Equity Residential is taking over a major stalled site on the Upper West Side for $76.5 million.
The Chicago-based company headed by Sam Zell signed a 99-year lease for the site, at 170 Amsterdam Ave., with American Continental Properties.
While transfer taxes were paid on the entire amount it is unclear if a yearly rental is also involved or if that is the total payment.
The 20,700-square-foot site is on the westerly side of Amsterdam Avenue between W. 66th and 67th streets. According to documents, the lot has at least 238,893 square feet of development rights.
“We did just sign an agreement with the intention of building a tower,” said Equity spokesman Marty McKenna, who declined to discuss the finances. He did tell us the new building will have about 8,500 square feet of retail and 230 apartments.
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One of the last remaining boutique rental buildings in the heart of the Upper East Side went into contract to be sold last week to Vornado Realty Trust for approximately $170 million.
The 1913-era building at 11 East 68th Street has two residential wings with a canopied entrance on E. 68th St. and 5,000 square feet of stores along Madison Ave. — with 100 feet of frontage.
Retail tenants Malo and Joseph have leases coming up next summer, which made the building a duel target for prospective buyers that included the Cayre family, Howard Lorber, Area and Stonehenge. The retail alone was valued at around $75 million, sources said, while the apartments were pegged at $2,440 per foot, or $2.4 million per unit.
In a noteworthy play, two groups of bidders wanted to secure the 41-apartment property — with 31 large apartments at market rents as high as $35,000 a month — as an abode for “friends and family.”
Adam Spies and Douglas Harmon of Eastdil Secured marketed the building for the sellers, ABRO Management, which bought it in 2008 near the top of the market for $191.8 million and will have “a continuing interest.”
Five thousand square feet of additional air rights could also prompt a luxurious penthouse addition to a property where air-conditioner units still jut from walls.
Vornado has been active in both the retail and residential markets, previously converting 40 E. 66th St., and constructing the Beacon, aka Bloomberg Tower, at 731 Lexington, and is working on the teardown and new building at 220 Central Park South.
Also in the area, Harry Macklowe will convert his $253 million purchase of 737 Park Ave. and the $70 million 150 E. 72nd St. The Apthorp sale in March of 2007 holds the record at $426 million for 163 units at 390 West End Ave. and was marketed by Harmon.
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Right across Madison, high-end men’s bespoke shoe store John Lobb and similarly luxurious custom suit maker Cesare Attolini will move into 798-800 Madison Ave. in the base of the apartment building at the northeast corner of East 67th Street.
Brad Siderow of The Siderow Organization had the assignment from The Parkoff Organization to fill the duplex store spread.
Siderow said he cold-called on the Lobb shop at the Carlton House and spoke with Paul Goring, the head of North America. They needed to move due to the sale of that building to Extell and its upcoming conversion.
At the new 800 Madison location, Lobb will have 1,800 square feet including the majority of the lower level for its shoe storage.
Siderow was also a client of Naples-based Attolini, which to date only had a city showroom that Siderow had previously arranged. With everyone recognizing the synergies of the two high end men’s retailers co-locating, Siderow simultaneously worked out a second deal for 2,800 square feet at 798 Mad with Enrico Libani, head of North America for Attolini, where they will have the majority of the second floor for a private client area.
The two companies worked out the site of the dividing wall so both will have some space on the ground, second and lower levels. With work underway, a dual opening will take place next year.
The asking rent for the combined space was $1.2 million.
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The children’s play space, apple seeds, will be adding a 7,300-square-foot location at 200 West End Ave.
Debra Larsen of Centric Real Estate Advisors represented apple seeds, which has a popular flagship in the Chelsea/Flatiron area.
Ross Kaplan of Newmark Knight Frank Retail represented The Klein Group ownership in the 15-year lease that includes both ground and lower level space.
Architect, Suzie Mariniello, RA of MS Architecture and contractor Constructomics will be creating the new interactive play, party and class spaces.
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The Burlington Coat Factory has signed a major deal for 74,000 square feet at the Gateway Center at Bronx Terminal Market near Yankee Stadium.
Cliff Simon of CNS Real Estate represented Burlington while Peter Ripka and John Hanlon of Ripco Real Estate represented the mall owners, Related Retail.
The mall is now 95 percent leased, according to Related Retail’s president Glenn Goldstein.
When it opens next spring on the second floor, the Burlington location will be the retailer’s first in The Bronx and third store in the city.
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Rumors of its sale are not true, said Millennium Partners’ Phil Aarons of the Ritz Carlton at 50 Central Park South. But, he said, the BLT Market restaurant is being closed and will get a facelift.
According to Aarons, the restaurant is being shuttered in order to reposition it. “The whole food and beverage will be re-configured and we may be operating it more ourselves,” Aarons said. While the lobby bar will stay the same, the restaurant will occupy a bit less space.
Aarons would not confirm it but a portion of the former restaurant may turn into high-end retail space.
The underlying ground lease for the building was also refinanced, Aarons said. Documents reveal a Wachovia loan for about $80.5 million that was due in October 2010 had a clause requiring it to be paid at a 2 percent higher interest rate until it was finally refinanced with Morgan Stanley Capital Management earlier this month.
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Last month, in the piece about the $32.6 million, three-building deal for 102 Christopher St. and 7-11 Cornelia St. bought by Stone Street Properties, Diego Jalca of Blue Star, the managing and rental agents for the properties, s
hould have been mentioned as representing the seller while Laurence Ross, Christen Portelli and John Goldflam of the High Cap realty concern did some of the marketing and represented the buyers.
