This Week in Review
1. PENN STATION PLANS PRESENTED: The Spitzer administration unveiled its preliminary plans for the redevelopment of Pennsylvania Station and the surrounding area, which includes moving Madison Square Garden to the rear of the neighboring Farley Post Office. According to the plan, more than 1 million square feet of retail space could be built on the existing site of the Garden, and more than 6 million square feet of office and residential development could rise on the surrounding blocks.
2. EMPIRE STATE BUILDING SCORES LEASE: The Empire State Building signed its large first lease in several years. Brennan Beer Gorman Architects is moving onto the entire 25th floor of the iconic building from 515 Madison Ave. The nearly 31,000-square-foot lease comes in the midst of a $500 million capital improvement plan by landlord Wien & Malkin. The Landmarks Commission also approved plans to restore the building's famous Art Deco lobby.
3. NEW PRESIDENT AT FOREST CITY: A 12-year veteran of Forest City Ratner Cos., Joane Minieri, was appointed president and chief operating officer of the company. Ms. Minieri will report directly to Bruce Ratner, who is the chairman and chief executive officer. She joined the company in 1995 and has worked on major projects, including the MetroTech Center in Brooklyn, Atlantic Yards, and the New York Times Building.
4. MTA APPROVES FUNDS FOR NO. 7: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority approved more than $1 billion in funding to extend the no. 7 subway line by 1.5 miles. Estimated to cost $2.1 billion, the project will connect Penn Station to the Hudson Yards neighborhood. The project has been billed as a linchpin in the city's efforts to spur construction west of Midtown. It was trimmed back to include just one new station on the line.
5. HIGH-END RETAIL AT CBGB: An upscale men's clothing store, John Varvatos, will open a boutique inside the former concert venue CBGB. Considered the home of punk rock in New York City, the club last October shut down after 33 years. The new boutique is part of a larger transition of the Bowery into a luxury corridor.
6. MANHATTAN RENTS DECLINE: The average rental rate for apartments in Manhattan declined in October, the Real Estate Group of New York reported. One- and two-bedroom apartments with doormen were hit the hardest, the report shows. The report also points out that brokers were increasingly being offered incentives to close apartments faster, with Peter Cooper Village, for example, offering a free trip to Cabo San Lucas for the broker who closes the most deals.
7. HALSTEAD HERALDED WITH 'DEAL OF THE YEAR': Two West Side brokers, Dean Feldman and Edith Meyer, received the Real Estate Board of New York's "Deal of the Year" award this week. This is the third straight year that brokers from Halstead Property have won the top honor. A Brooklyn broker for Halstead, Linda VanderWoude, received a second-place award and the firm's president, Diane Ramirez, was given the Henry Forster Award for outstanding achievement. The Real Estate Board didn't release details of the deals the brokers made.
bhope@nysun.com
