The Whitney Museum of American Art yesterday sold the six brownstones just to the south of its "signature Marcel Breuer building on Madison Avenue as well as two townhouses around the corner on 74th Street," according to an article by Carol Vogel in today's edition of The New York Times.

"The transaction," the article continued, "makes it virtually impossible for the museum to expand in the neighborhood it has called home since 1966. 'This is a major step toward the realization of a long-sought-after new facility that will better serve our artists and the community,' said Adam D. Weinberg, the Whitney's director."

The museum is shifting its focus from the Upper East Side to the meatpacking district, the article said, adding that "Neither the museum nor the buyer would confirm the purchase price, although officials at the Whitney had said that they hoped to raise at least $100 million from the sale of the buildings. The money will go toward the Whitney's endowment and the construction of a new six-story museum designed by Renzo Piano and to be built at the entrance to the High Line, the abandoned elevated railway line that has been transformed into a public park.'

"With the sale, Mr. Weinberg said, the Whitney has raised $475 million of its $680 million goal. The buildings' buyer - JZS Madison LLC - is owned by Daniel E. Straus, who operates a family investment business, said Kathleen Cudahy, his spokeswoman. Mr. Straus plans commercial and residential uses for the property," the article said.

The museum has had many plans to expand on Madison Avenue including three proposed by Michael Graves, then a plan by Rem Koolhaus and finally a plan by Renzo Piano. Mr. Piano is designed the meatpacking district location at the foot of the High Line Park.

Four of the brownstones date from the 1890s and the article said they are "considered architecturally important enough that their facades must remain intact" because they are in the Upper East Side Historic District.

The article said that Ms. Cudahy said that "Mr. Straus is well aware of the public review process for this historic district," and has "hired Beyer Blinder Belle, a Manhattan architecture firm that specializes in preservation, to advise him on the site's possibilities."

"The fate of the Breuer building is uncertain. The Whitney cannot simply sell it, as some people involved with the museum would like to do. When Leonard A. Lauder, the Whitney's chairman emeritus and its largest benefactor, gave the museum $131 million in 2008 - the biggest donation in its history - the money came with the stipulation that the building could not be sold for the foreseeable future, although he declined to specify for how long. Realizing that it cannot afford to run two buildings, the Whitney is in discussions with the Metropolitan Museum of Art about a possible partnership. The arrangement would not take place until the Whitney's new museum is completed in 2015, at which point the Met could embark on a much-needed renovation of its own galleries for modern and contemporary art, temporarily parking its collections at the Whitney," the article said.