Surrounded by vacancies, owner slashes asking rent at Third Avenue retail spot

As vacant storefronts continue to spring up along Third Avenue, the owner of the former Talbots store on the Upper East Side has slashed the asking rent by 44 percent.

The owner of 1251 Third Avenue dropped the asking rent from $1.8 million to $1 million a year, the New York Post reported. The space spans 13,000 feet across two floors and includes 150 feet of wraparound corner sidewalk frontage.

There are several large vacancies along Third Avenue, especially between 59th and 79th streets. For example, 1201 Third Avenue has 14,700 square feet available and is asking $2.4 million. Another 10,000 square feet sits unoccupied at 1220 Third Avenue, which has an annual asking rent of nearly $1.9 million.

“The changing retail market affects Third Avenue as it does other areas,” said Douglas Elliman’s Faith Hope Consolo, who is handling the listing. “It has good foot traffic, and it’s a good residential market, but we have to price it right.”

At the same time, Thor and Premier Equities are planning to build a 31-story condo tower at nearby 1297-1299 Third Avenue. The neighborhood is experiencing something of a building boom, thanks to the new Second Avenue subway station, which opened Jan. 1. [NYP] — Kathryn Brenzel

Correction: A previous version of this post incorrectly identified the owner of 1251 Third Avenue.