Constructed as the headquarters of the Williamsburgh Savings Bank in 1875 and subsequently expanded several times, it occupies the northwest corner of Broadway and Driggs Avenue, just south of the Williamsburg Bridge.

Inside, a decorative vestibule leads to the original banking room, which has pilasters and archways beneath the painted dome.

Though the bank moved its headquarters to One Hanson Place in Downtown Brooklyn in 1929, the 175 Broadway building remained in use as a branch.

The Williamsburgh Savings Bank Building is at 175 Broadway, at the northwestern corner with Driggs Avenue, in the Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn in New York City.

[4] The northern half of the city block is occupied by the approach ramp of the Williamsburg Bridge, from which the bank building is visible.

[3][4] Nearby locations include the Peter Luger Steak House across Broadway and Kings County Savings Bank one block west.

[7][8] The building blends Roman and Renaissance classical elements, a style that only became popularized two decades after the structure was completed.

The partition was made of five full-height plates of French glass, decorated with sand-blown trimmings and separated by wood-and-marble columns.

[21][23] The Daily Times article described the space as having decorated massive oak doors with bronze finishing and glazed paneling.

[23][28] Each pedestal has stone ornamentation (later painted into a cream color), interspersed with bronze ventilation grilles and gray-green and gold panels of polished granite.

The eastern section of the south wall has a mahogany double door, surrounded by an ornate stone doorway.

The balcony has a neo-Grec-style iron railing and connects with small rooms on either side; it is illuminated by a tripartite lunette window.

The windows run above a band of ornaments and carved brackets, which are painted red, gold, green, and cream.

The vault door has an ornate stone frame and is topped by a broken pediment with a barometer, clock, bronze eagle, and tablet.

[8] The directors' room had a gold-and-bronze chandelier, a fireplace with a carved mantel, and a 20 ft-long (6.1 m) table surrounded by 18 leather chairs.

[21] A birdcage elevator, installed circa 1911 and one of three remaining in New York City, connects the office wing's stories.

[31][32] The bank was originally housed in the basement of a church at Bedford Avenue and South 3rd Street;[31][33][34] it had 158 depositors and $15,000 in assets.

[31][39] The Williamsburgh Savings Bank spent $110,000 in 1869 to acquire a plot, measuring 112 by 100 ft (34 by 30 m), at Broadway and Driggs Avenue.

[31][41] Peter B. Wight, the brother-in-law of bank trustee Samuel Mundy Meeker, received the second-most votes for his French Second Empire style design.

[43] It was Wight who had recommended Post to the trustees; the other two architects, Giles and King, were prolific designers in Brooklyn at the time.

[43] Cornell Iron Works was given the contract for the steelwork;[42][44] the Daily Times wrote that the bank building was an "exhibition of their skill".

Batterson and woodwork contractor Captain J. W. Van De Water,[42] as well as the New York Stone Contracting Company.

[50] The bank sold its old building in 1876 to lawyer John M. Stearns,[51] who turned the structure into offices and an auction house.

[5][58] Early the next year, the bank announced it would build an annex for $300,000 on a plot to the west, measuring 58 ft (18 m) wide.

[17] The Broadway branch hosted events such as an auction of employees' plants for a World War II fundraiser[72] and awards ceremonies for local essay-writing competitions in the 1950s.

[80] Following the acquisition, The New York Times wrote that the HSBC branch was one of "a few grand old buildings [that] still recall Broadway's glamorous past".

"[82] By the early 21st century, HSBC wished to sell the building, but its design was not suitable for many modern uses, dissuading many potential buyers.

[22][25] The planned hotel would use both the unused air rights above the bank and a tax credit given to structures listed on the NRHP.

[92] The building hosted events for companies such as Brooklyn Brewery, Google, Gucci, Rag & Bone, TEDx, Uber, and Vogue.

[94] Perez San Martin spent an extra $1 million in the late 2010s to upgrade lighting and audio, as well as other systems related to theatrical and event productions.