The Forbes family may be close to a contract to sell its headquarters at 60 Fifth Ave. for about $55 million, as the cash-strapped family continues to sell off assets amid a slump in publishing.
The price tag equals around $380 a square foot, a far cry from the $1,000 a foot target they had hoped to fetch two years ago for the squat, 144,000 square foot granite office building.
Forbes Media in 2007 had hired Cushman & Wakefield to sell the West Village building at what was then the top of the market for $140 million. After that listing expired, a Spanish-based buyer walked away from a deposit on a $120 million deal.
In the past year, the in-house marketer insisted on not getting a penny less than $80 million for the property, which would have come with an agreement for a three-year lease back at a rent of $3 million a year.
The latest potential deal, according to sources familiar with the matter, involves the property selling for $55 million with a one-year lease back. However, the potential buyer, whose identity was not known at presstime, is now offering to flip the contract for another $2 million.
Said Forbes spokesman Monie Begley: “Forbes has not signed any contract on the sale of the building, and certainly not at that price.”
As Post colleague Keith Kelly previously reported, the Forbes clan has been selling assets as they face mounting financial pressure because of the ad slump.
They’ve already towed the family yacht, Highlander, into dry dock, sold their Colorado ranch and auctioned off the wine collection. Last month, the company cut about 100 employees to offset losses from a 30 percent drop in ad pages.
In August 2006, the Forbes family also sold an estimated 40 percent minority stake for between $250 million to $300 million to Elevation Partners, the Silicon Valley investment firm that includes U2 front man Bono and investor Roger McNamee.
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Retailer Anthropologie will be taking a prominent slice of the Chelsea Market.
The funky national chain has signed to take the northwest corner of Ninth Avenue and 15th Street that was previously held down by a florist.
“We felt they complemented what we do there,” said Karen Bellantoni of Robert K. Futterman & Associates, who, along with the Robert K. Futterman himself, represented Chelsea Market.
Since the retailer will hold down a prominent Chelsea corner, Bellantoni added, “You are not going to see [more] chains in Chelsea Market.”
The space has 8,500 feet on the ground floor with an asking rent of $225 a foot, along with 7,663 feet in the lower level, which was worth about $25 a foot.
Wade McDevitt and Stephen Plourde of the McDevitt Co. represented Anthropologie.
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DeVry University is moving from Long Island City to 65,000 feet on five floors at 180 Madison Avenue at East 34th Street, with an option for 25,000 feet on another two floors.
The Cushman & Wakefield team of Tim Gibson and Ben Shapiro worked for the tenant.
Glenn Isaacson and Simon Wasserberger at CB Richard Ellis represented the Clarett Group owners.
The building, which formerly housed lingerie firms, is renovating its freight lobby to become DeVry’s dedicated entrance. The school will open its doors in its new location in September.
For the last 10 years, DeVry has been in 150,000 feet at the Feil’s 30-20 Thompson Ave., which is being taken over by LaGuardia College once DeVry moves. DeVry is now in the hunt in the Long Island City area for a new location of 20,000 feet.
“DeVry’s market has changed and students don’t travel great distances for day schools,” said a source familiar with the matter.
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Those who believe in Italian fashion house Stefano Ricci or the value of prime Park Avenue real estate might want to take a look at a two-story retail building at 407 Park Ave. that’s being offered for $11 million.
The building, between 54th and 55th streets, is currently rented to Stefano Ricci through mid 2019.
The 25 feet by 90 feet lot has 4,300 square feet above grade, along with a 1,750 square foot basement and 29,450 square feet of unused air rights.
The annual rent of $620,212 currently is equal to $144 a foot, but rises every July by either 3 percent or the inflation rate. The building contributes about $182,000 a year in real estate taxes to the city with the tenant paying a portion of that amount.
Adelaide Posinelli of Marcus & Millichap has the listing.
“You have income, you have a place to park your money and an excellent location,” said Posinelli.
The site is a key piece between the office building at 405 Park — where Larry Gluck and Steve Witkoff are in litigation over a failed sale — and 409 Park, where Joe Moinian was once trying to buy out the residential shareholders.
The site is also a potential receiving site for the 360,000 feet of air rights from the landmarked Lever House across the street.