buying approximately of air rights from above 55 Wall Street, a New York City landmark. The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission needed to approve any major modifications regarding 55 Wall Street; in March 1984, the commission unanimously approved the transfer of the air rights. The developers also agreed to add a public atrium at the base in exchange for another of offices. Shortly after, Manhattan Community Board 1 also unanimously approved the bonuses in an advisory vote. The vice commissioner on the New York City Planning Commission, Martin Gallent, opposed the bonuses. The commission as a whole supported the bonuses, requesting only that the building's proposed parking lot be reduced from 197 to 125 parking spots. By early 1985, the site had been completely empty for three years; Park Tower Realty blamed the delays on the city's construction permit process. The vacant lot was not even being used for parking, which would at least produce some revenue. That September, J.P. Morgan & Co. announced it would purchase and fully occupy the proposed tower, with Park Tower as developer. The company had earlier threatened to move its headquarters to Delaware to save money, following a failed attempt to purchase 7 World Trade Center, but it apparently decided to stay in New York City following changes to city and state tax regulations. Unlike BNY before it, J.P. Morgan was given a major tax break for 60 Wall Street. The move would consolidate J.P. Morgan's space from six buildings into three; the company would also occupy 30 West Broadway and 23 Wall Street. This made J.P. Morgan one of several financial firms to lease large amounts of spaces in lower Manhattan buildings. J.P. Morgan indicated construction would start within six months of its lease; the building was projected to cost $550 million. Construction and J.P. Morgan use To accommodate its needs, J.P. Morgan custom-designed its offices with advanced computer and communications equipment. The bank created trading floors at the base and removed one story from the original plans, slightly increasing all the other ceiling heights to compensate for the missing floor. Dining rooms were added so J.P. Morgan could give complimentary lunches to employees. The building's exterior shape and atrium were not modified, so no additional review from the city government was required. This sped up the project by about three years, since the various city agencies did not need to review