FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT www.couriersun.com december 4, 2014 • REAL ESTATE • THE COURIER SUN 35 ▶ real estate Map via Google Maps Photo courtesy of RXR Realty DEVELOPING QUEENS Q&A with seth pinsky RXR REALTY Broadway Stages to build masive sound studio and retail complex in Glendale BY LIAM LA GUERRE [email protected]/@LiamLaGuerre Glendale is ready for its close-up. Brooklyn-based television and film production company Broadway Stages plans to build a massive film studio and retail complex in the neighborhood with existing warehouses. The firm purchased Atlas Terminals, a huge industrial park with buildings adjacent to The Shops at Atlas Park mall, for $19.5 million. “We’re excited to turn the existing warehouses at Atlas Terminals into some TV and film studios and create rental space for local mom and pop retail NEW MIXED-USE LIC BUILDING AT VERNON BOULEVARD PARTIALLY REVEALED BY LIAM LA GUERRE [email protected]/@LiamLaGuerre Construction work has already begun for a new mixed-use building at the corner of 50th Avenue and Vernon Boulevard in Long Island City, and now there’s a clearer picture of what the structure will look like. Blueprints of the forthcoming building at 49-18 Vernon Blvd. have been posted on the construction fence. Based on its blueprints, the OAPD Architecturedesigned building’s façade will be comprised of a glass and stone design, and there will be groundfloor retail at the property. The new building will be a five-story, 15-unit residential structure, according to filings with the Department of Buildings. About 4,450 square feet has been set aside for the retail component in the building. businesses,” said Jackie Kessel, Broadway Stages spokeswoman. “We look forward to working with local officials as we develop our plans to draw on all of the energy around Atlas Park, bringing new jobs, business growth and economic development to Queens.” The site comprises 82-10, 82-04 and 81-80 Cooper Ave. There are 21 buildings and multiple parking areas on the site with about 500,000 square feet of building space. Damon Hemmerdinger of ATCO Properties, which foreclosed on the Atlas Park Mall in 2009, sold the property to Broadway Stages. Hemmerdinger began shopping the 11-acre Atlas Terminals site in 2011. The Broadway Stages representative did not say when the studios will open. Photo courtesy of Scott Bintner/PropertyShark 49-18 Vernon Blvd. THE COURIER/Photo by Liam La Guerre BY LIAM LA GUERRE [email protected]/@LiamLaGuerre Seth Pinsky is the executive vice president and investment manager of RXR Realty’s Metropolitan Emerging Market Strategy. He leads the firm’s efforts to invest in emerging opportunities in New York City and the surrounding Tri-State region, focusing on asset classes and geographic regions that have historically been characterized by underinvestment. Before working at RXR, Pinsky served as president of the New York City Economic Development Corporation in 2008. In this role, he was lead negotiator on behalf of the city for a wide range of projects, including Citifield and the acquisition of Hunters Point South. Pinsky talked with Real Estate Editor Liam La Guerre about RXR’s interest in Queens. La Guerre: What does RXR Realty think about the borough of Queens? Pinsky: RXR is a huge believer in Queens. We made a very substantial investment in the Standard Motor Products Building in Long Island City earlier this year and are looking for additional opportunities, not just in Long Island City but throughout the borough. La Guerre: Which Queens neighborhoods do the company feel have potential? Pinsky: We are clearly interested in Long Island City. There is a huge opportunity especially for commercial space as creative businesses are looking for lower cost alternatives to some of the prime Manhattan markets, and also are looking to move closer to some of the reservoirs of talent, like Greenpoint, Williamsburg, Long Island City itself, and Astoria. In addition, we are looking at places like the Rockaways, communities like Forest Hills, Flushing and Jamaica. So we are really looking across the length and breadth of the borough. La Guerre: I’m really surprised to hear the Rockaways, because I really haven’t heard much movement there, except Sandy-related build-backs. So why the Rockaways? Pinsky: We’re raising a significant fund that is focused on what we are referring to as emerging submarkets. And these are areas that for one reason or another been out of favor with the market for some time, but which have good infrastructure, proximity to population and jobs, and good lifestyle elements. And the Rockaways kind of meet that definition perfectly. La Guerre: There is lots of interest in conversion of old buildings for office and commercial space following the residential boom in Long Island City and Astoria. But there is a lack of new commercial developments, why is that? Pinsky: I think there is without a doubt a need for new development of that kind of space in the city, and I think there is a market for it. The real challenge though that the development community faces is that land tends to trade at residential values. And it’s almost impossible to make a commercial development project work if you’re buying land for residential values. In addition to that, while the de Blasio administration should clearly be applauded for their efforts in developing affordable housing, the signal that’s being sent to the market is that there is a strong preference for residential development. So even in areas that aren’t zoned for residential development, land in those areas is trading around residential values because there is an assumption among some that much of the commercially zoned land in the city is going to be rezoned to allow the construction of housing. So that’s really the major obstacle to new commercial development in the city generally and Queens especially.
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