Thousands of purchases are made each day on the bustling 34th Street corridor, but prime retail space has barely traded at all.
The leasehold interest for two Herald Square area buildings between Fifth Avenue and Broadway has sold for $7.4 million. The buyer is ISTA West 34th Street LLC, an entity affiliated with Lloyd Goldman’s BLDG Management, according to city records.
The 26,000 square feet of space at 36 West 34th Street and 41 West 33rd Street, with a leasehold that expires in 60 years, was listed for $10.5 million, according to CoStar. The space was on the market for about six months, and the seller was ALGM Leasehold III, connected with NorthStar Realty Finance Corp, according to securities’ filings.
With dozens of buyers vying for prime retail space in the city, the main appeal was a little slice of 34th Street frontage currently occupied by Aerosoles, Robert K. Futterman’s Jeff Fishman told The Commercial Observer. The shoe retailer rents the space at about half the current market rent, but its lease is set to expire next year. Similarly, Kito’s Gourmet Deli rents the other space for a bargain, with its lease set to end in 2013.
“Even when most retail in the city was suffering, that remained a very strong corridor,” Mr. Fishman said. Space similar to the 34th Street spots command as much as $400 a square foot annually, but, he noted, while leasing activity has been robust not many assets have traded on that block.
Along with Mr. Fishman, Brian Segall helped arrange the deal for both the buyer and seller. – Laura Kusisto
