Soloviev Group is eyeing an office tower for its 57th Street site.
CEO Michael Hershman says his firm is looking for a company to anchor an office tower on its decades-in-the-making assemblage on 57th Street.
“There’s simply too many companies looking and not enough space,” he told me at the Real Estate Board of New York’s gala last week. “We think our property on 57th Street is the perfect location to build a corporate headquarters, for either a domestic or foreign company.”
He would not, however, discuss who Soloviev Group has talked to so far, but said more than 900,000 square feet of office space could rise on the site.
The developer purchased 24 West 57th Street last year for $67 million, adding to the properties at 6-20 West 57th Street that the firm owns. At the time of the deal, Hershman told The Real Deal that his company would either pursue a corporate headquarters on the site or a luxury condo and hotel project.
Developers have shown an increasing appetite for trophy office properties in the city. In November, Vornado Realty Trust filed permit applications for its 2 million-square-foot office at 350 Park Avenue. Per the New York Business Journal, the city’s Public Design Commission this week advanced RXR and TF Cornerstone’s plans for a 2.9 million-square-foot office tower at 175 Park Avenue.
Nearby, Gary Barnett is scooping up 405-415 Park Avenue, along with air rights tied to Central Synagogue. Barnett’s plans for the site are not yet clear, though my colleagues report that the size of the assemblage suggests office or mixed-use.
What we’re thinking about: Who will be the next director and chair, respectively, of the Department of City Planning and the City Planning Commission? Send a note to kathryn@therealdeal.com.
A thing we’ve learned: As of Monday, the City Council doesn’t have enough votes to override Mayor Eric Adams’ veto of the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act, or COPA. That could change between now and Thursday. We’ll keep you posted.
Elsewhere in New York…
— City public schools will reopen Tuesday for in-person learning, Gothamist reports. Younger grades had remote instruction on Monday, while high schoolers had off.
— Eight people were found dead or later died at a hospital between Friday evening and Monday afternoon, following below-freezing temperatures and Sunday’s winter storm, the New York Times reports. Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Monday said his administration is ramping up outreach to “connect vulnerable New Yorkers to shelter.”
— The Alexander brothers’ trial is slated to begin on Tuesday. Be sure to follow my colleagues’ coverage!
Closing Time
Residential: The top residential deal recorded Monday was $9.8 million for a condominium unit at 211 West 84th Street. The Upper West Side unit at The Henry is 3,400 square feet. Compass’ Alexa Lambert, Alison Black and Elizabeth Goss have the listing.
Commercial: The top commercial deal recorded was $20.6 million for 6065-75 Strickland Avenue. The Salvation Church of God purchased the Mill Basin, Brooklyn, property with over 20,000 square feet of lot area from Strickland Realty Group.
New to the Market: The highest price for a residential property hitting the market was $12.5 million for a penthouse at 39 West 23rd Street. The Flatiron condo is 3,200 square feet. Compass’ Gambino Group has the listing.
— Joseph Jungermann