Stephen Schwarzman’s Blackstone Group is selling out its 49% share in Manhattan’s 1460 Broadway to its partner in the building, San Francisco based Swig Company. Swig will now partner with New York’s Himmel and Meringoff in a refurbishing of the property.
The price for its share of the building that Blackstone will receive has not been disclosed. The deal is expected to close in September.
Stephen J. Meringoff and Leslie Wohlman Himmel’s real estate investment company will serve as the operating partner and oversee the entire redevelopment project.
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Swig Co. President and CEO Jeanne Myerson told the New York Post that the new deal was made possible by the fact that the building’s only office tenant, the law firm Skadden Arps, will be departing next year.
“The current tenant’s departure creates an enormous opportunity to design and implement a completely new office space environment throughout the entire building, one that will appeal to today’s faster growing businesses. We are also extremely pleased to team up with Himmel + Meringoff, to reposition the office space and expand the underutilized, highly valuable retail portion of the building.“
Leslie Himmel said, “We see this opportunity to redevelop an entire building including major repositioning and expansion of the retail and signage as extremely timely, given the current expansion of the Times Square market south of 42nd Street and the close proximity to Bryant Park.”
The new partnership intends to spend $25 million on the renovations. They will include a new lobby, new elevators and double-height store fronts. The building, which currently stands out from its neighbors for its boring look, will also get new bright lights more fitting for a Times Square locale.
New LED signs will rise to 150 feet along the building’s Broadway side corners.
Once the renovations are completed, the owners expect 1460 Broadway to get rents from the high $50 range to the mid $60s.
Located in midtown Manhattan on the corner of 41st Street, 1460 Broadway is within walking distance to the rejuvenated Times Square area and one block from Bryant Park. It was built in 1951 by Benjamin Swig and Jack Weiler and underwent a complete renovation back in 1999.
The 17 story office tower holds more than 220, 000 square feet of space.
Its retail tenants include Starbucks, Chop’t Creative Salad and a Godiva Chocolatier.
