But they said the opportunity to own commercial space in the Ritz Tower, the 1925 landmark building designed by Emery Roth, was too good to pass up.

Both businesses are in a 10,000-square-foot space that it formerly leased from the Ritz Tower.

Two years ago, the Eisenbergs decided on the Ritz Towers at Park Avenue and 57th Street.

Kenneth G. Zalkin, a lawyer, died on Saturday at the Ritz Tower in Manhattan.

Could a similar leasing situation explain the similarly curious setback at the fourth floor of the Ritz Tower, at Park Avenue and 57th Street?

The 42-story Ritz Tower has a three-story section on the Park Avenue side that can be split off from the rest of the tower if necessary.

Two months ago, Borders Books and Music opened a four-level store in the Ritz Tower at 57th Street.

The Ritz Tower, a prewar co-op at the corner of East 57th Street and Park Avenue, now requires three times the apartment cost in assets.

Hearst was active in midtown real estate, buying established properties like the Lombardy Hotel and the Ritz Tower in this period.

"I like people," said Mr. Block, 44, a bachelor who has an apartment in the Ritz Tower.