Luxury laden LVMH is sniffing around the L-shaped Drake site at 56th and 57th streets and Park Avenue, we’ve learned. The company has an eye on adding to its city “campus” that currently skips along the north side of East 57th Street from its Christian de Portzamparc-designed headquarters at Fifth Avenue to Park Avenue.
The new construction project would provide LVMH with a first-class site for its Cheval Blanc Hotel and landscape for its brands to showcase.
“They are looking at developing a high-stakes hotel, apartments and retail for their brands,” a retail spy said. “This is the best single piece of land in the city.”
Now controlled by Los Angeles-based CIM Group, the site was assembled over many years by developer Harry Macklowe, who still has a toe in the deal.
In 2006 LVMH opened the Maisons Cheval Blanc in the Alps. Since then, LVMH has further developed a hotel management concept and now plans to open a Cheval Blanc Hotel in Paris, with others in Oman and Egypt. In September, the luxury goods company was reported to be considering a bid for Aman Resorts, but that sales process is ongoing.
Reps for CIM and LVMH did not immediately return calls for comment.
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A celebrity chef is bringing his toque to a 15,560-square-foot duplex spread on West 44th Street just west of Times Square.
“The whole West 44th Street side of the building has been leased up and you will see a lot more vibrancy and life,” said Laurie Golub, counsel to Africa Israel USA, which is redeveloping the Times Building and owns the base retail condo along with Five Mile Capital.
But which chef is so far a mystery. To add to the intrigue, the building owner isn’t even whispering the name of the chef’s broker.
“I promise you it’s going to be extremely exciting,” added Golub of the upcoming tenant. “It’s in keeping with the entertainment and dining and vibrancy in the building.”
Spencer Levy of RFK represented AFI along with Golub.
The chef will have 5,950 square feet on the ground and another 9,720 on a lower level. Declining to provide an asking rent, Golub noted that rents are up significantly over the last 18 months. Indeed, avenue Times Square ground floor rents are flirting with $1,500 a foot, although side-street and lower-level rents are considerably lower.
Bowlmor, also in the building, already has its own celebrity chef, David Burke, cooking up a storm in its Stadium Room. Daffy’s clothing is also now open there, while the Jekyll & Hyde will open late next year.
Also next year, AFI will start marketing 30,000 square feet of retail on the ground and lower levels of the West 43rd Street side along with a CBRE team.
While not the tenant, sources said Joe’s Stone Crab has been looking in the Times Square area again after trying in 2008 without success.
P.S. If you want to drop a dime on the tenant chef, I’ll treat you to dinner there when the eatery opens.
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While the Times Square restaurant will be opening, the owners of 1250 Broadway are creating a new sky-high restaurant that will open next year.
Korean restaurateur Andy Sung has rented 10,000 square feet on the top (39th) floor of the building that has been refitted with 16-foot walls of glass showcasing horizon views in all directions. The restaurant will be named, Gaonuri, meaning “Center of the World.”
When they bought the building in 2008, Norman Sturner’s Murray Hill Properties and Jamestown had already figured out they could swap out the bricks that had been enclosing a lightly used mechanical floor and create the more valuable restaurant space, which ended up with an asking rent of $100 a foot.
Brad Siderow of the Siderow Organization, previously with Murray Hill, represented Sung.
We revealed the deal in yesterday’s Commercial Real Estate section but wanted to ensure Siderow got credit for the creative space and tenancy.
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At a party last night at its Plaza Hotel project, El-Ad US Holdings Chairman Orly Daniell introduced the firm’s former Canadian chief, Udi Erez, as the company’s new US CEO.
Erez will continue overseeing Canadian deals but told me there are more opportunities in the US. He’s already pursuing two ground-up sites in New York where the firm would like to develop luxury condos.
“We found them and now it’s in the process of due diligence,” he said. “I guess we will choose one of them.” The El-Ad conversion at 250 West St. is now on “auto-pilot’ he said, and units are selling well.
He is also looking in a new direction at buying distressed notes on office buildings, and on multi-family conversions, targeting “loan to own” projects. Two investments in Chicago and Los Angeles are already in the process with a public partner, Erez said.
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Viacom, headquartered at 1515 Broadway, is among the tenants that are tire-kicking all the upcoming new developments. The media giant’s broker, CBRE Vice Chairman Michael Laginestra, sloughed off our query, saying project developers are calling any tenant with a future expiration to come take a tour.
“There’s not a landlord out there with a block of space who hasn’t called the usual suspects,” Laginestra said. “Viacom is always actively managing their occupancy. Whether you are News Corp. or any big tenants, [that they are touring] is nothing exciting or new.”
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Former Mets hurler and World Series star Ron Darling is pitching in for the third time to MC the Diabetes Research Institute’s annual Empire Ball on Wed. Dec. 14 at the Grand Hyatt. Now the Mets commentator, Darling is very involved in the group since his youngest son suffers from the disease. This year, the Real Estate Division is honoring developer Billy Macklowe and hoping for a financial home run by raising a record $1.5 million.