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March 24, 2009
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PECKAR ON CONSTRUCTION; BRONX'S BANKNOTE
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After over three decades in the industry, Peckar & Abramson construction attorney Bob Peckar has seen NYC's ups and downs. In the '70s, the city was short on funds; in the early '90s, it was the private sector. Now, during our visit to his 41 Madison office, he tells us both are watching their wallets.
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"Buildings are dying on the vine," he says. Forget $500M mega-developments; banks have trouble syndicating loans. Another trend: the intrusion of non-union builders and developers. Their projects may seem cheaper, but ultimately they don't know how to work in NYC like unions do, Bob say. He's working with the Building Trades Employers Association as General Counsel to encourage cooperation between unions and construction managers to achieve significant savings to compete with non-union contractors.
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Bob (with partners Steven Charney and Paul Monte) says younger partners are taking business to new heights. Although he's not retiring soon, Bob's taking the time to enjoy his art passion (the Rutgers art history major paints, and frequents museums, with wife Maxine) and spend time with his two granddaughters. He's also just returned from a vacation to Thailand, Burma, and Laos.
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| BANKNOTE NEARS COMPLETION |
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With Taconic Investment Partners' and Denham Wolf's BankNote building in Hunts Point, Bronx, nearing its Q3 completion, we stopped by the 405k SF adaptive reuse for an update. Denham Wolf's Sarah Eisinger, with colleague Stephen Powers, tells us that that the JV is in the final stages of replacing the 350 windows with operable, double-pane Low-E windows (which reduce heat loss); has finished façade repointing; is rolling out new bathrooms and now taking the scaffolding down.
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Next step of the $25M project: turning the once-loading dock/passenger entrance into a lobby for its Lafayette Wing, making it more transparent and accessible; and, finishing new bathrooms, common corridors, building systems and elevators. The building, once a currency-printing facility, was originally built like a fortress with non-apparent entrances, which the JV wants to change. It's reaching out to businesses, restaurants, and other tenants that want to take advantage of Empire Zone benefits, which could reduce net rent to under $12 PSF.
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While the project has drawn attention from small biz, non-profits, arts organizations, and retail, it's receiving increased interest from charter, independent, and public schools. (We'll say it again: Children love facade repointing.) There aren't enough seats for students in the South Bronx, and BankNote has the rare large blocks (5k to 200k SF) that schools need. It's already home to the JVL Wildcat charter school, which she notes is in the process of renewing its 28k SF lease.
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