Virginia Dare’s Lease Extends Through Its 100th Year
By Michael Ewing November 1, 2013 4:00 pm
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Virginia Dare, a food flavoring and extract manufacturer that has called 882 Third Avenue home for 90 years, will renew its lease at the Industry City building, ensuring the company marks its 100th birthday in Sunset Park.
The extended lease, spanning another 10 years, will allow the company to continue to operate out of its 150,000-square-foot facility, one of 16 across the massive Industry City complex. The company also plans to grow and hire some about 30 employees.
The complex recently switched hands this summer. Jamestown Properties formed a partnership with investors Angelo Gordon and Belvedere Capital to acquire a 50 percent stake in the 6 million-square-foot complex earlier this summer.
Andrew Kimball, who joined Jamestown earlier this Summer following his long tenure as president and chief executive officer of the Brooklyn Navy Yard Development Corp., told Crain’s New York that approximately 67 percent of the complex is currently occupied. Among some of the existing tenants, Williams-Sonoma expanded to 36,240 square feet while the guitar manufacturer Fodera Guitars doubled its space to 13,000 square feet, according to the Crain’s article. Mr. Kimball said his team has recently renewed 45 leases.
At Jamestown, Mr. Kimball has been named director of innovation and economy initiatives and is set to use his Midas touch on Industry City.
Under his management, the complex expects to upgrade its facilities and attract more creative and design firms to the area. This initiative is set against the greater shift of Sunset Park toward an artisanal and economic powerhouse.
