JP Morgan Chase entered negotiations with the al-Babtain family in October 1996, hoping to build a new headquarters for themselves on the site, near their existing headquarters at 270 Park Avenue.[1] Bear Stearns signed a 99-year lease for the land beneath the building in 1999 with plans to move its headquarters and most of its 4,500 employees to the new building.[2] Hines Interests managed the development process for Bear Stearns.[18] In mid-2001, before the September 11 attacks, the bank installed a mosaic in its lobby, showing Manhattan's skyline before the World Trade Center was built.[19] It was completed in 2001[5] and opened in 2002.