Guitar Center Moving Up to New Downtown Brooklyn Digs at The Paxton

The “Subterranean Homesick Blues” are over for Guitar Center.

The musical instrument retail chain will move out of its mostly underground space inside Atlantic Terminal Mall and set up shop two blocks away at The Paxton, Commercial Observer has learned.

Guitar Center signed a 15-year lease for 19,289 square feet on the ground floor and lower level of the 43-story residential tower at 540 Fulton Street in Downtown Brooklyn, according to Ripco Real Estate, which arranged the deal for landlord Jenel Real Estate.

Asking rent was $200 per square foot on the ground floor and $40 per square foot on the lower level, a spokesperson for RIPCO said.

The music store has been inside the Atlantic Terminal at 139 Flatbush Avenue for 19 years and plans to open its new digs by the end of next year, according to its broker, Shopping Center Group’s Bruce Shepard.

“They’re going from mostly basement space to a brand-new rental unit in the heart of Downtown Brooklyn,” Shepard said. “We’re very excited about it.”

Ripco’s Hymie Dweck, Abraham Dayan and Ben Weiner represented Jenel, which completed the 136,000-square-foot Fulton Street tower last year.

“This is a great addition to the street,” Dweck said. “Guitar Center is new and different compared to the existing retail. It’s great for Fulton mall.”

Abigail Nehring can be reached at anehring@commercialobserver.com.