Man dies after leaping from historic 10 Gracie Square building in Yorkville
A 62-year-old man was found on scaffolding at 10 Gracie Square and was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.
Around 2:30 p.m., officers located a 62-year-old individual on scaffolding outside the upscale 10 Gracie Square residence in Yorkville and EMS declared him dead at the location. The 15-story cooperative, built in 1931 and situated near the mayor’s home, has long attracted affluent tenants, counting former first lady of China Madame Chiang Kai-shek, media magnate Steve Ross, philanthropist Brooke Astor and others among its past occupants.
Literary critic Tom Wolfe once highlighted the structure as one of the city’s few “good buildings.” However, the address has also been associated with tragic self-inflicted deaths, notably author Jean Stein and Carter Cooper, the son of designer Gloria Vanderbilt, who both jumped from its penthouses. The latest fatality reinforces the building’s grim folklore. Authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the jump.
Why it matters
The death revives concerns about safety and the building’s history of suicides at a high-profile New York residence.
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