Landlord Time Equities eyes big profit for Cuomo’s Midtown office space

Time Equities has put Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office space on the market for twice what it paid five years ago, the New York World reported, which lends further speculation to the Empire State Development Corp’s decision to sell the space back in November 2006.

Time is seeking $1,075 per square foot for the office condominiums on the top 10 floors of the 40-story 633 Third Avenue after paying the ESDC $103 million ($540 per foot) to acquire it. In a lease signed with the ESDC during the Pataki administration, the governor’s office rents 40,000 square feet on the 38th and 39th floors for $85.24 per square foot each year, according to New York World.

Cuomo’s rent is the highest paid for any state offices, and nearly twice what State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli pays for space on the 31st floor.

If a sale is successful, Cuomo’s rent is sure to rise when the current lease expires in June 2013, representing a missed opportunity for New York State, which Cuomo already acknowledged the need to consolidate its real estate holdings.

ESDC sold the space to Time at the same time it bought 125 Maiden Lane for $52.5 million from the landlord, even though there were higher bidders for it.

“This is just another example of how a state economic development program has benefited a large corporation and not the economy of the state,” said former Assemblyman Richard Brodsky, who launched an investigation into the November 2006 deal. [NY World]