Metropolitan, TIAA buy LIC office property for $90M

Seller Brickman paid $60M for 47-25 34th St. in 2014

47-25 34th Street in Long Island City (inset: Joseph Farkas)
47-25 34th Street in Long Island City (inset: Joseph Farkas)

A partnership between Metropolitan Realty Associates and TIAA is in contract to buy a Long Island City office building for $90 million. The seller is Brickman, a real estate investment firm which paid $60 million for the property in 2014.

Metropolitan and TIAA will pump in more than $10 million to upgrade the property at 47-25 34th Street into modern office space, according to Crain’s. Over half of the building is vacant, and the rest is used as warehouse and showroom space, sources told the publication.

Eastdil Secured’s Adam Spies, Doug Harmon, Adam Doneger and Joshua King brokered the deal.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

Metropolitan, which is led by Joseph Farkas, recently hired Invesco veteran Todd Bassen to head up its acquisitions team.

Also in Long Island City, Brickman is teaming up with hedge funder Dan Loeb to redevelop a warehouse at 30-02 48th Avenue. Loeb paid the firm about $24 million for a 90 percent stake in that property in March.

Queens investment sales market showed signs of continuing growth last year. Sales totaled $4.4 billion in 2015, according to Ariel Property Advisors, up 20 percent from the previous year. [Crain’s] Hiten Samtani