By Dan Orlando
The last remaining part of the $100 million Lee Estate Portfolio has been sold
The Farm Country supermarket paid $8 million to buy its current home at 2203-2225 Linden Boulevard in East New York, Brooklyn.
Farm Country, which occupies the entire 26,800 s/f property under a net lease, has agreed to purchase the property from the Lee Estate, which maintained ownership of a diverse portfolio of properties spanning Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Ulster Counties.
The majority of the portfolio, which recently traded, was previously owned by the late Myron Liebowitz, locally known as Mike Lee, and his late wife, Ulla.
Adelaide Polsinelli, principal and senior managing director, and Ben Tapper, principal and senior Director, at Eastern Consolidated — who represented the Lee Estate and the purchasers in the previous transaction — also exclusively represented the Lee Estate and procured Farm Country in this Linden Boulevard sale.
“There are two messages here that are important,” Polsinelli told Real Estate Weekly. “One is how significant it is for a retailer to own their real estate. They’re in control of their future, they’re in control of what they want to do with their business. They’re not beholden to a landlord that can get a new tenant with a different rent.”
“This business owner now can make capital improvements to the property.” Polsinelli added. “Maybe grow his or her business, maybe add on to it. Now he or she has the flexibility to do that.”
The other message? Retailers are looking to make a big investment in an area that was once considered “tertiary.” “This sale speaks volumes to the future viability of this area as a retail destination,” Polsinelli said.
The one-story East New York building and its parking lot total 1.5 acres and are bounded by Hegeman Avenue to the north, Linden Boulevard to the south, Ashford Street to the east, and Warwick Street to the west.
Earlier this year, Polsinelli and Tapper represented the Lee Estate and procured the buyers of 17 properties from the Lee Estate’s portfolio in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, one of the largest number of lots sold simultaneously in Williamsburg’s history.
Other properties in the portfolio include: a three-story residential building in East Williamsburg, a co-op apartment on the Upper East Side, and a 108-acre site in Ulster County.
Added Tapper: “We are thrilled to close the book on one of the last chapters of this incredible portfolio, which … represents one of the most diversified collections that we have had the privilege to work on.”
Chris Matousek, director of financial services at Eastern Consolidated, served as the analyst on the Farm Country transaction.
