The Rockefeller Group has begun construction on a new distribution center in Bay Shore. 

The Manhattan-based developer is bringing a new 172,622-square-foot building to a 10.75-acre site at 55 Paradise Lane. Rockefeller Group purchased the vacant property for $32 million in 2020. 

Last year, the company also purchased two adjacent warehouses totaling 437,998 square feet at 145 and 158 Candlewood Road for $94.5 million from an affiliate of Rubie’s Costume Company. 

The new speculative distribution center on Paradise Lane will feature 36-foot-clear ceiling heights, 47.5-foot by 54-foot column spacing, 40 dock doors, parking for 270 vehicles and an additional 40 spaces for trailers. The plans also call for an additional 7,317 square feet of office mezzanine space. 

Completion of the project is expected in the first quarter of next year. 

“Rockefeller Group has long recognized Long Island as an important market for industrial development,” Mark Shearer, senior managing director for Rockefeller Group, said in a company statement. “We believe this project, which will deliver new Class-A industrial along with two existing buildings on the site, will provide Long Island with quality distribution space as the market continues to evolve and last-mile locations grow in demand.” 

At 158 Candlewood Road, Rockefeller Group has leased 82,064 square feet to Duro Dyne Corporation, a manufacturer of sheet metal accessories and equipment for the HVAC industry. Lindenmeyr Munroe, a packaging and paper provider, leased the remaining 115,184 square feet, bringing the building to full occupancy. 

The 240,750-square-foot warehouse at 145 Candlewood Road was leased back to Rubie’s Costume Company. 

“Rockefeller Group is pleased to welcome Duro Dyne and Lindenmeyr Munroe to our first project on Long Island,” Meg Brod, senior managing director for Rockefeller Group, said in the statement. “The addition of these two respected companies will help establish Rockefeller Group Logistics Park in Bay Shore as one of the premier distribution facilities on the South Shore as we develop 55 Paradise Lane for companies in the market today.” 

The general contractor for 55 Paradise Lane is Ronkonkoma-based Aurora Contractors and the architect is Manhattan-based KSS Architects. 

“We are truly excited to represent the Rockefeller Group as the construction manager for this exciting project,” said Michael Adler, director of business development for Aurora Contractors. “Our in-depth knowledge of the industrial sector, coupled with our ability to navigate ongoing material availability issues, will ensure a highly successful outcome for this project.” 

Leslie Lanne, Doug Omstrom and Max Omstrom of JLL are the leasing agents for the Bay Shore industrial park. Paul Leone and Phil Heilpern of CBRE represented Duro Dyne and Sean Duffy and Nicholas Gallipoli of Cushman & Wakefield represented Lindenmeyr Munroe on the leasing of 158 Candlewood Road. 

Article: https://libn.com/2022/07/21/rockefeller-group-begins-major-industrial-project-in-bay-shore/

Suffolk County and Southampton Town officials joined developers Tuesday to mark the start of construction of the fifth and final building at the Hamptons Business District in Westhampton Beach. 

Rechler Equity Partners recently broke ground on the $33 million, 100,483-square-foot building at 230 Roger’s Way. The building, half of which is already pre-leased, will feature multiple loading docks, 182 parking spaces, 22-foot-high ceilings, an ESFR sprinkler system and outdoor storage. The remaining 50,000 square feet of available space can be divided into warehousing space and built-to-suit office space, according to a company statement. 

The developer received economic incentives from the Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency to assist with the project, expected to be completed in the spring of next year. 

Rechler Equity Partners was selected by Suffolk County to redevelop the property adjacent to the Francis S. Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach in 2008. Since then, the developer has created four buildings and is now adding a fifth, all totaling 385,000 square feet at the Hamptons Business District, which is home to 17 businesses and includes a variety of manufacturing, warehousing, office and showroom space. 

“230 Roger’s Way is another example of our vision to provide industrial space that can serve businesses of all shapes and sizes,” Gregg Rechler, co-managing partner of Rechler Equity Partners, said in the statement. “We want to give our tenants the tools to grow and support them every step of the way.” 

The company’s co-managing partner Mitchell Rechler said the construction of the new park’s final building is an important moment for his organization. 

“In 2009, we set out to provide a solution in terms of industrial space for the underserved east end of Long Island and the results we see today speak for themselves,” Rechler said in the statement. 

Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman said the Hampton Business District continues to grow and strengthen the regional economy. 

“The business district is home to many new and growing businesses that help keep the promise of providing local jobs, which is so critical to our area,” he said. 

Rechler Equity Partners, which owns a portfolio of more than 6.5 million square feet of mostly industrial space on Long Island, plans to begin construction soon on the Rechler Business District in Medford, an 840,000-square-foot industrial park on 73 acres off Horseblock Road. 

As LIBN reported earlier this year, the company plans to develop the new park in phases, with the first building at 10 Donald’s Way being 138,770 square feet with 28-foot-high ceilings and 49-foot by 44-foot column spacing at the entry of the park.  

Article: https://libn.com/2022/07/19/construction-starts-on-final-building-at-hamptons-business-district/

Southern Land Company has submitted a draft environmental impact statement to the Town of North Hempstead for its proposed $130 million luxury rental project in Port Washington. 

The project at 145 West Shore Road would bring a seven-story, 176-unit apartment complex to a blighted 7.1-acre waterfront site on Hempstead Harbor. Plans include a massive cleanup of the property that had been used for loading barges with sand from long-abandoned mining operations across the street. The remediation, which could cost the developer as much as $15 million, will include the removal of two sunken barges and 50 tons of contaminated steel and creosote pilings that have turned the property into an eyesore. 

The company’s DEIS maintains that the development will decrease the potential for soil erosion and minimize irrigation demands to help conserve and protect water; increase population of birds and other local wildlife on the site; and provide a net increase in tidal wetland habitat.

In addition, the DEIS says its traffic study found that “traffic generated by the redeveloped site can be accommodated on the adjacent roadways and intersections without significant negative impacts to traffic conditions.” 

The development will also feature a shuttle service running to and from the Port Washington Long Island Rail Road station during peak hours to cut down on rush hour traffic, according to the DEIS. 

The proposed redevelopment is expected to produce about 14 school-aged children, limiting any adverse impacts on the Port Washington School District. The DEIS states that the school district’s cost for the added children would be offset by a $1 million upfront payment to the school district by the developer and an additional amount of $16 million to be allocated to the district via property tax revenue. 

“The findings included in this draft environmental impact statement confirm that our vision for 145 West Shore Road will make Port Washington a better place to live by undertaking a multimillion-dollar clean-up of this property, providing newfound tax revenue, and offering members of the Town of North Hempstead community an opportunity for quality living and gathering space,” Southern Land Company Founder and CEO Tim Downey, said in a company statement. “What currently sits as an undeveloped property in the community that is affecting the local ecosystem will be transformed into a beautiful development, complete with plentiful green space and amenities for all to enjoy.” 

The development site is currently owned by the Scotto family, which will own a percentage of the project. The plan for the property features about 55,000 square feet of public space, which includes a 500-foot-long public promenade connecting the adjacent North Hempstead Beach Park, a public pier that can hold community events and a public marina with 20 to 30 boat slips. 

The proposed complex will have 300 parking spaces, with 242 spaces in two below-grade levels and 58 surface spaces that will be open to the public. It will also include a 40-kilowatt solar array to power the parking garage and common areas. 

“We are committed to being good stewards of the community and adding value to local businesses and residents of the area,” said Joseph Rossi, Southern Land’s northeast director of acquisitions. 

Monthly rents at the Port Washington development are projected to start at $3,500 for a one-bedroom apartment and go up as high as $11,000 for a penthouse residence. Ten percent of the units will be priced as workforce housing for people making up to 80 percent of the area median income. 

Southern Land will be seeking economic incentives from the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency for the Port Washington complex. Currently, the site pays $361,130 a year in property taxes. If approved for IDA benefits, the developed property is expected to generate more than $28 million in taxes over 20 years. 

Article: https://libn.com/2022/07/15/developer-submits-impact-statement-for-130m-project/

The state is taking applications for $250 million in grants for building projects on Long Island — and will continue to do so until the money runs out, officials said.

The grants are part of the new $350 million Long Island Investment Fund, which was a last-minute addition to the 2022-23 state budget.

The grants will be distributed to up to four “transformative projects,” such as large-scale real estate developments, each receiving a minimum of $25 million, and up to 30 projects, each receiving at least $5 million, according to guidelines adopted last month by the board of Empire State Development, the state business-aid agency that’s overseeing the LIIF.

The money can be used for business expansions, research and development laboratories and new buildings on college campuses — but not facilities that will only be used for housing, medical services or retail shops, the guidelines state.

“Applications are open …[and] will be accepted until funds are exhausted,” said ESD spokesman Matthew Gorton.

The 13-page application may be found at https://on.ny.gov/3nNeC75.

Among the requirements is a commitment by applicants to meet an assigned goal for the participation of minority- and women-owned contractors in the projects, letters of support from funding partners besides New York State, and where applicable, a letter of support from the union that represents the applicant’s employees.

In addition, “the LIIF guidelines indicate that legislative support [from the state senator and Assembly member representing the project site] is an important factor in the evaluation process,” Gorton said, adding ESD expects “support letters” from state lawmakers will be included with many applications.

However, ESD will make the final determination on where the grants go after the Long Island Regional Economic Development Council has weighed in.

A five-member executive committee of the 22-member council will review the applications and make funding recommendations. The committee now consists of co-vice chairs John S. Nader, president of Farmingdale State College, and Linda Armyn, a Bethpage Federal Credit Union executive, and Resi Cooper, a public affairs specialist; John Durso, president of the Long Island Federal of Labor, and Doon Gibbs, director of Brookhaven National Laboratory.

Sources tell Newsday that two other council members will be added to the committee: Rich Guardino, executive director of the Long Island Regional Planning Council and a former Hempstead Town supervisor, and Jim Morgo, a development consultant and former Suffolk County economic development commissioner.

Guardino and Morgo were supposed to lead a new “work group” that would review the grant applications and make recommendations to the development council’s executive committee, under a plan proposed in April by then-council co-vice chair Kevin Law. Work groups generally have between 10 and 20 members, based on the council’s annual report published in 2021.

But the LIIF work group has been scuttled. “When the idea of the work group was first raised, discussions about the LIIF application and review processes were in the beginning stages,” said the agency spokesman. The new process “reflects broader agreement between [state lawmakers], ESD and [the development council].”

Law, during his first meeting as ESD board chairman last month, said the agency’s Long Island director Cara Longworth and other employees “have made that [selection] process much better.”

Guardino and Morgo also both endorsed the streamlined procedures.

“The whole point of this program is to get transformative projects off the ground,” Guardino said on Monday. “So, if we can move more efficiently and get things done quicker … I think this is the way to go,” he said.

Morgo added, “The change eliminates one level of review and expedites the process … I think it’s a good idea.”

Separately, the LIIF allots $50 million each for technology startups and skills training for workers. ESD will solicit proposals “later this year” from groups to use the two pots of money, the agency spokesman said.

Article: https://www.newsday.com/business/long-island-investment-fund-esd-grants-liredc-fvy0av6v

The Long Island industrial real estate market continued to see a lot of activity in the second quarter, as the recently flagging office market also saw some signs of improvement. 

Industrial rents hit an all-time high in Q2, with the overall average asking rent reaching $14.59 per square foot for the first time, according to a report from Cushman & Wakefield. That represents a 33.5 percent increase from just two years ago. 

Industrial leasing activity has skyrocketed in the first half of 2022. There were 2.1 million square feet of Long Island industrial space leased in the first six months of the year, which is up 55.9 percent from the first six months of last year, according to C&W. 

Two of the larger industrial leases in the second quarter were the 115,000-square-foot lease signed by Lindenmeyr Munroe at 158 Candlewood Road in Bay Shore, and the 76,000-square-foot lease at 1 Brooklyn Road in Hempstead by The Brink’s Company.  

While industrial vacancy rates ticked up slightly in the second quarter, vacancies were still historically low at 2.5 percent.  

Meanwhile, the office real estate market on Long Island, which has struggled since the start of the pandemic, had a fairly active first half of the year. There were 809,000 square feet of Long Island office space leased in the first six months of the year, a 34.4 percent increase from the same period last year, C&W reports. 

The 490,000 square feet of office space leased in Q2 represented the largest leasing volume since 2016. The largest deal in the second quarter was a 152,000-square-foot lease by Signature Bank at 68 S. Service Road in Melville. 

Though the overall vacancy rate for office space here climbed to 13 percent, rents rose slightly in Q2, with the overall average asking rent reaching $32.06. 

The bad news in the Long Island office market is the continuing negative absorption rate, which is more than 500,000 square feet in the red so far this year. The supply of office space has outweighed demand for 11 consecutive quarters, with the last positive absorption recorded in 2018. 

Article: https://libn.com/2022/07/11/industrial-market-rolls-on-as-office-market-makes-slight-gains/

The sun hasn’t set on the Sun Vet Mall just yet.

Blumenfeld Development Group signed a 99-year ground lease for the hapless Holbrook retail property, the Long Island Business News reported. The lease was signed with an affiliate of Marvin Lindner’s estate, which owns the mall at 5801 Sunrise Highway. Terms were not disclosed.

The 270,000-square-foot mall has endured some tough times in recent years, as have many dated, suburban shopping complexes. Both of its anchor tenants, a 100,000-square-foot Toys ‘R’ Us and 60,000-square-foot Pathmark, have left, rendering the surrounding parking lot a sea of empty asphalt.

The mall’s remaining tenants occupy fewer than 10,000 square feet altogether. The occupancy rate for the property barely registers at 10 percent.

Considering the sorry state of the mall and others like it, it’s no surprise that Syosset-based Blumenfeld is eyeing a redevelopment. What exactly that will be is not yet clear; the leaseholder said it will be “de-malled,” but it didn’t say it would abandon retail.

“We will be meeting with town officials in the near future to determine how we’re going to proceed in the redevelopment,” said Blumenfeld executive Jon Cohen.

The Sun Vet Mall isn’t the only one on Long Island set for a radical change. This year, the similarly named Sunrise Mall stopped renewing tenants’ expiring leases, setting up a transition to something else. Owner Urban Edge Properties is expected to pursue a redevelopment.

David Blumenfeld’s eponymous firm landed a $125 million loan at The Smile, a multifamily mixed-use complex in East Harlem, earlier this year. Invesco Real Estate provided the financing for the 233-unit building at 158 East 126th Street.

The company, which goes by BDG, is responsible for the redevelopment of the Tanger Outlets in Deer Park, an 800,000-square-foot retail and entertainment venue that replaced an 80-acre industrial property.

Articles: https://therealdeal.com/2022/07/06/blumenfeld-to-de-mall-failing-long-island-property/

More than 70% of the $350 million in state business grants to be awarded on Long Island over the next few years are reserved for building projects that will boost the economy, according to guidelines approved on Thursday.

Applications for the grant money will be available in the next couple of days from the Hauppauge office of Empire State Development, the state’s primary business-aid agency, an ESD official said.

The grants are part of the Long Island Investment Fund, or LIIF, which was a last-minute addition to the 2022-23 state budget.

LIIF consists of three pots of money. The largest, $250 million, is reserved for “transformative projects” such as large-scale real estate developments. Up to four projects will receive $25 million each and up to 30 projects will receive $5 million each, the guidelines state.

Construction must start within three years of the project receiving a grant or must be completed within seven years. The money can be used for business expansions, research and development laboratories and new buildings on college campuses — but not for facilities that will only be used for housing, medical services or retail sales, according to the guidelines.

“These projects must have the potential to develop or redevelop communities and sites into transformative job-creation engines,” the guidelines state.

A grant cannot represent more than 50% of the project’s total cost.

Kevin Law, the new ESD chairman and a partner in the Tritec Real Estate Co. in East Setauket, said, “These guidelines [will] make sure that criteria is met. So, by the time [the projects] arrive at the board we know [they] have been properly vetted,” he said before the ESD board unanimously approved the guidelines during a virtual meeting.

The Long Island Regional Economic Development Council will review the LIIF applications. The council has helped to determine how state business grants and tax breaks are distributed in Nassau and Suffolk counties since 2011.

Council director Cara Longworth told the ESD board on Thursday that the LIIF grant application will be “posted on our website hopefully by tomorrow or certainly within the next few days.” The form may be found at esd.ny.gov/long-island-investment-fund.

Projects seeking state support will be prioritized based on whether they have been endorsed by the development council and have letters of support from the state senator and Assembly member who represent the project site, according to state officials.

Sen. Anna Kaplan (D-Great Neck), chair of the Senate’s commerce and economic development committee, said, “At a time when there is so much uncertainty in our economy … the [LIIF] provides a golden opportunity to invest in big projects that will make our region more attractive for private investment, make our communities more vibrant, and support significant job creation,” she told Newsday.

Sen. Jim Gaughran (D-Northport) agreed, saying, “As we emerge from the pandemic, the investment fund will put shovels into the ground for many of the projects that have long been on hold.”

Besides the $250 million for construction projects, the guidelines earmark $50 million each for technology startups and skills training for workers.

A business plan competition will be held annually for five years for startups in biotechnology, health technology and medical devices. There also will be one or more “regional workforce training centers” established to equip job seekers with the skills that employers need.

ESD will solicit proposals from groups to run the competition and the training centers, an agency official said on Thursday.

The LIIF is similar to a $550 million Transformative Investment Program, which was established in the 2015-16 state budget.

That money was spent on 18 projects. The largest amounts went to Nassau Hub improvements in Uniondale, $131 million; a center for innovation in medicine and engineering at Stony Brook University, $75 million; research facilities at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, $55 million, and parking garages at the Ronkonkoma Hub, $50 million.

Article: https://www.newsday.com/business/investment-fund-jobs-construction-projects-esd-rctc0ytc

With its long history and concentration of skyscrapers, Manhattan is home to 82 of the 100 highest-taxed office buildings in the country, according to a new report.

In fact, every one of the top 10 is in Midtown, the analysis by PropertyShark found. The list serves as a reminder that for all the headlines about the district becoming dated or losing tenants to Hudson Yards, it remains far and away the city’s and nation’s greatest repository of commercial property wealth.

With its long history and concentration of skyscrapers, Manhattan is home to 82 of the 100 highest-taxed office buildings in the country, according to a new report.

In fact, every one of the top 10 is in Midtown, the analysis by PropertyShark found. The list serves as a reminder that for all the headlines about the district becoming dated or losing tenants to Hudson Yards, it remains far and away the city’s and nation’s greatest repository of commercial property wealth.

“The uncertainty of office space use given the shift to hybrid work is a large enough change that we could see the percent decline in the property tax revenues nearly match the percent decline in market values,” warned a June report from the city comptroller’s office.

Here are the 10 highest-taxed buildings in the country. Together, they were responsible for over $500 million in tax revenue in 2021.

1. The $75.3 million in tax revenue paid by the General Motors Building at 767 Fifth Avenue easily led the nation. The 50-story tower with 1.7 million square feet of office space occupies an entire city block at the southeast corner of Central Park. The building is owned by Boston Properties in partnership with Chinese billionaire Zhang Xin and Safra Bank.

2.Another product of the skyscraper boom of the 1960s, the MetLife Building at 200 Park Avenue paid $60.4 million in taxes last year. The 59-story building is owned by Tishman Speyer and Irvine Company.

3.The third-highest tax-paying office property in the city is actually three buildings at Rockefeller Center: The International Building and the two buildings flanking it, 50 Rockefeller Plaza and 1270 Sixth Avenue (better known as the office building on top of Radio City Music Hall). Together, this bundle paid $53.8 million in taxes.

4. Coming in fourth with a tax bill of $53.77 million is the Solow Building at 9 West 57th Street. It was built in the early 1970s by the late real estate mogul Sheldon Solow, founder of Solow Realty & Development, who passed away in 2020 at the age of 92. Solow’s firm still owns the building.

5.Also situated at Rockefeller Center, 1221 Sixth Avenue paid $53.1 million in taxes.

6. Another Midtown behemoth, the AllianceBernstein Building at 1345 Sixth Avenue paid $49.2 million last year.

7. One of the older buildings on this list, Google’s 1930s Art-Deco building at 111 Eighth Avenue paid $48.7 million. With 2.9 million square feet, the building occupies an entire block in Chelsea. Originally the Port Authority Building, it is now owned by Alphabet, Google’s parent company.

8. With a tax amount of $46.3 million in 2021, Vornado and the Trump Organization’s 1290 Sixth Avenue skyscraper comes in eighth. The 2.1-million-square-foot building is home to Cushman & Wakefield, Neuberger Berman and Hachette Book Group, but its largest tenant, Axa Equitable Life Insurance, plans to move down the street to the No. 6 payer, the AllianceBernstein Building, next year.

9. The newest building to make the 100 highest-taxed is One Vanderbilt, the SL Green-owned skyscraper completed in 2020. Its levy was just under $44 million, an amount that should increase substantially as the building fills up. It is already home to what may be New York’s highest office rent ever: Canadian environmental services company GFL Environmental this spring leased the supertall’s 73rd floor, for which SL Green was asking $322 per square foot.

10. Just cracking the top 10 is Paramount Plaza at 1633 Broadway, owned by the Paramount Group. The building’s tax amount last year was $43.9 million. The 48-story, 2.5-million-square-foot building gained a new Michelan-starred tenant in February, the Taiwanese restaurant Din Tai Fung.

Article: https://therealdeal.com/2022/06/29/nations-highest-taxed-office-buildings-are-all-in-one-neighborhood/

A project that will bring two new warehouses to Shirley is getting economic incentives from the Town of Brookhaven Industrial Development Agency. 

The $72 million project is a joint venture between Yonkers-based AVR Realty and Scannell Properties, a national developer headquartered in Indianapolis.  

The plan calls for developing a total of 401,000 square feet of warehouse and distribution space on a 47.26-acre site located just south of the Long Island Expressway at Exit 68. 

Dubbed Precision Innovation Park, the project includes a 150,000-square-foot building with 36-foot clear ceiling heights, 28 dock doors, 28 trailer stalls and parking for 150 cars and a 250,000-square-foot building will have 40-foot clear heights, 42 loading doors, 52 trailer stalls and parking for 250 cars. 

AVR purchased the vacant Shirley site in 2020. 

The IDA, which gave approval for the assistance in Dec. 2021, closed on the incentives agreement on June 16, according to an IDA statement. The project is expected to generate 70 full-time equivalent jobs within two years of its completion. Construction is expected to generate 91 jobs and the project is expected to be completed in early 2023. 

“This project will turn land that has been vacant for decades into productive real estate generating both jobs and revenues for the town,” Brookhaven IDA Chairman Frederick Braun said in the statement. 

The developers of the Shirley project have engaged JLL to lease the properties. The JLL leasing team includes Rob Kossar, Leslie Lanne, Seth Geldzahler, Tom DiMicelli, Doug Omstrom and Max Omstrom. 

Article: https://libn.com/2022/06/28/ida-closes-on-incentives-for-72m-industrial-project/

A Smithtown developer has been appointed to the board of the Suffolk County Industrial Development Agency.

X. Cristofer Damianos, an owner of Damianos Realty Group in Smithtown, participated in his first board meeting last week. He succeeds board secretary Anthony Giordano who resigned in December 2021 after eight years because of increased work responsibilities as an agent for Major League Baseball players.

The seven-member board consists of business, union and nonprofit leaders, all unpaid volunteers and all appointed by the County Legislature.

Damianos told the other board members, “I’m excited to be here.”

His company owns more than 1 million square feet of space, primarily offices in Suffolk, and was started in 1968 by Damianos’ father, Xenophon, a physician who built medical offices.

Besides the IDA board, Cristofer Damianos serves on the Nissequogue Zoning Board of Appeals, helped to start Gold Coast Bank and was a Long Island Power Authority trustee in 2007-12.

Damianos’ appointment to the IDA board was lauded by Kevin Law of the Tritec Real Estate Co. in East Setauket and Kyle Strober of the developers’ group Association for a Better Long Island.

“As someone who is fully invested in Suffolk County, one can expect Cris Damianos to have both the region’s economy and taxpayers in mind when reviewing applications” for IDA tax breaks, Strober said.

Article: https://www.newsday.com/business/suffolk-ida-board-tax-breaks-cristofer-damianos-k2lh7s2m