The Company Man: Seth Pinsky Reflects on EDC and Looks Ahead at RXR

Over the past several years, that industry has expanded, some further downtown, some to the West Side, some to places like Dumbo, but I believe very strongly—and RXR believes very strongly—that there is an opportunity to expand that universe significantly. We’ve been looking at different parts of the city where we feel that kind of inventory could be very successful and where it could help to spur the economy of not only those areas but of the broader region.

What areas in particular do you see opportunity?

We are looking very broadly. Certainly, given the concentration of the creative work force in places along the Brooklyn waterfront and also in neighborhoods in Queens, those two boroughs are areas we are looking at. There is something happening in New York City’s economy that is going to really transform that economy on a much broader basis that I think people appreciate. Something that I said a lot while I was at the EDC that I believe very strongly is that, whereas in the past the technology sector was a segment of the economy, increasingly the economy and the technology sector will become one—everything will be the technology sector, because technology is going to underlie traditional segments of the economy. I believe the opportunities and the needs of the industry are going to reach into neighborhoods far and wide, and we as a city need to make sure we have the real estate stock ready to accommodate that growth.

Do you think New York presently has adequate infrastructure and is prepared to harness the growth of the technology sector?

It’s not perfect infrastructure, it’s not predesigned, but the industry is thriving. However, as the industry grows and as it matures, I think it is going to require a type of real estate that doesn’t exist in the city in some cases and, even in the case it does exist, does not exist on sufficient scale, and we as a city need to invest in that infrastructure in order to keep that industry here.

You mentioned different parts of the city—Brooklyn, Queens—as potential areas of opportunity. Are there other areas in New York or in the larger metropolitan region that are perhaps underserved?

I think within the city there is significant institutional money that has been seeking opportunities in Brooklyn and parts of Queens. There are large areas of Queens and Brooklyn, however, that haven’t been touched by that investment. Two boroughs that have lagged even further behind in terms of attracting that type of institutional money are Staten Island and the Bronx, as well as Upper Manhattan. I think there are real opportunities in every one of the five boroughs.

In addition to that, if you look in some of the suburban areas, we believe there are real opportunities for thoughtful development around transit nodes in many parts of the region, and that is another area we are looking at very closely.

You’ve had to wear a different hat here at RXR. How have you found these early days?

I’m fortunate in that I had worked in the private sector for a number of years before going into government, so the different perspective that comes from working in the private sector is not entirely alien to me. I have also come to a place with an incredibly strong team that has been very willing to take me by the hand and make sure any skills that I currently lack are developed.

It is certainly different than working in the public sector. There are things about working in the public sector that I miss and I imagine I’ll continue to miss, but there are things about working in the public sector that I likely won’t miss. In some ways, that makes the transition easy too.

You’ve joined RXR at the tail end of the third quarter. What’s your outlook for the market going forward?

I think that the fundamentals for the New York City region are incredible strong. We are just finishing a mayoralty where there was significant investment in our infrastructure where significant parts of the city were rezoned, giving us the potential to spread development beyond the traditional central business districts. The economy is continuing to diversify. We are growing employment that is much faster than the rest of the country. People are continuing to move to the city.

At the same time, on the supply side, there is increasing new development occurring but it has not kept pace with the demand, and so I believe that there are likely to be real opportunities going forward to build into the demand.