Is the Imperiled Four Seasons Already Looking for a New Home?

Today the rumormill brings speculation that the Four Seasons is already preparing for the day its lease expires. Restaurant co-owners Julian Niccolini and Alex von Bidder were spotted in hardhats at the 432 Park Avenue construction site, where a crew is building "the tallest residential building in the Western Hemisphere." Their lease in the Seagram's building isn't up until 2016, but speculation has been swirling that the restaurant will be forced out by a hefty rent hike. Niccolini and von Bidder explained their visit to the construction site, saying that the developer is a "lifelong friend of the Four Seasons. When he offered us a tour, we jumped at the chance to take selfies for Facebook." Still, the luxe space would make sense. It's just up Park Avenue from the restaurant's current home and the building is reported to have a restaurant planned on a lower floor.