Verizon pays $75M for Lightstone’s Bronx warehouse

Wireless provider previously rented 26K sf facility

Hans Vestberg, chief executive officer, Verizon in front of the warehouse at 325 Exterior Street in the Bronx (Getty Images, LoopNet, iStock)
Hans Vestberg, chief executive officer, Verizon in front of the warehouse at 325 Exterior Street in the Bronx (Getty Images, LoopNet, iStock)

Verizon isn’t dropping any calls in New York City, continuing a flurry of recent moves within the market.

The telecom giant purchased a warehouse at 325 Exterior Street in the Mott Haven section of the Bronx for $75 million, the Commercial Observer reported. Verizon previously rented the 26,000-square-foot facility from Lightstone and had a five-year option on the space.

Lightstone has owned the property since purchasing it from ABS Partners Real Estate in April 2019. When it bought the property, the site was already fully leased to Verizon.

According to the Observer, Verizon was represented by a Cushman & Wakefield team including Josh Kurilloff and Rico Murtha. Lightstone was represented by JLL’s Bob Knakal and Jonathan Hageman.

Despite the sale, Lightstone isn’t going far just yet. The company owns an adjacent parcel to the property spanning 355 Exterior Street and 399 Exterior Street, which it acquired in February 2019 for $59 million, according to the Observer. It even filed plans for a 43-story mixed-use tower at 355 Exterior Street in October 2020 with 556,000 square feet of residences.

But the Observer reported the site was put up for sale late in 2021 and remains on the market.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

Read more

Verizon agreed on Jan. 4 to delay the deployment of its 5G expansion for two weeks amid concerns over airline safety. However, the company is forging ahead with sizable changes to its New York City presence.

The company was reported in October to be planning on relocating hundreds of employees to the Essex Crossing development in the Lower East Side, agreeing to nearly 143,000 square feet across three floors at 155 Delancey Street.

Asking rents reportedly ranged from $80 to more than $130 per square foot. The 20-year lease reportedly has an option for Verizon to grab more space and create a 350,000-square-foot campus for itself. It has until late 2022 to exercise that option.

Verizon maintains more than 565,000 square feet at landmarked 140 West Street, which holds unmovable specialized switching agreement. The telecom giant also has an office in Fort Greene and corporate headquarters at 1095 Avenue of the Americas.

[CO] — Holden Walter-Warner