Charter school nabs Jamaica dev site for $30M: Midsize i-sales report

Despite rate hikes, bank failures and no property tax reform, development sites continue to change hands in New York City’s mid-market.

Four of the nine sales of commercial properties for $10 million to $40 million to hit city records last week were for assets that could be redeveloped for new uses. Queens had four mid-market deals, while Manhattan had three and the Bronx had two.

One notable transaction that fell short of the midsize threshold was McDonald’s selling its former location at 136 West Third Street in Greenwich Village for $7.3 million to an entity connected to The Comedy Cellar. CBRE’s Dan Kaplan and Justin Arzi represented the fast-food chain in the deal.

The burger joint, which closed in 2021, could be in line for redevelopment. The two-floor, 5,100-square-foot property was last sold in 1973 for an undisclosed amount.

Below is more information on each mid-market sale, ranked by dollar figure amount.

1. An entity tied to Success Academy Charter Schools bought a development site in Jamaica for $30 million from an entity connected to Scott Perlstein.

The development site, which spans about 66,700 square feet across 11 parcels, is made up of auto dealerships and parking lots that could become a new location for Eva Moskowitz’s controversial charter school network. The parcels were last sold in 2018 for $11.4 million.

The addresses: 153-01 Hillside Avenue, 153-02 Hillside Avenue, 153-03 Hillside Avenue, 153-10 Hillside Avenue, 153-12 Hillside Avenue, 87-65 153rd Street, 87-73 153rd Street, 87-77 153rd Street and 87-81 153rd Street.

The state legislature is resisting Gov. Kathy Hochul’s proposal to allow more charter schools in the city.

2. An entity connected to the social services organization Urban Resource Institute bought a development site at 2351 Walton Avenue in Fordham Heights for $28.3 million from an entity tied to Neal Lazar.

Permits were filed in 2020 for a 12-story, 62-unit, 39,000-square-foot community facility on the site, New York Yimby reported. The property was last sold in 2021 for $3.4 million.

3. An entity tied to Alicia Harper sold an apartment building at 271 West 11th Street in the West Village for $26.8 million to Austin Landow. The four-floor building has 11 units across 6,700 square feet. The property was last sold in 1976 for an undisclosed amount.

4. An entity connected to San Francisco-based industrial real estate owner Terreno Realty bought a warehouse at 42-11 Ninth Street in Long Island City for $23 million from an entity tied to Titan Contracting.

JLL’s Michael Mazzara and Ethan Stanton represented Titan in the deal, while JLL’s Dan Morici represented Terreno.

The 55,000-square-foot warehouse has development potential of more than 320,000 square feet. In addition to industrial and logistics uses, the property is zoned for development into office, studios and life sciences. It was last sold in 2010 for an undisclosed amount.

5. An entity tied to Saratoga Springs-based Prime Group Holdings bought an industrial site at  2350 Fifth Avenue and 12 West 142nd Street in Harlem for $22.9 million from an entity connected to Hidrock Properties.

The site consists of a pair of three-floor warehouses spanning about 142,000 square feet and a 5,000-square-foot parking lot. It was last sold in 1970 for an undisclosed amount.

6. An entity connected to Joseph Riegler bought a Bronx development site at 1351 Jerome Avenue and 1342 Inwood Avenue in Mount Eden for $20.5 million from an entity tied to Dragos Adrian Firescu’s A&A Moving and Self Storage. Concourse Realty Partners’ David Simone brokered the sale.

Riegler filed plans last May for an 11-story, 131-unit residential building spanning 89,000 square feet at 1351 Jerome Avenue and submitted permits in January for a five-story, 105,000-square-foot community facility at 1342 Inwood Avenue, New York Yimby reported.

The site has a 56,000-square-foot warehouse and an 18,200-square-foot parking lot. The properties were last sold in 2015 for $9 million.

7. An entity tied to Sunlight Development bought two retail buildings at 42-06 College Point Boulevard in Flushing for $13 million from an entity connected to Kepco Power Supplies. The two properties span 21,500 square feet.

8. An entity connected to Settlement Housing Fund and CB Emmanuel Realty bought five multifamily buildings at 104 West 114th Street, 102 West 114th Street, 100 Lenox Avenue, 202 St. Nicholas Avenue and 208 St. Nicholas Avenue in Harlem for $10.8 million from an entity tied to the West Harlem Community Organization Inc.

The properties consist of 77 units across more than 75,000 square feet. Records show they were last sold in 2009 for a mere $45,400.

9. Entities tied to B Square Realty and developer Hang Dong Zhang bought the Steinway Hotel at 24-40 Steinway Street in Astoria for $10.7 million from an entity connected to the Super Lake Hotel.

The 38-key hotel, which has a 4-star rating from 50 Google reviewers, one of whom called it the “best hotel in Little Egypt,” has six floors and 14,200 square feet. It was last sold in 2015 for $2.7 million.

The Super Lake only got three stars.