A century-old former telephone exchange being converted to condominiums near the Time Warner Center has benefited from the buzz surrounding the opening of the mammoth project, even if the publicity and sales activity was largely accidental.
A boutique condominium with 16 residences at 426 West 58th Street, which will be known as West 58, opened for sales three weeks after the Time Warner Center did, six months later than expected.
“Moving out was a big job for the one former tenant there,” said Iva Spitzer of Douglas Elliman, marketing and sales agent for the condo. “The project was pushed back half a year, and the Time Warner Center opened three weeks before we did.”
As a result of its timing, the project has seen four price increases since sales began, and nine of the 16 units have already sold, Spitzer said. One apartment was sold to a buyer from Los Angeles over the phone, she said.
The area surrounding the project has been among the hottest in Manhattan, with the average price per square foot rising to $1,020 in the first quarter, up from $703 a year ago, according to a recent Brown Harris Stevens report.
West 58 features an existing five-story structure, the previous home of the nonprofit Bureau of Jewish Education, which will house 11 two or three-bedroom apartments. A new six-story addition that will be built on top will include five apartments between 2,600 to 3,700 square feet.
Prices range from $1.4 to $5 million, and occupancy is expected early next year.
While not all of the Time Warner Center – including some restaurants and Jazz at Lincoln Center – is open, Whole Foods is clearly the biggest draw for the building and the neighborhood, pulling in hordes of shoppers.
“It’s astonishing how one thing – a supermarket – can change an area,” said Spitzer.
Spitzer said prices at West 58 run from $1,000 to $1,200 a square foot, compared to $2,500 a square foot at the Time Warner Center.
Situated between Ninth and 10th Avenues, Spitzer acknowledges that the project is “pushing a boundary” because of its westerly location, particularly in terms of retail offerings in the area. But she says retail will soon follow.