons,<ref name="hp20161031" /> some versions of the novel are advertised with Trump as the author.<ref name="inde20161102" />
Trump Tower is featured on the cover of the 1997 video game ''Grand Theft Auto'' and is depicted in the 2008 sequel ''Grand Theft Auto IV'' and its episodes ''The Lost and Damned'' and ''The Ballad of Gay Tony'' as Cleethorpes Tower.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.kotaku.com.au/2017/01/ranking-the-grand-theft-auto-games-from-worst-to-best/ |title=Ranking The Grand Theft Auto Games, From Worst To Best |last=Zwiezen |first=Zack |date=January 20, 2017 |work=Kotaku |access-date=March 13, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170313221342/https://www.kotaku.com.au/2017/01/ranking-the-grand-theft-auto-games-from-worst-to-best/ |archive-date=March 13, 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
{{Clear left}}
==See also== * List of things named after Donald Trump * List of residences of presidents of the United States * Timeline of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections * Timeline of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections (July 2016 – election day) * Timeline of post-election transition following Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections ** Trump Tower meeting, June 9, 2016 ** Mueller report {{Clear}}
==References== {{Notelist}}
===Citations=== {{reflist|30em}}
===Sources=== * {{cite book |last=Hart |first=M.T. |title=Fodor's New York City 2010 |publisher=Fodor's |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-4000-0837-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pqO__EGJAY4C |access-date=October 20, 2017}} * {{Cite book |last=Miller |first=Kristine F. |date=2007 |title=Designs on the Public: The Private Lives of New York's Public Spaces |publisher=U of Minnesota Press |isbn=9781452913292 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PPuhUVZVRvkC}} * {{cite book |first1=Sy |last1=Rubin |first2=Jonathan |last2=Mandell |title=Trump Tower |date=1984 |edition=1st |publisher=Lyle Stuart |isbn=978-0-8184-0354-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZRVUAAAAMAAJ}} * {{Stern: New York|edition=2000}} * {{cite book |last=Tuccille |first=Jerome |title=Trump: The Saga of America's Most Powerful Real Estate Baron |publisher=Beard Books |year=1985 |isbn=978-1-58798-223-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=50ss1oWeZBAC&pg=PA150 |access-date=January 2, 2018}}
==External links== {{Commons category|Trump Tower (Manhattan)}} * {{Official website}} * {{Structurae|id=20002472|title=Trump Tower}}
{{Midtown North, Manhattan}} {{Fifth Avenue}} {{Donald Trump}} {{Trump businesses}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Trump Tower}} Category:56th Street (Manhattan) Category:1980s architecture in the United States Category:1983 establishments in New York City Category:Assets owned by the Trump Organization Category:Donald Trump Category:Fifth Avenue Category:Midtown Manhattan Category:Office buildings completed in 1983 Category:Office buildings in Manhattan Category:Presidential homes in the United States Category:Residential buildings completed in 1983 Category:Residential condominiums in New York City Category:Residential skyscrapers in Manhattan Category:Trump family residences