GFP lands $75M to refi Far West Side building

GFP Real Estate, formerly Newmark Holdings, just closed on a $75 million loan to refinance the Film Center Building in Hell’s Kitchen.

Capital One provided the new financing for 630 Ninth Avenue, a 14-story office building between West 44th and 45th streets, representatives for GFP said. Aaron Gural and his partners purchased the building in 1979, property records indicate. His son, Jeff Gural, and grandsons Eric Gural and Brian Steinwurtzel, now run GFP.

GFP recently began capital improvements on the building, including renovating bathrooms, new windows and adding 25,000 square feet of space by converting obsolete film vaults in the building into new office space. The office building, built in the late 1920s, was originally home to various film-related businesses. The building’s first floor lobby was designated a city landmark in 1982.

Paul Talbot, senior managing director with Newmark Knight Frank, arranged the financing on behalf of GFP. He said the conversion of the film vaults spiked the interest of several lenders, and ultimately led to GFP being able to secure the interest-only loan. Matthew Mandell, a senior managing director at Newmark, represented GFP in-house.

GFP also recently finalized leases totaling more than 16,000 square feet in the building. Theater management company ATG NY signed a 5,218-square-foot lease on the eighth floor, and 451 Media Group took 5,000 square feet on the 14th floor.

“The recent strong leasing activity at the building is a clear demonstration of its appeal to a variety of tenants and we expect interest in the property to continue,” Mandell said in a statement.

Earlier this month, Jeff Gural stepped down as chairman of Newmark Knight Frank. He also announced that his family’s firm, Newmark Holdings, would change its name to GFP Real Estate to eliminate confusion between the company and its affiliate, Newmark Knight Frank.