â—Źmassey knakal
Coney Island development site pitched at $40M
Massey Knakal has been retained to sell the Coney Island Avenue Portfolio, consisting of 18 tax lots located on the same block along Coney Island Avenue, Cortelyou Road and East 9th Street in Brooklyn’s Ditmas Park neighborhood.
The asking price of the portfolio is $40 million.
Combined, the 18 properties have a lot size of 78,011 s/f. They contain 135,000 commercial buildable square feet and 298,000 community facility buildable square feet.
There is a mix of garages, warehouses, vacant land, parking lots, multifamily walk-ups and mixed-use properties currently on the lots.
Massey Knakal’s Nick Mahedy, who is exclusively marketing the portfolio, believes it has significant development potential.
“Just six blocks away from the Cortelyou Road Q train station on a busy commercial strip, this site has unlimited potential to add value to the community,” said Mahedy.
â—Ź savills
MAve Hotel fetches $28M
Savills managed the sale of a fee-simple interest in the MAve Hotel to MAve Investors LLC for $28.5 million.
The MAve is a 72-room, 12-story boutique hotel at 62 Madison Avenue on the corner of 27th Street.
One block north of Madison Square Park and the Flatiron Building, the property is situated in the NoMad submarket of the Flatiron district.
“This acquisition presents the buyer with an outstanding opportunity to reposition the property,” said Justin Magazine, Savills vice president and leader of the Savills NY hospitality practice. “The retail component also brings considerable upside to the transaction.”
“Coming at just below $30 million, this sale shows that pricing is strong in New York City’s hospitality marketplace,” he said.
Formerly known as the Madison Hotel, the property has a lobby on the first floor that includes vacant, corner retail space suitable for a café, bar or retail. The retail area has store frontage on both Madison Ave and 27th Street, and a separate entrance off Madison Avenue.
Floors two through twelve include guestrooms and a penthouse suite, along with a fitness center. In 2009, the hotel underwent a gut renovation valued at approximately $7 million.
After several years of going through the court system, the hotel was sold on a post-bankruptcy basis.
â—Ź eastern consolidated
Square deal on trophy building
The trophy building where popular international foot retailer GEOX occupies the retail store at 862 Broadway at the north end of Union Square is for sale.
The 7,000 s/f four-story walk-up, opposite Paragon Sports, and a block south of ABC Carpets, is on the market priced at $24 million.
Eastern Consolidated senior director Adelaide Polsinelli is marketing the building, whose second floor is tenanted by Prana Yoga, one of the top 25 yoga studios in the world ranked by Travel & Leisure Magazine, and whose two upper floors are floor-through luxury loft apartments
“The rule of location, location, location defines this asset,” said Polsinelli, “since one would be hard pressed to own real estate in a more ideal location than Union Square, arguably the one of the most vibrant and exciting of all New York City’s neighborhoods.”
Re-built in 2004 with new electrical wiring, sprinklers, plumbing and HVAC systems, the building comes with 11,200 s/f of unused air rights.
â—Ź cushman & wakefield
Merck campus for sale
Cushman & Wakefield has been retained for the sale of the one million-square-foot world headquarters corporate campus of Merck in Whitehouse Station, N.J.
The disposition is part of Merck’s announced plans to consolidate New Jersey operations. Cushman & Wakefield’s Metropolitan Area Capital Markets Group (CMG) is heading the assignment.
“Every major corporate campus in New Jersey over the past three decades has either been repurposed to meet the needs of a growing corporation’s new headquarters or positioned for innovative reuse,” said Andrew Merin, a vice chairman of the firm.
Designed by architect Kevin Roche, the Merck property is one of the most recognized corporate facilities in the region.
Completed in 1992, the three-story Class A office facility contains one million square feet above two levels of covered parking for 1,600 spaces.
It has a five-story granite and glass lobby and an atrium, a 900-seat cafeteria, multi-level conference center featuring a 250-seat auditorium, a fully equipped fitness center and a 35,000 s/f data center with raised floors.
The building is set on a 500-acre campus that includes an on-site solar farm, a 25,000 s/f childcare center, a basketball court, tennis courts, ball fields and a helipad.
National and international firms in the area include including Exxon Mobil, Chubb Insurance, A.M. Best, Ingersoll Rand and New York Life.
â—Źmadison international realty
Saks Fifth in the bag
Madison International Realty has acquired a 26% ownership interest in two California properties held by a closed-end fund sponsored by Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management.
The purchase price was not disclosed.
The portfolio consists of two properties: the 111,775 s/f Saks Fifth Avenue Store in San Francisco and a 315,450 s/f research and development center in San Jose.
“We were able to provide an exit strategy for existing investors while acquiring an interest in two high-quality assets located in major growth areas leased to long-term tenants,” said Ronald M. Dickerman, president of Madison International Realty.
“This transaction is an excellent fit with Madison’s specialized investment strategy.”
â—ŹMission Capital Advisors
Mission accomplished for Freddie
Mission Capital Advisors advised Freddie Mac in its first multifamily bulk loan sale.
An affiliate of Colony Capital purchased the portfolio of 27 performing mortgage loans with an unpaid principal balance of $195 million, which included multifamily, student housing and assisted-living facilities.
“The deep investor interest in this performing transaction, which ran the spectrum from balance sheet lenders to private equity funds, was further proof that the U.S. real estate recovery is gathering steam despite recent interest rate volatility,” said Will Sledge, managing director of Mission.
“We were extremely pleased with the outcome and firmly believe that fundamentals versus merely low absolute rates are now driving the market.”
â—Ź vornado realty trust
Extell’s $194M garage deal
Extell has reached a deal with Vornado to sell the land and air rights above a development site at 255 West 58th Street.
Vornado paid $194 million for the 137,000 s/f, allowing it to complete the assemblage and start work on a 920 foot luxury residential condo designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects.
The real estate power houses have been involved in ongoing litigation over the site. Extell is planning its own condo on the same block.
Extell said all of litigation over the site has been settled. “We are thankful that our differences with Vornado have been resolved amicably. We wish them great success,” said Gary Barnett, president.
“This clears the way for the development of two great buildings that will enhance the skyline and contribute greatly to the economy of New York City.”
