From left: a rendering of the International Gem Tower and Extell president Gary Barnett

Two precious gem companies have each purchased an office condominium at Extell Development’s International Gem Tower, marking the first deals to close at the property, a statement from the developer today said.

Malca-Amit USA and Kuperman Bros. Diamonds USA closed on the sales last week and will now begin building out their spaces, the statement said. Malca-Amit has just under 10,000 square feet; Kuperman has just over 3,000. [more]

15 West 47th Street; inset Joseph Chetrit (credit: PropertyShark)

Before Extell Development ever stuck a shovel in the Diamond District’s ground for its forthcoming International Gem Tower, a three-level retail space on the block known as the Exchange was among the centerpieces of the district. But according to the New York Post, the landlord wants to swap the diamond-slingers that populate the retail space for a bank.

After purchasing 15 West 47th Street — along with 22 West 48th Street for more than $115 million — in June, landlord Joseph Chetrit has begun looking for a bank to replace the Exchange’s 19,176 square feet. [more]

From left: Extell's Gary Barnett and a rendering of the International Gem Tower

Deutsche Bank is preparing a $400 million construction loan for Extell’s 65-percent-sold, 34-story, 745,000-square-foot International Gem Tower in Midtown, and will spearhead the loan’s syndication, the New York Observer reported. The loan splits comprises a $300 million senior loan and $100 in subordinate debt, and lasts for a two-year period. There’s also the option for a one-year extension. As previously reported, Extell planned to move forward with the tower with or without a construction loan. [more]

A rendering of the gem tower

From the March issue: Midtown is hardly the loveliest part of Manhattan, and few parts of Midtown are quite as unlovely as the stretch of 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues. This corner of creation is known worldwide as the Diamond District and, with the possible exception of the city of Antwerp in Belgium, it’s home to the biggest diamond emporium in the world.

Indeed, if you’ve been on this dreary street at all, there’s a good chance you’ve been buying or selling gems. The entire block is a hive, an ecosystem in which diamond buyers and stone cutters interact with wholesalers, shippers and security firms to create New York City’s fabled diamond trade. [more]

Today's topping-out ceremony at the International Gem Tower (credit: Ari Burling)

A group of leading officials from Extell Development and Tishman Construction, as well as hundreds of construction workers, gathered at the site of the International Gem Tower today to celebrate the building’s topping out, Tishman announced today. [more]

From left: A U.S. visa, the International Gem Tower and a rendering of the Barclays Center at Atlantic Yards

With financing conditions extremely tight, New York City developers have increasingly turned to the EB-5 program, which gives foreign investors visas in exchange for investment in job-creating projects, to land funding for their projects. But according to the New York Times, developers are bending the rules to make their projects more attractive for those foreign funds, and taking money away from other projects that need the funding.

The minimum investment to qualify for a visa under the program has always been $1 million — but the threshold is reduced to $500,000 if the project is in a rural area or a community where unemployment is 50 percent greater than the national average. … [more]

From left: Stuart Romanoff, executive vice president at Cushman & Wakefield, and a rendering of the International Gem TowerExtell Development President Gary Barnett has returned to his original plan for the $750 million International Gem Tower in Midtown, the New York Post reported, as he has decided to lease the top floors to traditional office tenants.

The 34-story, 745,000-square-foot tower planned for completion late next year at, 50 West 47th Street, will get a separate entrance at 55 West 46th Street for tenants of the top 14 floors to use as traditional office space. The first 20 floors are comprised of 400,000 square feet of condominiums dedicated for jewelry industry use. They are about 65 percent sold with an asking price of about $1,000 per square foot, the Post said. … [more]

Office condominium sales are on the rise in Manhattan, with particular appeal to foreign business owners, Crain’s reported.
Indeed, 80 percent of sales at Manhattan’s 88 office condos are to
foreign buyers. Office condo sales, which peaked at $235 million in
2008, and dropped to around $150 million in both 2009 and 2010, are on
the rise as investors, particularly in Europe, look to stash their cash.
The average asking price at a Manhattan office condo has rebounded to
$531 per square foot, though before the recession, the average asking
price was $879 per square foot…. [more]

545 West 25th Street, 139 Centre Street and 50 West 57th Street

The decision to rent or to buy isn’t one that only affects home-seekers. It’s also a dilemma that businesses face. And increasingly, New York businesses want to buy their office space, which has bumped up the demand for office condominiums. According to the New York Times, much of the shift is due to cultural preferences. While many American businesses in the city prefer to lease office space to accommodate future growth, changing market conditions and other factors, foreign businesses favor purchases. Margarette Lee, a principal at New York-based developer Youngwoo & Associates, whose founder hails from Korea, said that the Asian businesses, in particular, covet office condos. … [more]

Extell Development is following through with its plans to begin vertical construction at the site of its future International Gem Tower with or without a construction loan. The Wall Street Journal spotted workers erecting the 34-story tower’s steel base yesterday, and noted that despite its lack of construction financing, it is now one of just two New York City sites where large-scale office buildings are going up. (The other being, of course, the World Trade Center). According to Raizy Haas, Extell’s senior vice president, the Diamond District project, on 47th Street between Fifth and Sixth avenues, will be complete by the end of next year. … [more]