On February 17, just days before the news emerged of a purported “agreement” between the US General Services Administration (GSA) and the Pakistani government to redevelop the Roosevelt Hotel, Muhammad Ali, an advisor to Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, shared insights on the matter during an interview with Pakistani news outlet AAJ.
Ali explained that the future of the Roosevelt Hotel would likely involve privatization through a joint venture or a redevelopment model, rather than being sold outright. He proposed a partnership where Pakistan would offer the land while a private entity would invest approximately $1 billion into transforming the historic, yet currently vacant, 100-year-old hotel into a skyscraper. This property is technically under the ownership of Pakistan International Airlines.
However, the concept of a joint venture has been circulating for around five years without materializing. There is skepticism about how the GSA, a federal agency that traditionally manages properties for government employees, could play a significant role in Pakistan’s struggles to monetize the Roosevelt Hotel. The need is pressing for Pakistan, as the proceeds are intended to help settle a $7 billion debt with the International Monetary Fund.
The Roosevelt Hotel occupies a prime piece of real estate on Madison Avenue, nestled between East 44th and 45th streets in Manhattan. This has left many real estate experts puzzled about the redevelopment plans.
The announcement of the agreement on Thursday seemed to take Washington by surprise. When approached for comments, the White House redirected inquiries to the GSA, which later issued a statement on Friday morning. The statement, however, did little to clarify how the GSA could succeed where numerous brokerages, banks, and advisors have not.
Edward C. Forst, the GSA Administrator, remarked, “This agreement embodies the Trump Administration’s dedication to diplomacy and our nation’s economic prosperity. GSA looks forward to working with the government of Pakistan on this project.”
Thanks for nothing, guys! A GSA source told us on background that the “memorandum of understanding” merely “establishes a structured, time-bound framework for joint evaluation of the technical, commercial, and economic parameters of cooperation, reflecting a shared commitment to transparent, disciplined, and mutually beneficial progress.”
And, given the Roosevelt’s prime location and “the complexity of New York zoning and municipal processes, institutional coordination aims to reduce execution risk, enhance regulatory clarity, and maximize transaction value.”
Got it?
In other words, the Roosevelt site’s future remains as murky as ever.
The Pakistani owners have led Roosevelt-watchers on a merry chase ever since the pandemic forced the closing of the Roosevelt in 2020.
In February 2024, we first reported that PIA had tapped prominent brokerage JLL to market the Roosevelt site to developers and investors.
In April 2025, when the 1,000 room hotel was still occupied by migrants, Bloomberg reported a company called Burkhan World Investments pitched the Pakistan government on a deal to partner in a joint venture to redevelop the property in a scheme where PIA would retain 50% ownership.
Two months later, Realty Check reported that the investment company never approached anyone at PIA about the idea, but submitted it only to a state privatization committee. Nothing more came of it.
Although Tishman Speyer, SL Green and Related Companies were said to have expressed interest, JLL and PIA went their separate ways last summer for reasons never made fully clear.
Meanwhile, Pakistani “sources” told journalists that the Roosevelt would be renovated and reopened as a hotel — an idea that drew hoots from insiders who said it would take at least a year to make the hotel habitable again.
Next, in November, Saudi Arabia-based daily Arab News reported that with JLL out of the picture, PIA was “weighing proposals from seven potential groups” to advise on the hotel and facilitate any deal. Realty Check next reported the likely choice of a consortium would be led by Morgan Stanley and include CBRE.
Nothing came of that, either.
Then came last week’s vague announcement of US-Pakistani cooperation. President Trump’s special envoy Steven Witkoff, a veteran of Big Apple real estate wars, brokered the deal.
Surely he knows something we don’t?
