Vanbarton Group Looks to Sell Nomad Development Site

9 July 2025

One of the major development sites that got a boost from the Midtown South rezoning is in play — a big test for how the market will respond to the zoning overhaul.

Vanbarton Group is testing the waters for its site at 3 West 29th Street in Nomad, which it acquired via foreclosure in 2021, marketing it to potential buyers. CBRE and Bob Knakal’s BKREA are actively shopping the site to some of the city’s biggest developers, sources told The Real Deal.

While expectations around pricing weren’t known, the property has the potential for about 700,000 square feet of residential use. With Manhattan land averaging around $400 per square foot, a back-of-the-napkin estimated value would be well north of $250 million.

The project could be one of the first major developments to move forward under Mayor Eric Adams’ planned Midtown South rezoning, which last month cleared a key hurdle and appears on track to be approved later this summer.

Representatives for Vanbarton, CBRE and BKREA could not be immediately reached for comment.

Vanbarton, led by Richard Coles and Gary Tischler, is also considering developing the site itself, sources said.

Sitting next to the storied Collegiate Marble Church, the site was previously owned by Ziel Feldman’s HFZ Capital, which in 2021 defaulted on a mezzanine loan made by Vanbarton when the company imploded under the weight of a fraud scandal allegedly masterminded by HFZ managing director Nir Meir.

Complicating matters was the fact that the church had partnered with HFZ and held a stake in the development, meaning Vanbarton’s foreclosure proceedings would impact the congregation. The two sides reached a settlement and Vanbarton decided to move forward with the development, first eyeing an office tower and then considering a life-sciences building.

But earlier last year the Adams administration announced a plan to rezone Midtown South for more housing, estimating the overhaul will create 10,000 new units. The City Planning Commission last month approved the plan, which is set to be voted on by the City Council by the end of the summer.

Under the rezoning, Vanbarton’s West 29th Street site will be greenlit for residential use.

The developer is one of the most active companies in the office-to-residential conversion space, with five projects underway in Manhattan totaling more than 2,200 units.