Sephora will finally get to make over Brooklyn.
The cosmetics chain will be the anchor for what is becoming a women’s power center at the base of the borough’s Municipal Building.
Some 48,000 square feet of retail on three levels will host Sephora in a 7,000-square-foot ground-floor corner spot, along with another 1,300 square feet of storage.
We first told you this deal was in progress in March 2012.
The retail space, known as 210 Joralemon St., is being redeveloped by United American Land after a city RFP process. The building is now in a Skyscraper Historic District.
Ginny Pittarelli of Crown Retail Service represented the cosmetics emporium in this first Brooklyn location. Peter Ripka and Jason Pennington of Ripco Real Estate represented the Laboz family’s UAL, which had an asking rent of $140 per foot.
“It looks like we are turning this into a power center for women’s fashion tenants,” said Albert Laboz of UAL.
YogaWorks has a lease for 5,000 square feet on the lower level through Lori Shabtai of Winick Realty Group, while discussions are also underway with other women’s fashion tenants.
***
With the city holding off making Vanderbilt Avenue vehicle-free, the restaurants in Grand Central Terminal are bustling and office tenants love the area, which is seeing more development.
The location has helped Brause Realty complete several leases at 52 Vanderbilt Ave. The 190,000-square-foot building next to the Yale Club, between East 44th and 45th streets, has a direct passage to Grand Central.
* SocialFlow will move from 2 Grand Central to the full 12th floor of 9,275 square feet. The Studley team of Jeffrey Peck, Nicholas Farmakis and Gary Kerper repped the social media company.
* AdLarge Media will move from 475 Park to the full 7th floor of 9,275 feet. It was repped by Craig Berman of Joseph P. Day Realty.
* The Coalition for Rainforest Nations will grow in 2,558 feet on the 14th floor after it moves from 370 Lexington. The carbon footprint traders were represented in the 190,000-square-foot deal by Vicus Partners.
* US International Media will expand on the 5th floor from 4,363 feet, to 5,478 feet, in a deal represented by Hunter Duncan of DTZ.
* Cypress Associates is moving to 3,797 feet on the 5th floor from the 9th floor. It was represented by a Jones Lang LaSalle team of Vice Chairman Frank Doyle, Lloyd Desatnick
and Alexis Tener Petrus.
The JLL trio also represented the Brause Realty ownership in all the deals, while working with Melissa Brause Rackoff and David Brause, president of the family-owned company. Asking rents are $48 to $52 per foot.
***
Next to 52 Vanderbilt, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and Cushman & Wakefield have issued an RFP to lease the MTA’s headquarters site at 341-347 Madison for a new tower.
When the board first voted to do this in 1996, it figured it could get $40 million. Today, that could grow to $300 million.
A new residential building or hotel would be smaller, but an office tower of 542,268 square feet could rise under current 21.6 FAR Grand Central district zoning. If the Midtown East rezoning passes, it could grow to 24 FAR or 602,520 feet, but then can’t be built until Jan. 1, 2017.
The MTA will turn over the site at the end of 2014. A spokesman said the terms are flexible as to when lease and rent payments can begin. Otherwise, a new owner could pay it rent for five years through demolition and reconstruction before a single dollar is paid by a new tenant.
“I don’t understand why they didn’t wait for the zoning,” David Brause, president of Brause Realty, said of his neighbor. Still, he added, “We should be interested.” Proposals are due Aug. 14, 2013.
“When they find out what Metro North will cost to move its offices, they won’t do it,” predicted former MTA Chairman Peter Kalikow. “Every chairman thinks that they should sell [the buildings] the minute they get in. But until they up-zone the site, you can’t build.”
*
Since David Tawfik of Princeton International Properties bought 104 W. 40th St. by Bryant Park for $103 million, he has signed 70,000 feet of leases.
The 6th and 7th floors totaling 28,000 feet with a beautiful terrace were leased by Gotham, part of ad giant Interpublic. Scott Panzer and Robert Romano from Jones Lang LaSalle repped the tenant.
Another 30,000-foot lease with Regus for the 4th and 5th floors of 15,000 feet each was completed through Jim Wenk and Patrick Heeg also of JLL.
A lease with Beacon Hill for 4,042 feet on the 8th floor was signed through Patrice Meagher and Kerry Powers of CBRE.
Software company Omnivista leased 2,243 feet on the 18th floor through Dan Hassett of Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, while NSC Global leased the entire 17th floor of 6,610 feet through Mark Toubin of Murray Hill Properties.
“These tenants found real value in the building,” said Tawfik. “We have a really cool Class A building.”
The 1980s lobby has a 90-foot mural by Sarah Morris.
Paul Amrich, Michael Movshovich and Neil King of CBRE represent the landmarked glass building with asking rents from $50 to $65 per foot.