Soloviev pivots at 7 West 57th, rents penthouse for $40K

Condos next to trophy office tower becoming rentals

Stefan Soloviev and 7 West 57th Street
Stefan Soloviev and 7 West 57th Street (Getty, Google Maps, Soloviev by Alexis Manrodt for The Real Deal)

UPDATED May 10, 3:30 p.m.: Stefan Soloviev is rolling back the condo plan at 7 West 57th Street, pivoting to rentals instead.

All of the units at the Billionaires’ Row property are now being marketed as rentals on the building’s website, Crain’s reported. It’s not clear when the Soloviev Group made the switch from offering condos at the building, which had a projected sellout of $75 million. 

The 20-story building includes 15 full-floor units. Plans for the project emerged in 2017, when Soloviev’s father, Sheldon Solow, was head of the family firm, then known as the Solow Building Company. Solow died in 2020.

The switch from condos to rentals came after no apparent sales were completed at the building, which is next door to the company’s prized office property at 9 West 57th Street.

The rentals start at $16,000 per month. That still may be a better proposition to some: a unit previously listed for $4 million is being offered for $25,000 a month. Soloviev told The Real Deal that the penthouse has been rented for $40,000 a month, and that half the building has been snapped up in a week. The 2,920-square-foot penthouse is one of four units listed as available at the building’s website.

Atlas Real Estate New York — which is handling leasing at the building — declined to comment.

Soloviev’s interests appear to run counter to those of his father. During a rare interview at The Real Deal’s New York City Showcase + Forum last week, the 47-year-old waxed poetic about the grain industry. He is also actively farming land on the North Fork of Long Island, where he’s making wine.

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He pointed to 9 West 57th, an office building along Billionaires’ Row, and an undeveloped parcel in Midtown East, the seat of his bid for a casino license from the state, as his top real estate priorities. 

The office property south of Central Park is the top revenue source for his company, Soloviev said. The amenities have been revamped to include a gym and two pools. Tenants are responding, as Soloviev said the vacancy rate has dropped from 50 percent to 12 percent under his ownership.

The long-dormant Midtown East parcel, which Soloviev dubbed Freedom Plaza, was pitched to host a 1,000-room hotel, four-acre park and a gaming facility run by Connecticut-based Mohegan Sun — if its owner secures one of three licenses for full-service casinos in New York City. His father purchased the 6.7-acre site from Con Ed in 2000 for $600 million. 

This story has been updated with information about new rental activity at 7 West 57th Street.

Holden Walter-Warner

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