Brookfield Properties

By Daniel Geiger 3/01/12 9:42am

What’s MIPIM? In NYC, Nobody Knows.

It’s not just the biggest real estate conference no one has heard of. It’s the biggest real estate conference period. And, yes, most real estate professionals, at least in New York, haven’t heard of it.

Next week 19,000 guests from 90 countries will descend on Cannes, France, for MIPIM, a four-day event that roughly translates as “International Market for Real Estate Professionals” featuring speaking panels and networking opportunities that allow developers to shop major new projects to prospective tenants and investors. Read More

By Jotham Sederstrom 2/14/12 11:05am

the sit-down

Charlie Murphy, Shoveling for Success

As senior vice president and general manager of the New York business unit of Turner Construction, Charlie Murphy oversaw approximately 800 employees and $1.5 billion in construction last year. Despite a general malaise across the construction industry, this year looks particularly active, with assignments for Silverstein Properties, New York University and Boston Properties, among other commercial buildings. Mr. Murphy spoke to The Commercial Observer about a promising spurt in construction spending, work on New York University’s Langone Medical Center campus and working with competing firm Tishman on the ground at the World Trade Center site. Read More

By Jotham Sederstrom 1/31/12 3:38pm

the sit-down

The Winter Garden and Quirky.Com: Scott Spector Designs New York City

Since breaking into Manhattan in 1998, the Spector Group has immersed itself in some of the city’s most notable design projects, including a series of assignments for NASDAQ, office designs for Internet start-up companies and some of the area’s earliest initiatives for data centers and telecom hotels, some of which are now being converted back to office use. Principal Scott Spector, 49, spoke to The Commercial Observer about one of his family-owned company’s biggest assignments, rebuilding the Winter Garden, as well as ongoing work for NASDAQ and what may be his most imaginative job yet—designing eclectic office space for Quirky.com with repurposed bowling alley materials.

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By Robert Sammons 1/31/12 3:01pm

Stat of the Week

Stat of the Week: 82

The number of Manhattan buildings with at least 100,000 square feet of (potential) availability (contiguous or noncontiguous) has climbed over the past year to 82 from 77, though it is down from 84 two years ago. The figures quoted are a catch-all including space currently vacant, known to have a tenant moving out or that is new construction with a completion date.

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By Drew Grant 1/24/12 5:20pm

Occupy Wall Street

Occupy Wall Street Gives Up Zuccotti Park; Sets Sights on State of the Union

The heady days of New York’s Wall Street occupation are officially over, reports The New York Times. Boo! We were hoping that the protesters were just in hibernation, waiting until the Spring weather thaws out Zuccotti Park and makes it habitable again. But one of the lawyers representing OWS campers stated that the lawsuit they filed back in November to regain park access was dropped after the barricades and Brookfield Property security guards were removed from Zuccotti on January 10th.

Fighting over that particular scrap of land is no longer part of the OWS agenda. Instead, the grassroots movement is focusing its efforts Southward, to the country’s capital. Read More

By Daniel Geiger 1/24/12 12:00pm

power broker

Last But Not Least

Is he the most prolific attorney in the city you’ve never heard about?

Probably not.

Still, it’s possible to lose track of just how many deals Fried Frank partner Meyer Last inked in 2011. Call it the Jon Mechanic effect. Read More

By Dan Geiger 12/13/11 9:39am

lease beat

EXCLUSIVE: In a Reversal, Law Firm Milbank Tweed Considers a Renewal

The law firm Milbank Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP is negotiating to renew its lease at the downtown office building 1 Chase Manhattan Plaza, sources said.

The firm occupies 375,000 square feet on several floors at the property, which is owned by the bank JP Morgan Chase. Rents in the deal were not available by press time. The lease is a change in plans for the company. Read More

By Daniel Edward Rosen 12/08/11 9:00am

Stockholm's Oldest Private Bank Grows at 245 Park

Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken, a 155-year-old Swedish financial group whose name is a mouthful to pronounce, took more-than-a-mouthful of office space when it agreed to lease approximately 20,700 square feet at 245 Park Avenue.

The lease is for ten years at the Brookfield Properties-owned building. Read More

By Daniel Edward Rosen 12/07/11 3:00pm

ICSC

Q: The City's Next Hot Neighborhood? A: Take Your Pick

To seasoned retail brokers, the very concept of the next big neighborhood in a city that has been developed several times over is, well, naïve. Still, as The Commercial Observer recently learned, most are still looking for a reason to believe. Read More

By Drew Grant 11/29/11 1:20pm

Occupy Wall Street

Where Occupy Wall Street Stands Now (Video)

Has the Occupy Wall Street movement fizzled out? Certainly the stories have moved: While Philadelphia and Los Angeles have handed their Occupiers eviction notices (but haven’t moved them out yet), and some protesters have moved down to Miami for Art Basel, we notice that it’s been awfully silent over at Zuccotti Park recently.

A lot of people are speculating on what OWS can do next, or where the movement is going…which is a sure sign that journos have hit a lull on breaking news in NYC. Read More

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