Little Scholars Leases 8K-SF Chelsea Retail Space for First Manhattan Day Care

An early childhood education provider is setting up its first Manhattan location on the border between Chelsea and the Flatiron District, Commercial Observer has learned.

Little Scholars NYC has signed an 8,000-square-foot lease at United American Land’s 600 Avenue of the Americas, where it will occupy retail space at the base of a condo property known as The Lyla, according to the landlord broker Newmark (NMRK).

Newmark did not disclose the length of the lease or the asking rent, but in the nearby retail corridor of Broadway from 14th to 23rd streets, average asking rent in the second quarter of 2024 was $338 per square foot, according to a report from CBRE.

600 Avenue of the Americas sits at the corner of Avenue of the Americas and West 17th Street. The Lyla has an alternative address of 63 West 17th Street.

“Through our diligent efforts navigating complexities of the deal structure, from the changing laws and regulations for child care and education operations in the city to working collaboratively with the departments of Health and Education, we successfully brokered a winning outcome for all parties,” Newmark’s Ravi Idnani, who negotiated on behalf of the landlord alongside Aric Trakhtenberg, said in a statement.

Freddy Souid of KSR represented the tenant in the transaction, but did not respond to a request for comment.

Little Scholars will occupy space on the first floor, but the majority of its footprint will be on the second floor. The day care chain has seven locations in Brooklyn and seems to have opened the 600 Avenue of the Americas center in recent weeks, after finalizing the lease on Sept. 5, according to Newmark.

Other retail tenants in the building include Miami-based fitness chain Sweat440, which has occupied 5,321 square feet since 2019.

Mark Hallum can be reached at mhallum@commercialobserver.com.