1212 Fifth AvenueFrom the September issue: When the stock market is plummeting and panicked investors are pouring money into gold, it would seem a less-than-prudent moment to predict the next cycle of new residential development in New York City. But despite the economic turmoil, some New York City developers and their consultants are holding fast to the theory that the increasing demand for living space in the city means that it’s a good time to bet on new residential buildings.

“We’re starting to see purchasers willing to pay, if not above-peak prices, pretty close to peak — where they were in the second quarter of 2008,” said Kelly Kennedy Mack, president of Corcoran Sunshine Marketing Group. Developers “are optimistic about future market conditions. … They have a real appetite to jump back in after sitting on the sidelines” during the downturn. [more]

Tribeca Associates is on the verge of acquiring the Class B building at 170 Broadway from AMG Realty and transforming it into a hotel, sources told the New York Post. It’s one of several hotel projects in the works Downtown, according to the Post, which said the area is experiencing a 20 percent increase in hotel rooms thanks in part to the Sept. 11 memorial opening this fall. Other developers have already started construction to bring hotels to 24 John Street, 32 Pearl Street, 53 Ann Street and 87 Chambers Street.  [more]

Peter Fine

From the February issue: No one could blame Peter Fine if he expected the past year to be easy
– even amid the market turmoil. Widely regarded as one of the city’s
top affordable housing developers, Fine started last year as the
darling of the entertainment world, as the unlikely coproducer of a
Tony Award-winning musical.
With close ties to President Obama’s new urban development guru, he was also more politically connected than ever. However, while his Broadway show, “In the Heights,” has enjoyed
continued success, Fine’s political connections and real estate career
have taken a beating over the past year.  [more]

Boutique commercial brokerage TerraCRG has moved its operations to a new office at 592 Pacific Street in Downtown Brooklyn. Meanwhile, move-ins have begun at the Crystal Point development in Jersey City, and the Alliance for Downtown New York is installing five new public art works at Lower Manhattan construction sites. Click here for more. [more]

With fewer hotel rooms under construction, hotel developers hope the reduction in new rooms will help to revive the hospitality industry.

The October 2009 STR/TWR/Dodge Construction Pipeline Report noted that the total active U.S. hotel development pipeline includes 4,089 projects comprising 435,265 rooms.

This represents a 32.7 percent decrease in the number of rooms in the total active pipeline — which includes projects in the construction, final planning and planning stages, but not in the pre planning stage — compared to October 2008.

“The number of rooms in construction fell 41.2 percent from the same time last year,” said Duane Vinson, vice president at STR. A number of planned hotels have ground to a halt in Manhattan including the Lower East Side’s 180 Ludlow Street.
[more]

From the September issue: With his office perched on the 38th floor of 7 World Trade Center,
Larry Silverstein can keep close tabs on his portfolio. Visible to the
north are his new Silver Towers, which have been 30 percent leased
since going online in May. To the east is 99 Church Street, where a
Four Seasons is on hold. And, in a striking close-up to the south is
ground zero. There, 4 World Trade Center is set to clear street level
this month. But schedules for his other structures on the site are less
clear, as the overall project has been famously beset by delays. “It’s
taken more time than it should have, says Silverstein. “And when you’re
78 years of age, you want to see things done.” Comments

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Stalled construction projects aren’t having much of a psychological impact on the city, real estate professionals say. Despite an increasing number of delayed projects, including Boston Properties’ 250 West 55th Street, Larry Silverstein’s 99 Church Street and Sheldon Solow’s First Avenue project, any psychological effects are likely to be short-lived, said Real Capital Analytics’ Dan Fasulo, because New Yorkers know that the projects will be completed eventually. Mary Ann Tighe, CB Richard Ellis tri-state CEO and incoming president of the Real Estate Board of New York, said that she would have expected the suspended projects to be more of a “downer” for the city, but that New Yorkers seem to be able to ignore them.

The Department of Buildings’ list of stalled construction sites, which
included 409 projects as of yesterday, leaves out a number of highly
publicized stalled projects, the New York Post reported. Boston
Properties’ 250 West 55th Street project is not on the list, even
though the company decided to suspend work on the building after the
anchor tenant pulled out of the project. Larry Silverstein’s 99 Church Street condominium is missing from the list. The Charles,
a condo at 1355 First Avenue, between 72nd and 73rd streets, has not
made any construction progress since the demolition of an old building
on the site last year, but it is also not on the DOB list, according to
the Post.
[more]