Toy Center

An ornate cast-iron sidewalk clock outside the main entrance, built by Hecla Iron Works in 1909, became a New York City designated landmark in 1981.

[4] The building became a center for the toy industry during World War I, following restrictions on imports from the traditional European manufacturers.

[7] By 1981, the complex covered 1,000,000 square feet (93,000 m2) of leasable space, with its 600 tenants accounting for 95% of toy transactions in the United States that year, amounting to $4 billion.

[15] In October 2008, shortly after the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, their loan to Tesslar came due, however he failed to refinance the project and the building remained largely vacant and undeveloped.

In December 2009, land research firm Real Capital Analytic added the building to their list of troubled assets.

The Toy Center's entrance on Fifth Avenue ; the clock seen below is in profile on the right
The sidewalk clock, manufactured in 1909, outside the Toy Center