NEW YORK, Nov 10: The emirate of Dubai announced on Wednesday that it has acquired two of New York’s landmark buildings for $1.1 billion. The emirate’s representative, Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, flew into New York to make the announcement.

The two buildings are known as 230 Park Avenue, the gold-crowned, 34-story tower that sits astride the avenue between 45th and 46th Streets, and the Essex House, one of the grand Art Deco hotels on Central Park south.

Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem said in an interview with the New York Times that he believed that there was still opportunity for growth in New York:

One of Dubai’s companies, Istithmar, closed this week on the $705 million purchase of 230 Park, known variously as the Helmsley Building and the New York Central Building.