Parking veterans at Hudson Valley Parking Trust have teamed with the Broe Group to purchase Icon Parking, the city’s largest parking company, according to a press release.
Icon had the top Manhattan retail lease ranking last year, with the renewal of its 56,000-square-foot garage at 200 East 66th Street.
Chief executive John D. Smith took over Icon’s leadership pre-pandemic with a background in retail, hospitality, gaming and restaurants. Smith was named Innovator of the Year by the National Parking Association last year, credited with transforming “a 76-year-old traditional parking operation into a digitally enabled consumer-centric brand elevating the customer experience.”
The company got into hot water with some of its New York City landlords during the pandemic. SL Green, Brookfield Properties and others filed at least 16 lawsuits accusing Icon of concealing profits as it failed to pay rent. Later filings alleged Icon fraudulently avoided judgments won in those suits. Most or all of the cases were eventually settled.
Smith announced a management buyout last year with Arkview Capital and plans to expand its existing footprint beyond the city, across the tri-state area and Boston. According to its website, it is one of the largest minority-owned businesses in the U.S. with 200 locations.
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Hudson Valley Parking Trust is a global parking operations and investment platform founded and led by Jerry Skillett.
The Broe Group, founded by chief executive Pat Broe, is a multibillion-dollar, privately-held family-owned investment company started out of Denver with holdings in real estate, rail, infrastructure, energy, agriculture, water, health care and technology across North America.
Financing and broker information were not provided.
—Christina Previte