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Tin Building by Jean-Georges closes, will become an immersive art Balloon Museum
By
Ryan Kailath
Published Feb 23, 2026
Modified Feb 23, 2026
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By
Ryan Kailath
Published Feb 23, 2026
Modified Feb 23, 2026
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The Tin Building by Jean-Georges, a luxury food hall at the South Street Seaport that was beset by financial troubles and controversy, closed Monday, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission by its owner, Seaport Entertainment Group.
SEG plans to replace the waterfront food hall with an immersive experience known as Balloon Museum, which creates inflatable art and will open this summer.
132 employees were affected, SEG confirmed.
They were told of the closure in a late afternoon meeting on Monday, according to Linda Romano, a supervisor at the building’s bakery and coffee shop. An email sent to employees after the meeting and obtained by Gothamist read, “...your employment with SEG will terminate effective today.”
Romano said she was offered 60 days of severance pay. An SEG spokesperson did not confirm details of severance, but said the company had identified internal opportunities for approximately 35% to 40% of impacted staff.
“I basically grew up in that job,” said Romano, 23, who began as a barista four years ago before becoming a supervisor. “It genuinely does hurt.”
The Tin Building opened in 2022 following a sweeping redevelopment of the landmarked structure at Pier 17, billed as a culinary destination anchored by celebrity chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten and backed by the Howard Hughes Corporation.
But the project struggled financially, losing its parent company more than $100 million over its four-year run, according to publicly available financial documents. Multiple restaurants and stalls within the complex closed or reduced their hours, and the Howard Hughes Corp. spun the project off as part of a new publicly-traded entity, Seaport Entertainment Group.
In January 2025, Gothamist reported that at least 100 workers had lost their jobs after management conducted sudden employment authorization checks during an internal restructuring. At the time, the company said these checks were required to transition employees onto SEG’s payroll.
As SEG expanded into other high-profile projects across the city, including its proposed takeover of the iconic Bryant Park Grill space, it faced scrutiny from community board members about its immigration checks, financial losses, and general business acumen.
In the SEC filing, SEG said the Tin Building operations would cease immediately and it would terminate its licensing agreement with Jean-Georges Restaurants, though it retains a 25% interest in the group and its broader partnership elsewhere continues.
Romano said business at the Tin Building had slowed in recent months.
“The writing was on the wall,” she said.
Correction: An earlier version of this story described Howard Hughes Corporation as belonging to billionaire Bill Ackman. He is the executive chairman of the board of Howard Hughes and CEO of its majority shareholder, Pershing Square.
This story has been updated with new information.
Tagged
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manhattan
Ryan Kailath
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