Everyone wants to be a Tribeca developer.
Broad Street Development and its partner TPG Angelo Gordon are the latest players seeking to construct a boutique luxury condo in the Lower Manhattan neighborhood.
The two acquired a 10-story historic building at 139 Franklin Street for about $44 million, according to Broad Street’s Raymond Chalmé. The total capitalization will cost about $100 million and the development will have up to 18 units, Chalmé said.
The terra cotta building was in a prime location and featured 13-foot-high ceilings and an abundance of welcoming natural light. But for decades it was used as a storage facility.
“It has been an eyesore in Tribeca,” said Chalmé.
The developers’ plans to turn the building into an upscale residence for urbanites dragged out because of an ugly dispute between family members who owned the building.
The Sofia family has owned a storage rental business since 1910. Following the 2022 death of one of the brothers, Frank Sofia, his estate filed for his other two brothers to buy out his shares. In 2024, Frank’s estate won a $57 million arbitration award, PincusCo reported. The other two brothers were forced to initiate a bankruptcy petition in January for six of the storage sites.
The deal finally closed last week. Brendan Madigan and Andrew Scandalios of JLL arranged the sale.
Chalmé said the team’s strategy is similar to their boutique condo projects at 40 Bleeker Street in Noho and 215 Sullivan Street in Greenwich Village. The idea is that smaller condo projects in prime locations are attractive both to developers and private equity like TPG Angelo Gordon.
Chalmé calls the risk “bite-sized.”
Developers have eyed similar buildings in Tribeca. Earlier this year, Urban Capital Group and Prosper Property Group announced plans to convert a textile warehouse on Walker Street into a seven-story luxury condo.
Sumaida + Khurana, led by Amit Khurana and Saif Sumaida, are planning a 10-story, 125-foot luxury condo complex at 1 Walker Street.
As developers circle possible office conversions, storage conversions are less common.
But Chalmé does not consider this a bad thing.
“The fact that it was storage means that it has strong floors,” said Chalmé.
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