SELLING POINTS: ADG makes $23M on Chelsea site; Toll Bros. latest buy | HAP

●HAP INVESTMENTS
ADG makes $23M on Chelsea site

HAP Investments, a New York based investment and development company, has acquired a development site at 215 – 219 West 28th Street, along with adjacent air rights.
The sale price was $51 million in a transaction negotiated by Bob Knakal and his team at Massey Knakal.
At $550 a buildable foot, the deal represents one of the largest trades this year for a residential development site.
Brian Lockner, head of investments and acquisitions for seller, American Development Group, handled the deal on behalf of ADG-Langsam, the co-venture partner which paid $28 million to purchase the site in December 2012.
The property is a 116,000 s/f ground-up construction site on which the HAP Investments plans to develop 145 rental units, 1,800 s/f of retail space and an underground 54-car automated parking garage from AutoMotion Parking Systems, LLC.
“This site, along with the nearby air rights, will enable us to construct a building which we are certain will have major positive impact in further transforming this part of the Chelsea neighborhood,” said Eran Polack, CEO, HAP Investments.
HAP Investments partners Amir Hasid and Nir Amsel actively raised equity capital from a group of Israeli investors with additional financing arranged by Trevian Capital, a New York based direct capital lender.
The seller was represented by Richard Sussman from the law offices of Rosenberg and Estis. The financial partner in the deal was Spectrum Financial’s Peter Lock. The buyer was represented by attorney Benjamin Kursman.

●JONES LANG LASALLE
Team shopping retail condo

Jones Lang LaSalle has been hired to sell the retail condo at the base of the Philip House in Carnegie Hill.
Glenn Tolchin is leading the team marketing the six-unit retail condo at 1311 to 1337 Lexington Avenue, which is expected to trade for upwards of $15 million.

The pre-war building owned by The Cheshire Group has undergone a conversion from rental to condo.
The retail condo totals 5,400 s/f on the ground floor and 3,704 s/f in the cellar. Current tenants are three long-standing neighborhood favorites, including Super Runner’s Shop, Metro Bicycles and Flowers by Philip, as well as Night & Day Locksmith. The remaining two units are vacant.
Susan Hewitt, a partner at Cheshire Group, said, “This building is undergoing a major transformation and we expect the retail to benefit from the luxury residences above.”
Tolchin, and executive vice president at JLL, added, “The Upper East Side’s strong retail strength, particularly near the intersection of East 86th and Lexington Avenue, only two blocks from this property, adds tremendous value.”

● EASTERN CONSOLIDATED
Cast iron deal on Soho building

A five-story pre-war, cast-iron loft building in SoHo at 351-353 Canal Street has just traded for $24.75 million.
Eastern Consolidated’s Peter Carillo, Alexander G. Erdos and Paul J. Nigido represented the seller, Tunnel Holdings LLC, who had owned the property for the past 70 years. The trio also procured the buyer, 351 Canal LLC.

The property offers three retail spaces on the ground floor, four commercial offices on the second floor and ten residential units on floors three through five.
It will be delivered vacant, since 85% of the tenants were leasing on a month-to-month basis or had termination clauses in their leases.
Carillo noted that since SoHo is such a hot shopping destination, the opportunity to re-position the asset would enhance its value.
The property enjoys M1-5B zoning designation, permitting residential, retail and commercial office use. It’s close to multiple subway lines and is neighbors with such prestigious designers as Beau Brummel, DKNY, Kate Spade, Marc Jacobs, Ralph Lauren, Nicole Miller and Salvatore Ferragamo.
Walter Kretz, Esq., Scoppetta Seiff Kretz & Abercrombie and Myra Sencer, Esq., Sencer Law represented the seller, while Aaron Stein, Esq., Stein Farkas Schwartz & Fish LLP acted on behalf of the buyer.

●MASSEY KNAKAL
Kips Bay portfolio offering rental upside

A chunk of rent regulated Kips Bay has hit the market.
Bob Knakal, John Ciraulo and Michael DeCheser at Massey Knakal are marketing the portfolio of five apartment buildings at 243, 244, 247-249, 333, and 335 East 33rd Street.
The buildings combine for 63 apartments and two professional offices and contain 35,637 s/f with 15,875 of unused air rights.

 They include three elevator buildings and two walkup buildings with a mix of 34 fair market units, 27 rent stabilized and two rent controlled units.

With the high number of rent regulated units and imminent upside in the fair market units, the Massey Knakal team has put a $27.5 million price tag on the portfolio.
“This portfolio provides an extremely rare opportunity to acquire five buildings all on the same block in one of Manhattan’s safest and cleanest communities with a tremendous amount of upside,ˮ said the brokers in a statement.
● THE CARLTON GROUP
Hotel deals to check out

The Carlton Group is shopping a number of high profile hotel investment opportunities, chairman Howard Michaels said this week.
The firm has been hired by several owners to find investors for hotel properties in Manhattan, South Beach, Chicago, Washington DC and Spain/Portugal.
The New York-based Carlton Group presently serves as branding expert and equity and debt advisor on over $2 billion in global worldwide hospitality transactions.
Michaels said Carlton hospitality projects looking for investors include a Midtown Manhattan boutique acquisition, a 300-key South Beach, Fla. ocean-front hotel and condo conversion and an iconic Chicago waterfront hotel, among others.

WEICHERT COMMERCIAL
Toll Brothers buys Jersey site

Home builder Toll Brothers has bought a 65 acre development site in Branchburg, New Jersey.
The tract of land has final approvals to build 50 single-family homes on one acre lots, according to Mark Calabro senior vice president at Weichert Commercial Brokerage who negotiated the deal.
Calabro introduced the property to the buyer and worked with the seller, Branchburg Builders, LLC, which had gained the approvals for the site at Burnt Mill Road in the Somerset Hills section of Somerset County.
John Udell, president of Weichert Commercial said the sale price had not been disclosed but noted, “Mark’s commitment to service coupled with his diligence were key to making this deal a success.”