The identity of the buyer that snapped up Brookfield’s 34th Street office building has come into focus.
Iconic photography retailer B&H Photo is the mystery buyer that purchased Brookfield’s 333 West 34th Street for a hefty discount, sources told The Real Deal.
Property records hit yesterday showing Brookfield sold the 10-story building for $150 million — $105 million less than the company paid for the property in 2018. The buyer’s identity had been hidden behind an LLC, which was signed for by Zalman Gottlieb.
Gottlieb is the financial controller for B&H. Representatives for B&H and Brookfield did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The sale of the 287,000-square-foot office property works out to $523 per square foot.
It’s not clear what the new owner has planned for the 287,000-square-foot building, which is located around the corner from B&H’s iconic store at 420 Ninth Avenue. The retailer was previously reported to have executive offices at 440 Ninth Avenue.
The tenants at 333 West 34th Street include the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Sam Ash Music and Godiva Chocolatier. The MTA leases at least 100,000 square feet on a lease that isn’t set to expire until 2035, according to CompStak.
B&H originally opened in Tribeca in 1973 and moved into its current store in 1997. The property is owned by the Kibel Company, which purchased it in 1994, according to property records.
Known as the Smith Barney Building, 333 West 34th Street was developed in 1954. SL Green bought the property in 2007 for $184 million and reportedly invested about $26 million worth into it. SL Green sold it to Nicholas Schorsch’s American Realty Capital New York Recovery REIT in 2013 for $220 million.
The owner changed its name to New York REIT and then eventually went into liquidation, selling the property to Brookfield.
The West Side of Manhattan on 34th Street saw a surge of investment as the Related Companies’ Hudson Yards and Brookfield’s Manhattan West started to rise.
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