Moinian Group Buys Last Office Condo At 3 Columbus Circle, Refinances For $600M
Less than a year after buying SL Green's piece of 3 Columbus Circle, The Moinian Group has taken full control of the office tower.
The family-run real estate firm closed on a $595M commercial mortgage-backed security loan from J.P. Morgan and Deutsche Bank for the 683K SF building where Moinian is headquartered. The loan will retire Moinian's previous $350M CMBS debt on the building.
Moinian, controlled by founder and CEO Joseph Moinian, used a piece of the loan alongside cash equity to buy office anchor VMLY&R — formerly Young & Rubicam — out of its office condo, the last remaining piece of the building that Moinian can control. Last year, Moinian bought SL Green's 48.9% stake in the property for $223M. The price of the condo sale was not disclosed.
“For 20 years, 3 Columbus Circle has been a cornerstone of The Moinian Group’s portfolio and remains a benchmark for the standard of quality and excellence that we aim to achieve,” Moinian said in a release. “Our history with 3 Columbus Circle began at a very different time in the market, so it is especially gratifying to reacquire full control of this beloved property.”
SL Green was brought in as a minority partner in the building, then called 1775 Broadway, to help stave off foreclosure for Moinian in 2011, Bloomberg reports. A Gensler-designed repositioning effort in 2012 helped land it CVS Pharmacy's largest New York City store. The tower is 100% leased today.
CBRE brokers Mary Ann Tighe, Greg Tosco and Lauren Crowley brokered the sale-leaseback transaction for VMLY&R, which will now lease its 214K SF spread at the building.
UPDATE, MARCH 14, 3:45 P.M. ET: This story has been updated with more information about the sale-leaseback deal between Moinian and VMLY&R.
