Africa Israel Investments Ltd. conversion plans for the former New York Times Building at 229 West 43rd Street include creating about 40 residential condominiums on the 12th through the 16th floors, according to an article in today's edition of The New York Times by Vivian Marino.
In the article, an interview with Tamir Kazaz, the new chief executive of Africa Israel USA and its chief financial officer, said that the company "did a repurposing of the building from office to a mixed-use retail," adding that a hotel will occupy the fifth through the 11th floor and that "about 70 percent of the retail, which is about 250,000 square feet, is now occupied with three tenants: Discovery Times Square; Bowlmor; and we recently signed Daffy's for 28,000 square feet."
Mr. Kazaz said that "in the past two years, we basically restructured all of our debt portfolio," adding that " We reduced the debt either from pay downs that we did from sales or from debt forgiveness that we got from lenders when doing the restructuring. We did not go into foreclosure on any of our properties."
"On the balance sheet now," he added, "we have about $600 million of debt, about a third of what we had two years ago. We had a significant debt reduction on the Times Square Building; we negotiated a restructuring that reduces the debt by about $450 million."
Mr. Kazaz said that his company is "negotiating" with a specific hotel group and "hopefully in the next few weeks will be able to announce it."
The company's portfolio also includes the Apthorp apartment building on the block bounded by Broadway and West End Avenue and 78th and 79th streets and Mr. Kazaz said that "since we restructured the debt in July, we closed 32 units. We also have about 80 units that are rented. We announced recently that we sold the retail portion."
He also said that the company has "sold 100 percent of Fulton Street and 90 percent of 20 Pine, and by the end of 2011, I believe we will be 100 percent," adding that "we're working on plans now to have 95 to 100 units at the Clock Tower on Madison Square Park. Our rental buildings are 100 percent occupied."
The article said that Mr. Kazaz said the company was "actively looking at new opportunities": "We put a bid on an office building that is sitting empty in TriBeCa, which we had plans to convert into 150 rental apartments, but, unfortunately, we lost on the bid process. We are also looking at an office building now in the financial district, which is about 50 percent occupied, for use as an office building and a conversion to condos."
In the article, an interview with Tamir Kazaz, the new chief executive of Africa Israel USA and its chief financial officer, said that the company "did a repurposing of the building from office to a mixed-use retail," adding that a hotel will occupy the fifth through the 11th floor and that "about 70 percent of the retail, which is about 250,000 square feet, is now occupied with three tenants: Discovery Times Square; Bowlmor; and we recently signed Daffy's for 28,000 square feet."
Mr. Kazaz said that "in the past two years, we basically restructured all of our debt portfolio," adding that " We reduced the debt either from pay downs that we did from sales or from debt forgiveness that we got from lenders when doing the restructuring. We did not go into foreclosure on any of our properties."
"On the balance sheet now," he added, "we have about $600 million of debt, about a third of what we had two years ago. We had a significant debt reduction on the Times Square Building; we negotiated a restructuring that reduces the debt by about $450 million."
Mr. Kazaz said that his company is "negotiating" with a specific hotel group and "hopefully in the next few weeks will be able to announce it."
The company's portfolio also includes the Apthorp apartment building on the block bounded by Broadway and West End Avenue and 78th and 79th streets and Mr. Kazaz said that "since we restructured the debt in July, we closed 32 units. We also have about 80 units that are rented. We announced recently that we sold the retail portion."
He also said that the company has "sold 100 percent of Fulton Street and 90 percent of 20 Pine, and by the end of 2011, I believe we will be 100 percent," adding that "we're working on plans now to have 95 to 100 units at the Clock Tower on Madison Square Park. Our rental buildings are 100 percent occupied."
The article said that Mr. Kazaz said the company was "actively looking at new opportunities": "We put a bid on an office building that is sitting empty in TriBeCa, which we had plans to convert into 150 rental apartments, but, unfortunately, we lost on the bid process. We are also looking at an office building now in the financial district, which is about 50 percent occupied, for use as an office building and a conversion to condos."
Architecture Critic
Carter Horsley
Since 1997, Carter B. Horsley has been the editorial director of CityRealty. He began his journalistic career at The New York Times in 1961 where he spent 26 years as a reporter specializing in real estate & architectural news. In 1987, he became the architecture critic and real estate editor of The New York Post.
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