From left: John Catsimatidis and Gracie Mansion

Supermarket mogul and real estate developer John Catsimatidis has started his Republican mayoral campaign with a $1 million investment of his own money, the New York Post reported. He plans to hire a campaign staff next week. [more]

John Catsimatidis

Downtown Brooklyn has been undergoing a development rebirth in recent months. Construction of the Barclays Center arena is wrapping up along Atlantic Avenue, and projects, such as the Stahl Organization’s 590-foot residential tower at 388 Bridge Street, are underway.

John Catsimatidis, the president, chairman, and CEO of the Red Apple Group and Gristedes Foods, is especially proud of the neighborhood’s progress, he said, having gone to high school on Dekalb Avenue in the 1960s. And the billionaire businessman has some skin in the game in the area. [more]

At The Real Deal‘s seventh annual forum last week’s at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall, real estate pros gathered to watch debates between real estate attorneys Adam Leitman Bailey of the eponymous firm and Stuart Saft, chair of law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf’s global real estate department; developer Billy Macklowe of William Macklowe Company and John Catsimatidis, CEO of the Red Apple Group; and Frederick Peters, president of Warburg Realty, and Lockhart Steele, founder of Curbed. In attendance were Faith Hope Consolo, chairman of Prudential Douglas Elliman’s retail leasing and sales division, Jonathan Miller, president of appraisal firm Miller Samuel and Andrew Barrocas, CEO of brokerage MNS, all of whom stepped outside to talk to The Real Deal about the state of the market (see video above). — Katherine Clarke

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John Catsimatidis and a rendering of the Coney Island proposal

As the CEO of the Gristedes supermarket chain John Catsimatidis ushers his “Ocean Dreams” proposal for the west end of the Coney Island boardwalk through public review, it’s becoming increasingly likely that he’ll market the development to middle-aged adults and seniors. According to the New York Post, Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz said the development, which calls for three towers ranging from 14 to 22 stories, would be most successful if it attracted residents over the age of 55…. [more]

Red Apple Real Estate submitted a new proposal for developing 500,000 square feet of mixed-use space at the west end of the Coney Island boardwalk, according to the Architect’s Newspaper. The plan, which was slated to go before Community Board 13 today, calls for three residential towers ranging from 14 to 22 stories with a total of 400 market-rate condos above 25,000 square feet of retail and 400 parking spaces. Red Apple, led by John Catsimatidis of Gristedes supermarket fame, commissioned Dattner Architects as the lead designer for the project — but not before the city agrees to rezone the western edge of the boardwalk for the second time since 2005…. [more]