When Glenwood Management’s Leonard Litwin died at age 102 in April 2017, he said in his will that his heirs should avoid selling any of the company’s buildings. But the firm apparently saw that as more of a guideline than a rule.
Glenwood has decided to make a rare departure with one of its buildings, as Hirschfeld Properties’ Elie Hirschfeld bought the company’s office property at 207 East 94th Street for $28.5 million, according to sources familiar with the deal. The building stands five stories tall and spans about 39,000 square feet.
Glenwood had owned the building since at least 1985, according to property records.
A Kassin Sabbagh Realty team of Bunny Escava, Dan Myers and Jared Rahmanan brokered the deal for both sides. They could not be reached for comment.
Hirschfeld said he was interested in the property because of its location and its tenants, noting that the building came 100 percent occupied.
“It’s not so easy to find a commercial property that is already well developed and has a future on the east side,” he said.
His company is in the midst of renovating the space for Mt. Sinai, the largest tenant in the building.
Representatives for Glenwood did not respond to a request for comment. The company rarely sells properties. Its last sale appears to have been roughly four years ago, when Glenwood sold a 265-unit rental building on the Upper East Side for nearly $140 million.
Luxury residential towers along the Upper East Side have long been the core of Glenwood’s business, and the company landed a pair of refinancings for them earlier this year: $127 million from Prudential for the Fairmont at 300 East 75th Street and $102 million from Prudential for 1365 York Avenue. Litwin’s daughter Carole Pittelman has been running the firm since his death.
Hirschfeld said he was not sure why Glenwood decided to break with its longstanding business practice and part with one of its buildings.
“I don’t know,” he said. “I didn’t need to ask.”