Coffee With Citrin Cooperman Welcomes MAG Partners’ MaryAnne Gilmartin

For the latest installment of “Coffee With Citrin Cooperman,” a video series hosted by Citrin Cooperman and produced with Commercial Observer (the former “Breakfast with Berdon” changed its title earlier this year after Citrin Cooperman and Berdon LLP joined together), Meyer Mintz, partner and regional real estate practice leader for New York metro and South Florida, interviewed MAG Partners Founder & CEO MaryAnne Gilmartin at Ruby, her new 480-unit, through-block rental building in Chelsea.

“Ruby’s a really special building for MAG Partners,” said Gilmartin. “It’s the first building that will come online under the MAG Partners name, and it’s the work of almost half a decade. In many ways, it speaks to how challenging it is to build anything ground up in New York.”

Ruby was fully financed and ready to start construction just as the pandemic hit, at which point financing dried up.

Gilmartin had to convince new lenders of the viability of not just Ruby, but of the city as well.

“It was a challenge in so many ways, including convincing people that New York was going to come back and that writing its obituary would be a mistake,” said Gilmartin. “Having been around a long time and living through many, many challenges, what’s beautiful about this building is that it represents New York’s resiliency, and the fact that you can never count New York out.”

The proof of success here is in the leasing, and Gilmartin notes that everything we’re hearing about New York rents is proved true at Ruby.

“We are leasing units as quickly as they’re being made available through the TCOs,” said Gilmartin. “We’ve been open only 45 days and have leased over 50 units, and we’re leasing them above our projections.”

Mintz inquired about specific aspects of the building’s appeal, and Gilmartin noted that Ruby, which was planned pre-pandemic, winds up fulfilling so many of the desires of New York’s post-pandemic renters.

“People want to live in spaces that are light and bright,” said Gilmartin. “People want to be close to nature, and they want to be with other people — to be in a community with others in the building. So we designed the spaces inside and outside of the units with all of that in mind.”

Attractive features of Ruby’s apartments include walk-in closets in most units — which Gilmartin said might have something to do with the fact that “a lot of women were involved in putting this building together” — and the fact of Ruby being a setback property, which increases the light and air throughout the project.

Units at Ruby also have “the finest fixtures and appliances,” and this is just inside the unit.

“Outside the unit there’s a beautiful garden in the center of the property, and there are two towers,” said Gilmartin. “This is a midblock experience. It’s very intimate, and really feels like a home. You can get very close to nature sitting in the garden.”

*”Berdon” is the brand name under which Berdon LLP, a licensed independent CPA firm, and Berdon Advisors LLC serve clients’ business needs. Berdon Advisors LLC is a subsidiary of Citrin Cooperman Advisors LLC. Berdon Advisors LLC and Citrin Cooperman Advisors LLC are not licensed CPA firms.

*”Citrin Cooperman” is the brand under which Citrin Cooperman & Company, LLP, a licensed independent CPA firm, and Citrin Cooperman Advisors LLC serve clients’ business needs. The two firms operate as separate legal entities in an alternative practice structure. Citrin Cooperman is an independent member of Moore North America, which is itself a regional member of Moore Global Network Limited (MGNL).