This Week's N.Y. Deal Sheet: StubHub Taking 100K SF From Spotify At 4 WTC
The heat might be making New Yorkers walk slower, but deal volume kept a steady pace this week. Several tenants signed deals for large amounts of office space, while buyers jumped on development sites, multifamily buildings and office assets.
TOP LEASES
StubHub is subleasing space at Silverstein Properties’ 4 World Trade Center, according to a release. The online ticketing platform is taking roughly 100K SF from Spotify, the New York Post reported. StubHub will be able to step into one floor in the building immediately and then take over two more floors at a later date. The company signed for 44K SF in the neighboring 3 World Trade Center last year to establish its headquarters but has already outgrown the space. An existing tenant at 3 World Trade Center is eyeing StubHub’s space for its own expansion, per the Post. Scott Bogetti, Kirill Azovtsev, Michael Bertini, Brad Wolk and Will Jouma of Savills repped StubHub, while Colliers’ Sheena Gohil repped Spotify.
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Two tenants signed leases for a combined 104K SF at 498 Seventh Ave., owned by a partnership of George Comfort & Sons, Loeb Partners Realty and JR AMC. Technology company PubMatic signed a 60K SF direct lease after spending time as a subtenant in the building and will occupy the entire 18th and 19th floors starting in Q1 2025. Engineering consultant Hazen and Sawyer, a tenant since 2011, signed to renew its 44K SF on the 11th floor. The 960K SF building is now 95% occupied following the deals, according to a release. Greg Taubin of Savills repped PubMatic, CD Commercial Real Estate Services’ Curtis Dean repped Hazen and Sawyer and George Comfort & Sons’ Matt Coudert and Andrew Conrad repped building ownership in-house.
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The New York City Police Department has renewed its 52K SF lease at 90 Church St. in Lower Manhattan for one year, Commercial Observer reported. The NYPD moved into the building in 2013 and is subleasing from the New York City Housing Authority. The 15-story, 461K SF building is owned by the U.S. Postal Service. The NYPD’s renewal needs approval and has a public hearing set for Aug. 14, per the Department of Citywide Administrative Services.
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Daiwa Capital Markets is moving into 44K SF at Mitsui Fudosan America’s 1251 Sixth Ave., Bloomberg reported. The subsidiary of Japanese financial giant Daiwa Securities Group will relocate from 32 Old Slip after signing a 20-year lease with another Japanese firm, Commercial Observer reported. Rents on the upper floors of the building are more than $100 per SF, although it is unclear which floors Daiwa Capital Markets plans to occupy. David Falk and Peter Shimkin of Newmark brokered the deal for the landlord, while Erik Schmall and Scott Weiss of Savills worked on behalf of the tenant.
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Empire State Realty Trust has signed advertising technology firm Equativ to 25K SF at 1350 Broadway, Commercial Observer reported. The Paris-based company will move from its current space at 498 Seventh Ave. for the 10-year lease. Asking rents were in the low $60s per SF. Shanae Ursini repped the landlord in-house along with Robert Lowe, Ron Lo Russo, Dan Organ, Peter Kerans and Samantha Perlma of Cushman & Wakefield. Jim Wenk, Scott Bogetti and Alex Redlus of Savills repped the tenant.
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Affordable housing provider Phipps Houses is moving into 39K SF at the Feil Organization’s 257 Park Avenue South, Commercial Observer reported. The firm will occupy the 11th, 12th and 15th floors of the 20-story building on a 32-year lease. Feil had in-house representation from Andrew Wiener and Rob Fisher, while Adams & Co.’s David Levy, Alan Bonett and Brad Cohn repped Phipps Houses. The deal is the second 30-plus-year lease that Feil has signed this year, following a three-decade-long lease with the Archdiocese of New York at 488 Madison Ave. in January.
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Paramount Group has signed Virtus Investment Partners to 41K SF at 1301 Sixth Ave., Commercial Observer reported. Virtus is relocating from 31 W. 52nd St., also owned by Paramount Group, where its lease is set to expire in 2025. Other tenants in the building include Citizens Bank and Nexstar Media Group. Silvio Petriello and Michael Puzzo of CBRE and Jim Schoolfield of JLL repped the tenant, while Frank Doyle, David Kleiner and Andrew Coe — also of JLL — repped the landlord.
TOP SALES
Wavecrest Management has acquired two multifamily properties in Harlem from a subsidiary of Monadnock Development, public records show. The rent-stabilized buildings, 111 and 148 W. 141st St., span 26K SF in total and sold for $25.2M, according to a release. Schuckman Realty’s Sam Schertz brokered the deal.
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TF Cornerstone has acquired two properties spanning 357K SF in Greenpoint for $175M from Pearl Realty Management, The Real Deal reported. The waterfront lots at 43-57 W. St. and 2-24 Oak St. are zoned for as-of-right condo development but could benefit from the new 485-x tax abatement, per TRD. The lots sit opposite one another on top of a former brownfield cleanup site, Commercial Observer reported. Pearl Realty applied to start cleanup work, including removing the heavy metals from the soil, in 2014 and carried out that work over five months in 2019.
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The Dermot Co. has acquired an art deco skyscraper in Manhattan’s Financial District for $370M, Crain’s New York Business reported. DTH Capital was the seller on the deal for 20 Exchange Place, a 57-story, 767-unit apartment tower. The price works out at $480K per unit, making it one of the year’s most expensive multifamily deals. The landmarked building was first built in 1931. The Dermot Co. partnered with PGGM on the acquisition. The most recent financing deal for the tower was in 2017, when DTH Capital borrowed $268.7M from Berkadia, per Commercial Observer.
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The Vanbarton Group has sold a 15-story former office building at 17 John St. for $64M, Crain’s New York Business reported. The buyer was an LLC named 17 John Property Owners, per public records. The building currently serves as a short-term rental property operated by Sonder. It has 79 units between its seventh and 15th floors. Its lower floors feature office space, storage rooms, a fitness center and a lounge in addition to a lobby.
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Coworking firm Jay Suites has acquired a 12-story, 142K SF office building in Midtown South for $35M, Crain’s reported. Fraglow Realty sold the building at 8 W. 38th St., which was built in 1913. Fraglow has owned the property since at least 2001. The property is 80% leased and Jay Suites plans to occupy the only vacant floor, leaving current tenants in place. Randy Modell and Steven Hornstock of ABS Partners Real Estate repped the seller, while Ron Solarz of Newmark repped the buyer.
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Ryco Capital continued its multifamily spending spree, acquiring a handful of properties on Second Avenue, PincusCo reports. The developer paid $132M in total for the prewar East Village rental buildings at 127, 129, 131, 141, 145, 149, 151, 156 and 157 Second Ave., according to Crain’s. The sales of 127-129 Second Ave. and 36 St. Marks Place, which took place earlier this summer, totaled $29M and are part of this deal, with the remaining properties selling for a combined total of $103M. The seller was Jonis Realty, the firm of the Halegua family.
TOP FINANCING DEALS
Mack Real Estate Group scored an $89M refinancing deal for 50 N. 5th St. in Williamsburg, PincusCo reported. JPMorgan Chase provided the financing for the 246K SF, 232-unit multifamily building.
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TPG Real Estate Credit has agreed to lend $173M to a joint venture of The Loketch Group, The Joyland Group and Meral Property Group for a 270-unit mixed-use development in Williamsburg, according to a release. The bridge financing is for 28 Boerum St., which has a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units as well as amenities including fitness centers, bike storage, a rooftop deck and a pet spa. A JLL Capital Markets team led by Aaron Niedermayer and Ethan Stanton repped the borrower.
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Victor Sigoura's Legion Investment Group has landed a $195.1M loan from Deutsche Bank to finance a Carnegie Hill mixed-use project, PincusCo reported. The project, which is located at 1124 Madison Ave., spans 111K SF and will feature 22 units, likely luxury condos, above two stories of retail space.
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A shell company headed up by Jacob Aini and Raizada Vaid scored a $88.5M refinancing from Morgan Stanley, Commercial Observer reported. The sum will refinance the LLC’s interest in a 197-room boutique hotel in the Garment District and comes from the Morgan Stanley private bank division. The loan for the Refinery Hotel, at 63 W. 38th St., is split into a $70M senior loan and an $18.7M subordinate loan. It replaces a $70M loan from Deutsche Bank in 2014. The hotel first opened in 1912.
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New Empire Corp. netted a $54M loan from Axos Bank to fund the development of a new mixed-use building in Long Island City, Crain’s reported. The loan covers a development on two lots at 24-01 Queens Plaza North and 41-43 24th St. The developer’s plan is to build a 117-unit, 94K SF property on the two lots, per PincusCo.
