Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Macy's Herald Square May Add Roof Deck To Attract Customers
By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 7, 2017
Modified Jun 5, 2018
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 7, 2017
Modified Jun 5, 2018
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Faced with slumping sales and store closures, department store behemoth Macy's is trying to innovate (or die). In an analyst meeting on Tuesday, the chain's top real estate executive said they might add a rooftop garden at its landmark Herald Square flagship.
Doug Sesler, Macy's executive vice president of real estate, told analysts that they might, as The Street reports, "densify" the Herald Square location by reconfiguring the layout and possibly building out the rooftop to "activate the store's upper levels."
He called the store "the largest, most complex piece of real estate that we have" and pointed out at the flagship is "already the fourth most visited tourist attraction in New York City," but "as a retailer you can never have enough traffic."
The plan would include "adding restaurants and open green space, including trees and benches," according to the Post. Sesler also said, "That store is getting more valuable by the day as the center of gravity in Manhattan shifts southwest to Hudson Yards."
Ellen Dunham-Jones, an Atlanta-based architect and professor at Georgia Tech School of Architecture, told The Street, "Roof gardens have long been a highly valued amenity in dense cities like New York, for restaurants and bars, but especially for residents. While it's unusual to combine them with retail, it's not entirely unheard of." She added, "Food halls are very popular today, and Macy's seems to have a great opportunity to create a combo open-air food hall roof garden that, like the milk at the back of the grocery store, can lure customers past impulse merchandise on their way to the garden experience."
Sesler stressed this plan was "only one concept we're considering... it's not a go plan." However, he and other Macy's brass realize how valuable the store is—real estate executive apparently approach them constantly, "We love this piece of real estate, how do we get a piece of it?"
In London, department store Selfridges recently opened a seasonal rooftop restaurant called The Roof Deck while the Galeries Lafayette and Printemps department stores in Paris have publicly accessible rooftops.
Tagged
green space
herald square
macy's
roofdeck
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
The hottest way to show you're an authentic New Yorker is… riding a Citi Bike?
Thanks to Dua Lipa, Kim Kardashian, Timothée Chalamet and more, the rideshare program is having a moment.
By
Lindsay Lee Wallace
Published Oct 8, 2026 at 11:10 a.m. ET
Is NYC’s hottest attraction the free observation deck at 1 Centre Street?
If you're playing tourist in your own town, this is an in-demand option.
By
James Ramsay
Arts & Entertainment
Is NYC’s hottest attraction the free observation deck at 1 Centre Street?
If you're playing tourist in your own town, this is an in-demand option.
By
James Ramsay
What happens when NYC kids take lessons in rock music? Really good bands.
By
Jayson Greene
Inside a photographer's journey to visit every neighborhood in New York City
By
Sonia Rao
Banned books and Winnie the Pooh: October in NYC libraries
By
Alec Hamilton
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .