Brookfield will soon replace Vornado as a partner in Kushner Cos.’ 666 Fifth Ave. and will take the lead on the recladding and redevelopment of the Midtown office tower — but the Qatari Investment Authority won’t be involved.
Kushner Cos., now led by Charlie Kushner and Laurent Morali, will pay $120 million to buy Vornado Realty Trust’s 49.5 percent stake in the office portion of the 40-story tower.
Vornado will remain as the owner of one of the separate retail condominiums in the base of the building.
“There is no truth or validity to Qatar having an investment in the building,” a source familiar with the matter told The Post, in response to a New York Times report.
Qatar does own preferred equity shares in Brookfield’s Manhattan West and Canary Wharf in London, but is not investing in Kushner’s office building, the source insisted.
An investment by a foreign government in the family’s signature tower could prove difficult for Jared Kushner, who resigned his position in the company to work for his father-in-law, President Trump.
It is still unclear what paperwork and funds, if any, have been exchanged between Brookfield, Kushner and Vornado but a formal announcement could be forthcoming as Brookfield operates five public companies.
Vornado has already disclosed the sale amount in its regulatory filings.
The building is also expected to be refinanced now that a solid plan for a partner and its revitalization are in the works as well as the expectation of higher future rents.
The exact details of the redevelopment are also being hashed out, but it is expected that the current white aluminum façade will also be removed and replaced with a glass curtain wall.
Brookfield previously removed the small glass windows at 450 W. 33rd St. and replaced one side of the building with a wall of staircase-like angled glass.
“It is going to be very dramatic and will make it comparable to any new office building,” the source said of the still-to-be-defined 666 remodel.
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With more construction experience in this kind of redevelopment, including its lower façade makeover at Brookfield Place, the Canada-headquartered Brookfield “will be leading the charge, but it will be done collaboratively.”
It will not be a remassing, as a 1,400-foot-tall redo at a cost of $7.5 billon was previously explored — but with the investment of “several hundred millions,” will instead bring the 1950s-era white aluminum building into 2018 and beyond.
Along with technological upgrades, a new lobby, elevators and other tweaks, such as removing dropped ceilings and incorporating current setbacks into usable outdoor terraces, will make its 40 stories more desired by today’s office tenants.
Its few current office tenants will not be moved out of the building but may need to be temporarily relocated within or away from the outer walls while the construction takes place.
A Brookfield spokesperson confirmed that no Qatar-linked entity has any involvement in or even knowledge of this potential transaction.
A Kushner rep had no comment.
