TA Realty Takes Rare Retail Dive on Staten Island

Boston-based TA Realty largely dabbles in the industrial sector, but is taking a chance on a pair of retail properties on Staten Island.

James Raisides’ firm acquired two buildings in the borough’s New Dorp Beach neighborhood for a combined $79.2 million, the Commercial Observer reported. The deal for two properties breaks down to roughly $430 per built square foot.

An affiliate of the Bregman Organization, led by Paul Bregman, sold the buildings at 2712 Hylan Boulevard and 2754 Hylan Boulevard. Both are part of the Tysens Park Shopping Center; the former is occupied by Rumble Boxing Gym, while the latter is occupied by Stop & Shop.

Both buyer and seller failed to immediately respond to requests for comment from the publication.

What may prove most interesting to TA Realty is the properties’ potential for redevelopment. While the buildings only span 184,000 square feet of built space, they include another 632,000 square feet of air rights, according to PincusCo. That means TA Realty, which owns approximately 230 sites in the country, has 819,000 square feet of buildable space to play with as-of-right.

In February, TA Realty sold a 273-unit NoDa Flats apartment complex in Charlotte to Richmond, Virginia-based GrayCo for $75 million. The sale marked a near break-even exit for the Boston-based investment manager, which purchased the property in 2021 for $74.2 million. It also represented an exit from the Charlotte market for the firm.

Bregman doesn’t appear to have many more properties to exit from these days. Its portfolio appears to be limited to three Long Island holdings: Kohl’s Plaza Shopping Center in Lake Ronkonkoma, Jayne Plaza in Port Jefferson Station and a Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen in Shirley.

Elsewhere on Staten Island, Wagner College recently agreed to purchase St. John’s University’s 16.5-acre Staten Island campus in Grymes Hill. The purchase price was not disclosed, but the campus was last asking $35 million.

Wagner, which is based a quarter mile away, plans to integrate the campus into its academic footprint.

— Holden Walter-Warner