WWW.QNS.COM RIDGEWOOD TIMES DECEMBER 27, 2018 7
Former Shalimar Diner in Rego Park sells for $6.5 million
Photo courtesy of Rubin Isak
WINTER SAVINGS
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
RPOZARYCKI@QNS.COM
Ten days before the Shalimar Diner
served its fi nal meal, three
holding companies closed on a
multi-million all-cash deal on the Rego
Park eatery and adjacent parking lot.
The property’s owners, Alderton
Associates LLC, sold the property located
at 63-68 Austin St. for $6.55 million
to entities known as 63-38 Austin LLC
and RW Austin LLC. According to Department
of Finance records, the deal
became offi cial on Nov. 15; the diner
itself — a fi xture in the community for
more than 40 years — closed for good
on Nov. 25 aft er the owners reported
that their lease wouldn’t be renewed.
What the future holds for the Shalimar
Diner site remains unknown, but
the broker who handled the transaction
— Rubin S. Isak, founding partner
of Goldenwood Property Advisors —
touted the site’s development potential
in a Dec. 20 press release announcing
the transaction.
The 14,000 square foot site is located
in an R4 residential zone with a C2-2
commercial overlay, which allows the
builder to develop a structure up to
twice the size of the lot with a “community
facility bonus” included. There’s
140 feet of frontage along busy 63rd
Drive and another 100 feet of frontage
on Austin Street — a statistic particularly
important to anyone developing
commercial storefronts.
As of Dec. 20, however, there were
no job plans listed for the site on the
Department of Buildings database.
Isak said that there was no lack of
interest among potential buyers as
soon as the Shalimar Diner site hit
the market.
“Within the fi rst 45 days of exclusively
being retained by ownership, we received
38 written off ers due to our targeted marketing
strategy,” he said. “In accordance
with our strategy, multiple contracts
were simultaneously sent out and the
ultimate buyer purchased the property
in a sit-down all-cash closing. The
investor, user and developer response,
coupled with the strong sales price,
represents investor appetite for commercial
properties in the Queens market.”
As for the buyers, the 63-68 Austin
LLC and RW Austin LLC holding companies
were listed on Department of
Finance records as being based at 102-10
Metropolitan Ave., Suite 200 in Forest
Hills. A Google search of the address revealed
that the suite is also the location
of First Class Management, a real estate
managing company which notes on its
website that is has more than 60 shopping
centers in the Metro New York area.
The Ridgewood Times reached out
to First Class Management to fi nd out
about the connection between the fi rm
and the holding companies, and for
further information about the transaction.
The fi rm has yet to respond.
David Koptiev, a partner with
Platinum Realty Associates located
at 102-06 Metropolitan Ave., had his
signature on the deed on behalf of the
buyers; Koptiev has been involved in
numerous large Queens real estate
deal in recent years, including the
sale of the Engineers Labor Council
building in Richmond Hill and the
development of a shopping center in
Ozone Park.
The Ridgewood Times contacted
Koptiev on Dec. 20, and he declined to
off er comment.
The Shalimar Diner site in Rego Park
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