There is buzz about Lower Manhattan. Today we are witnessing a resurgence of new office buildings, waterfront condominiums, market-rate and affordable rental apartments, new hotels, and retailers in the third-largest business district in the country and the fastest-growing residential community in the five boroughs.

On November 29, the ceremonial groundbreaking was held for the 43-story world headquarters for Goldman Sachs, a 1.9 million-square-foot building on site 26, the last commercial parcel in Battery Park City, at West Street between Vesey and Murray streets.The building represents Lower Manhattan’s first new office headquarters in more than 16 years.

This spring, the first tenants will move into the Albanese Organization’s second residential rental tower, in Battery Park City. The Verdesian is a 24-story tower with 253 rental apartments being developed by Albanese in partnership with Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company. Later in the year,Albanese will break ground on its third high-rise, on the last residential site in the neighborhood. It will be a 32-story tower on Battery Place between Second and Third Place.

Last month, the Sheldrake Organization closed on financing for its 30-story building with 300 family-size condominium developments at Site 16/17 between the Irish Hunger Memorial and the newly created Teardrop Park. Later this year, the 35-story Millennium Tower condominium residence, adjacent to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residence, will welcome its first residents. According to trade sources, negotiations are taking place with Millstein Properties to construct two residential building on site 23/24. Construction is scheduled to begin at Edward J. Minskoff Equities’ mixed-use development of three buildings at 270 Greenwich St., on a full-block site formerly owned by the city.The project will include a 220-unit residential condominium tower and a 163-unit rental tower, which will provide a mixture of market-rate, moderate, and low-income housing. When completed, the retail center will house a Whole Foods Market, a Barnes & Noble Superstore, Bank of America retail branch, and a 400-space underground parking garage.

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In December, the residential rental office opened at 100 Maiden Lane, the former headquarters of Caldwalder Wickersham & Taft. The law firm sold the building in 2004 to the Lalezarian Developers. Liberty Bond financing allowed the developers to convert the Art Deco tower in the heart of the Seaport area, at the corner of Pearl Street. Last month, Kent Swig’s Swig Equities, one of the largest owners of office buildings in Lower Manhattan, bought 90 Broad Street from Rockrose Development. In September, Swig Equities bought 25 Exchange Place, the converted 1901 building with 346 rental units, from Crescent Heights.

Nathan Berman’s Metro Loft retained Cushman & Wakefield to market the former office building, which was the converted into a residential tower at 17 John Street. According to trade sources, Metro Loft plans to begin conversion early next year of the 25-story building at 67 Wall St., the home of Lower Manhattan’s BMW auto dealer, into another residential tower.

This month a joint venture of the Hakimian Organization and Peykar Brothers Realty are expected to close on the purchase of the 36-story, 660,000-square-foot, class A office building, built in 1987, at 75 Wall St. Industry leaders say they are paying about $180 million, or $280 a square foot, to the seller, JP Morgan Chase. As reported in Real Estate Finance & Investment, the partnership is considering converting the lower third of the tower into a hotel and the balance of the property into residential space. Owners of buildings in Lower Manhattan must secure building permits prior to June 30, 2006, one year earlier than originally scheduled, to be entitled to 421g tax exemption incentives for converting commercial buildings to residential or mixed-use. Under the program, the development gains an exemption and abatement of real estate taxes. Last month, Reckson sold the 463,000-square-foot office building at 100 Wall St. to an unidentified buyer for a price of $134 million, or $290 a square foot.

In November, the project known as Historic Front Street, the restoration of 11 18th-century landmark buildings and the construction of three new buildings – on a vacant lot covering virtually the entire block of Front Street between Beekman Street and Peck Slip in an area known as Seaport North – was completed. The restoration has resulted in 96 residential rental apartments and 13 retail spaces on the ground floor. Historic Front Street is a project of Yarrow LLC, a company comprised of the principals of Sciame Development, Zuberry Associates LLC, and the Durst Organization. The developers received $46.3 million in Liberty Bonds, with the restriction that all the apartments be rental units.

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Last month, Tamir and Alex Sapir and S. Lawrence Davis, principals of SDS Investment, closed on the purchase of a residential development site at 15 William St. at the northwest corner of William and Beaver streets. They paid $90 million to the Manocherian family, which originally planned to build a residential rental tower on the site. Construction is under way for a 48-story residential condominium tower with about 300 units.

This month Leviev Boymelgreen will open its sales office for the residential condominiums at their latest conversion, the 700,000-square-foot building at 20 Pine St. It purchased the property in December 2004 from a partnership of Jack Resnick & Sons and Lawrence Rubin. Later this year the first tenants are expected to move into a Leviev Boymelgreen conversion at 15 Broad Street, across from the New York Stock Exchange.

The Moinian Group has owned property in Lower Manhattan since the early 1990s. Last year it opened the sales office for its latest condominium development at the site of the former Downtown Athletic League. The Moinian Group is planning to build a 53-story mixed-use tower one block south of ground zero at 123 Washington St. The project is adjacent to the south side of the former Deutsche Bank building, which is in the process of being demolished. The project would include 180 residential condo apartments and a 220-room hotel on the lower 25 floors of the building. In April, the company applied for $147 million in Liberty Bonds for the project.

In November, the former eight-story, landmark building known as the Keuffel & Esser building, built in 1892 at 127 Fulton St., was acquired for $8.5 million by 127 Fulton LLC, whose principal is Andy Kettler. The new owner plans to convert the property into six residential condominiums. Early this year, the first residents will be moving into the Koeppel Companies’ conversion of their nine-story office building at 130 Fulton St.

On the site of Buster’s Garage, a sports bar at 180 West Broadway, R Squared LLP, whose principals include Michael and Gregg Rechler, plan to build a residential building. Later this month, the city’s Board of Standards and Appeals is expected to issue a decision on the number of residential units that can be built on the site. The developers last month applied for 30 units on a 12-story project.

The vibrancy of the city, the strength of the economy, and the desire of thousands of people to live in New York City has aided in the resurgence of Lower Manhattan and Battery Park City.

Mr. Stoler is a television broadcaster and senior vice president at First American Title Insurance Company of New York. He can be reached at mstoler@firstam.com.