BOSTON — Stuart Dean, an architectural restoration services firm, has started rehabbing a century-old hotel in Boston, known as Fairmont Copley Plaza. The $20 million project is mostly confined to the hotel's 384 guest bathrooms where crews will polish the marble flooring, regrout and seal the marble walls. The project is expected to be complete prior to the hotel's centennial celebration this summer. The hotel will remain open throughout the renovation.
NEW YORK CITY — A vacant industrial property at 1621-29 61st Street, located between 16th and 17th avenues in Brooklyn, has sold for $1.7 million. The site includes 8,000 square feet and currently contains a 6,000-square-foot commercial building. The undisclosed buyer plans to build a synagogue on the site. Jeffrey Shalom and Brian Hanson of Massey Knakal Realty Services represented both parties in the transaction.
NEW YORK CITY — Massey Knakal has arranged the $11.4 million sale of three properties in Manhattan's Greenwich Village neighborhood. The sale includes 175-177 MacDougal St., two mixed-use buildings built in 1837. The building contains 10 apartments, two retail spaces and two commercial spaces. The third building is 179 MacDougal St., a one-story building with five retail tenants. The lower level once housed the former Bon Soir club, where Barbra Streisand launched her career. James Nelson of Massey Knakal Realty Services represented both the buyer, an investor, and seller, a long-term owner, in the deal.
BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — Homewood Suites by Hilton has opened a four-story hotel in Binghamton. The 79-room hotel is owned by Tom Bedosky and managed by JT LLC. Homewood Suites by Hilton Binghamton/Vestel offer studio, one- and two-bedroom suites. Guest amenities include an indoor pool, fitness center, sports court and nearby walking trails. Located at 3603 Vestal Parkway E., the hotel is minutes from Binghamton University campus and Lockheed Martin Owego.
NEW YORK CITY — New York City-based Eastern Union Commercial has arranged a $34 million loan for the refinancing of a four-building, 580-bed nursing portfolio in New York and New Jersey. Three of the properties are fully operational, while the fourth, a 120-bed skilled nursing facility, is currently under construction. The project is expected to be completed at the end of 2012. Abraham Bergman of Eastern Union secured the 5-year loan through M&T Bank. The borrower is a privately held nursing home owner and management company.
SECAUCUS, N.J. — ZT Group International has signed a 23,451-square-foot office lease at 333 Meadowlands Parkway in Secaucus. ZT Group provides server solutions for large-scale data centers. With the transaction, the 138,000-square-foot office building is now 90 percent leased. Frank Lopriore of Colliers International represented the tenant in the transaction. The owner, Bergman Real Estate Group, was represented in-house.
In the central Connecticut market, owner/users are beginning to seek fair priced industrial facilities that can be financed by mostly local community banks using SBA and some conventional loans. Also we are seeing companies come up from Fairfield County (Bridgeport and Stamford) to take advantage of Waterbury Development Corp. loans and some forgivable grants. One 35,000-square-foot user put up their equipment as collateral to obtain a $500,000 loan for modern space where they could become more productive at a much lower cost of occupancy and expand their workforce. One landlord is buying large vacant industrial facilities at $20 per square foot and rehabbing and subdividing for re-lease programs. We are also seeing some new construction and facility expansions in industrial parks that offer Enterprise zone incentives. Municipal and state Department of Economic and Community Development incentives are driving transactions. These incentives include the Urban Jobs program, Enterprise Zones and Corridors, SBA 504 loans, and tax abatements and other enhancements. Waterbury has four industrial parks and at least five business parks surrounding the city, including Watertown, Plymouth, Naugatuck, Cheshire, Oxford and others. The city of Waterbury offers many perks, and the others offer lower taxes and suburbia. The Naugatuck Industrial Park …
NEW YORK CITY — A joint venture between Waterbridge Capital and RedSky Capital has acquired a 110,000-square-foot parcel in Williamsburg for $66 million. Gabe Saffioti and Benjamin Trapper of Eastern Consolidated introduced the two firms for the purpose of arranging the joint venture The Bedford Avenue parcels are situated across the street from a new Whole Foods and include 237-241 Bedford Ave.; 158-160 N. Fourth St.; and 151-173 N. Third St. Combined, they comprise 50,000 square feet of retail space, 39 residential units and a 5,000-square-foot vacant lot. The new owners plan to redevelop and improve the retail spaces.
NEW YORK CITY — Random House Inc. has signed a 361,044-square-foot lease renewal at 1745 Broadway in New York City, extending its occupancy at the property through mid-2023. The print and trade book publisher occupies floors 2-13 for its corporate headquarters. Richard Bernstein of Cassidy Turley represented Random House in the transaction. The landlord, SL Green, was represented in-house.
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. — Healthy Food Brands has purchased a 172,000-square-foot industrial building at 122 Quentin Ave. in New Brunswick for $3.2 million. The company is moving from Commack, N.Y. and plans to create more than 250 jobs. Healthy Foods is a marketer of “better for you” confections and chocolate products. Doug Richter and Ian Grusd of Sperry Van Ness / Richter Grusd represented the seller, 122 Quentin LLC, in the transaction. Ed Horne and Marty Kreiman of HK Commercial Realty Advisors represented the buyer.