Thor buys longtime Grace’s Marketplace site for $52.5M

1231 Third Avenue and Thor's Melissa Gliatta
1231 Third Avenue and Thor's Melissa Gliatta

Joe Sitt’s commercial real estate firm Thor Equities paid $52.5 million for a four-story, 33,300-square-foot building that has housed family-run food merchant Grace’s Marketplace for 30 years, according to property records filed with the city today.

Upper East Side landlord Allen Realty Company sold the mixed-use property at 1231-1237 Third Avenue at 71st Street. It features 30 residential units and a total 17,600 square feet of retail – 9,300 square feet on the ground floor and 8,300 square feet on the lower level. Melissa Gliatta, an executive at Thor, represented her firm in the deal.

“For decades, the Upper East Side has been synonymous with luxury and upscale lifestyle,” Sitt, CEO of Thor Equities, said in a statement. “Thor is thrilled to take a significant step into this market and look forward to meeting and working with our new neighbors along Third Avenue.”

Grace’s Marketplace, which occupies roughly 7,000 square feet of space, announced earlier this month it is moving to 215 East 68th Street. It signed a 15-year lease for 13,125 square feet on the ground floor of the 608-unit rental building, which is owned by Rudin Management, as previously reported.

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In another Upper East Side deal, Thor Equities agreed to buy 33,389 square feet of retail space at 680 Madison Avenue from Extell Development for $277 million in June.

The firm unveiled plans last month to launch a new residential division that will focus on acquisitions and development of residential properties, specifically Manhattan rental buildings.

Allen Realty Company could not be immediately reached for comment.