F&T, SGC America’s $800M project will bring Shanghai to Flushing

1.2M sf Tangram complex set for February 2022 opening

37-12 Prince Street and F&T Group CEO Michael Lee (Margulies Hoelzli Architecture, F&T)
37-12 Prince Street and F&T Group CEO Michael Lee (Margulies Hoelzli Architecture, F&T)

As F&T Group and SGC America prepare for the February 2022 opening of their $800 million Tangram complex, the co-developers have zeroed in on how to appeal to local Asian communities with the landmark project in Flushing, Queens.

The Tangram Tower, the 85,000-square-foot office condominium within the complex, includes 48 units that are already largely occupied by banks, doctors, law offices and accounting firms, according to the Wall Street Journal. The outlet noted it’s a more popular option in the Asian community to buy office space, rather than lease.

That contrasts sharply with the New York City office market, where massive leases make the news on a daily basis. The plan appears to be working, though — only five offices in the building are listed as available on the Tangram website.

The office building itself is five years in the making. F&T Group filed a permit application for the building at 37-12 Prince Street in 2016. Margulies Hoelzli was listed as the architect of record.

The success of the 1.2 million-square-foot Tangram complex, co-developed by F&T Group and SCG America, will depend on factors well beyond the office condo.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

Read more

The complex is centered on a mall designed to appeal to both residents of Flushing and New York City at large.

The Journal reports the shopping center will offer restaurants and retail outlets popular in China and Japan and tenants will be required to display signs in English and Chinese. Additionally, the 4D multiplex theater within will display Chinese subtitles.

Another important element in the complex is a residential condominium. Tangram House West includes 132 units and amenities including a heated indoor lap pool and an interior garden with cherry trees. According to the Journal, units are selling between $680,000 and $3.39 million and the development is scheduled to open in the summer.

A 208-room Renaissance Hotel is also being constructed at the complex, hoping to lure tourists and visitors of Asian descent to Flushing, rather than Manhattan.

[WSJ] — Holden Walter-Warner