DEVELOPMENT
RXR is renovating 75 Rockefeller Plaza, modernizing the lobby and putting in new elevator cabs, building systems, outdoor areas, and green space, all designed by Kohn Pederson Fox Associates. Construction will start July 14 and deliver fall 2015, and the limestone facade will stay. Cushman & Wakefield's Bruce Mosler, Tara Stacom, Mikael Nahmias, Ethan Silverstein, and Peter Alden will handle leasing for the 620k SF.
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As Seaside Heights, NJ's Sandy-damaged Jet Star roller coaster is being demolished, the New York City Economic Development Corp today announced that a roller coaster called Thunderbolt will open in Coney Island for next years summer season, running at 65 mph, rising 125 feet, and traversing 2,000 feet. Central Amusement International (the org behind Luna Park) will build and operate it.
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Equity One broke ground on the 133k SF Broadway Plaza on 230th Street between Broadway and the Major Deegan Expressway. Lease negotiations are under way with national retailers to locate in the $54M, two-story, multi-tenant retail development.
LEASING
Mediaocean leased 88k SF at RXR's 620 Ave of the Americas for 14 years and will relocate from 115 W 18th St. CBRE's Sacha Zarba, Freddie Fackelmayer, Ben Friedland, Gregory Tosko, and Greg Maurer-Hollaender repped the tenant, and Bill Elder repped RXR internally.
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Planet Fitness leased 29k SF at Wolfson Group's 25 Broadway (formerly Crunch) and 29k SF at The Winter Org's 423 W 55th St (formerly Vebo Fitness). Crown Retail Services' Jordan Baker and Richard Chera repped the tenant. CBRE's Bruce Surry, Richard Levine, and Gary Kamenetsky repped Wolfson, and Rob Fink repped Winter internally.
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Broad Street Development's Daniel Blanco, David Israni, and Ramona Huegel leased 15k SF to the Corporation for Supportive Housing (repped by Studley's David Carlos and relocating from 50 Broadway) at 61 Broadway and 10k SF to CSA Group (repped by Colliers' Seth Hecht) at 55 Broadway. Murphy & McGonigle also renewed 5,800 SF there. Dom N' Tom, repped by Colliers' Eric Ferriello, leased 5,300 SF, and Beach RE, repped by Cushman & Wakefield's Frank Centro, leased 5,000 SF, also at 55 Broadway.
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Dragon Sphere NY signed a 10-year lease for 12k SF of retail space at 151 W 30th St for its third location. Citywide Properties' Maria Majerovsky and Sasha Majerovsky repped the tenant and landlord.
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New York Commercial Real Estate Services' James Famularo repped the landlord and tenant in the lease of the 7,500 SF former Vintage bar space in the Koustis family's 753 Ninth Ave to Oxido Corp, which also owns the East Village's Eastern Block and Bedlam. Sources tell us Anderson Cooper and his boyfriend Ben Maisini are behind the entity and opening a new gay bar there.
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Ultrafabrics, repped by Howard Properties' Howard Greenberg, leased 16k SF at 4 Warehouse Lane in Mack-Cali Realty Corp's Elmsford Distribution Center in New Jersey.
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Liberty Paper & Plastic, repped by Kalmon Dolgin Affiliates' Joel Kohn and Avrum Lieber, leased 5,000 SF at 191 Clifton Place in Bed-Stuy. KDA's Jacques Wadler and Vincent Lopez repped the landlord.
SALES
Carey Watermark Investors Inc acquired the 226-room Holiday Inn Manhattan 6th Avenue at 125 W 26th St in New York City, which delivered in '08. It paid $113M and will invest $8.4M in capital improvements and for acquisition costs. It used $80M debt.
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Gaia Real Estate Investments, Phoenix Insurance, and Menora Mivtachim Insurance acquired the 250k SF office building at 200 Plaza Drive in Secaucus from Hartz Mountain Industries. It's fully leased to Ernst & Young. CBRE's Jeffrey Dunne, Kevin Welsh, and Brian Schulz repped Gaia and Hartz Mountain.
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An investor group led by Milestone Equities' Joseph Betesh bought The Bowery Portfolio (143k SF at 83, 85, 88, 103, 105, 219, 221, 262, 276, 280, and 284 Bowery between Houston and Canal Streets) for $62M cash from a family trust. Massey Knakal's John Ciraulo, Michael Azarian, Robert Burton, and Michael DeCheser repped the seller.
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Rosewood Realty'sAaron Jungreis arranged a local family investor in its $11.3M sale of 1-15 Bennett Ave (56 apartments and five commercial units) in Washington Heights.Weissman Realty Group's Rafael Toledano repped the buyer. Aaron also repped the buyer and seller in the $9.6M sale of 315 E 10th St (12 new apartments).
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Hudson Cos paid a private investor $11M for 626 Flatbush Ave in Prospect Lefferts Gardens. A 254-unit apartment building is planned there, 20% of which will be affordable. Ariel Property Advisors' Jonathan Berman, Shimon Shkury, Michael Tortorici, and Victor Sozio repped the seller.
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Gebroe-Hammer Associates' Greg Pine and Nicholas Nicolaou repped the seller and buyer in the $8.7M sale of 50 Anderson St (29 apartments) and 430 Union St (37 units) in Hackensack.
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The Besen Group'sLev Mavashev and Glenn Raff repped the buyer and seller in the $6.5M sale of Brooklyn's 331 Keap St (35 apartments and one commercial unit).
BUSINESS
Citi and L+M Development Partners launched a second, $150M New York Affordable Housing Preservation Fund to use private equity to stem the loss of affordable housing in NYC, particularly in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.
FINANCING
Beech Street Capital closed a $38M Freddie Mac Capital Markets Execution refi for Heatherwood's 95-apartment Union in Williamsburg. Meridian Capital Group's Aaron Appel originated the loan. Heatherwood developed the property in 2011 without financing and is using the 10-year, fixed-rate loan to free up some cash.
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Berkadia Commercial Mortgage'sJay Healy and Christopher Fenton originated $31M through HUD's 232/223(a)(7) program to refi nine skilled-nursing facilities in Connecticut, including Hartford's 232-bed Chelsea Place Care Center and 144-bed Trinity Hill Care Center. The 24-year, fixed-rate loan allows iCare Management to finance $1M in improvements and save $500k in annual debt service.
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SPI Holdings, repped by HFF's Steven Klein, borrowed $12.5M from RBS for the 24k SF retail condo at 808 Broadway, triple-net-leased to New York Costumes.
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HKS Capital Partners' Ayush Kapahi arranged a $6.6M, seven-year loan for a 14-unit multi-family property on the Lower East Side.
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GCP Capital Group'sAdam Hakim arranged a $5M loan for a five-story apartment building (15 units) in Manhattan.
Will you ride the Thunderbolt? Bisnow field trip next summer? Email amanda.metcalf@bisnow.com.
