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Commercial Observer
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Edited by Jotham Sederstrom | Jsederstrom@observer.com

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Tuesday July 30, 2013
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Brown Harris Stevens Sells Pre-War ‘Gem’

BY AL BARBARINO

The buyers behind limited liability company 56 West 11th Street Realty LLC have purchased a 31,000-square-foot building at 56-58 West 11th Street in Greenwich Village for just under $18.5 million, The Commercial Observer has learned.

The nine-story building, built in 1912, features 36 residential units, with what broker Howard Morrel, who arranged the off-market sale, said is “virtually guaranteed upside” in one of Manhattan’s most sought-after neighborhoods.

To read the full story, click here

Boyoung Kim Inks Upper West Side Deal

BY BILLY GRAY

In a rebuke to the chain retailer invasion of the Upper West Side, the upstart designer and Alexander Wang protege Boyoung Kim has signed a 700-square-foot lease at 410 Columbus Avenue.

The Commercial Observer has learned that Douglas Elliman retail group Chairman Faith Hope Consolo and Executive Vice President Joseph Aquino represented the landlord, Orleans Realty, LLC in the transaction. It follows a lease signed by jeweler Alexis Bittar in the building earlier this year.

To read the full story, click here

Flagship Retail Locations Could Spell REIT after Hudson’s Bay Company Saks Deal

BY GUS DELAPORTE

Hudson’s Bay Company will explore the creation of a real estate investment trust as the company’s proposed acquisition of Saks Inc. stands to add a number of flagship retail locations to the company’s portfolio. HBC agreed to acquire Saks for $16.00 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at $2.9 million, it was announced yesterday.

The merger will create a large real estate portfolio that will include the Saks Fifth Avenue locations on Fifth Avenue in New York and Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills, as well as Lord & Taylor’s Fifth Avenue location.

To read the full story, click here

What Motor City and Big Apple Have in Common

BY ROBERT KNAKAL

As we close the page on July, I am grateful that the good folks at The Commercial Observer are once again giving me the month of August off. As much as I enjoy writing this column each week, it is nice to take a bit of a break as I finish my fourth year writing Concrete Thoughts. Congratulations to editor-in-chief Jotham Sederstrom, publisher Jared Kushner and the entire staff for producing such a well-written and respected publication. It''s hard to believe it's been four years already.

As I head into my break, I will leave you with some thoughts on a macro issue that we should all be cognizant of, particularly as we head into local elections later this year. These elections will greatly impact our economy, and therefore our commercial real estate industry. The issue to consider is the many similarities between New York City and Detroit, which filed for bankruptcy protection recently. This filing represents the largest municipal Chapter 9 case in U.S. history.

To read the full story, click here

Grand Central Availability Highest in Midtown

BY RICHARD PERSICHETTI

Through the first six months of 2013, the Grand Central availability rate stood at 15 percent—the highest of all the Midtown submarkets. Thankfully, it does not take the prize for the highest availability rate in Manhattan, as that honor goes to the World Trade Center submarket, but I will save that topic for another week.

Grand Central availability actually started the year at 13.8 percent, but it ballooned to 15 percent with the addition of six big blocks of space over 100,000 square feet at 330 and 335 Madison Avenue, 666, 711 and 730 Third Avenue, and 150 East 42nd Street. The Grand Central submarket has New York’s most highly trafficked transportation hub right in the center of the submarket, so why are there still 7.3 million square feet of available space surrounding it?

To read the full story, click here

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