Chrysler sky-$crape
Benko’s fall could topple key talks
THE collapse last week of Aby Rosen’s Chrysler Building partner, Austrian property mogul René Benko, couldn’t come at a worse time for the landmark skyscraper.
According to sources, Rosen’s RFR and Benko’s Signa were finally making progress on stalled talks to restructure their longterm ground lease with Cooper Union, which owns the land under the tower.
“They were talking almost since the time when they bought the leasehold from Tishman Speyer for $151 million in 2018,” one source said.
The huge ground lease rent was the reason for the low purchase price.
The ground lease went up from just $7.75 million in 2018 to $31.5 million this year, and is to rise to $41 million in 2028.
“It was off and on,” one source said of the talks. “But they were making real progress recently.”
The Chrysler Building is believed to be between 70% and 80% leased.
Asked to comment on the Chrysler Building’s current tenant roster and on talks with Cooper Union over the ground lease, Rosen had a one-word answer to each: “Can’t.”
But while Rosen is clearly in a pickle, it doesn’t necessarily mean he can’t find another partner to replace Signa.
Rosen has extricated himself from many a previous crisis. As Jonathan Mechanic, Real Estate chairman of Fried Frank, put it, “I would never count Aby out.”
Shade-y business
Sweets are out, shades and shutters are in at 1011 Third Ave. at East 60th Street. Canadian-based interior-products chain Blinds to Go just signed a lease to replace Dylan’s Candy Bar, which closed two years ago.
The 15-year deal is notable due to its size (more than 11,000 square feet on three levels) and prime corner location across the avenue from Bloomingdale’s.
The asking rent on the 4,000square-foot ground-floor portion was $250 per square foot.
Current Real Estate Advisors cofounder Adam Henick represented the tenant; RIPCO’s Richard Skulnik repped the landlord, Olshan Properties.
Said Henick: “Blinds to Go has dozens of stores in the US, including in Brooklyn, and were waiting patiently for the right opportunity for their Manhattan flagship.”
“Ownership was happy to lease the space to such a large corporation in the home business,” Skulnik said.
“We’re going to finish leasing the remaining spaces in the building with this use category top of mind.”
Clothed in mystery
Mystery shrouds the southwest corner of Fifth Avenue and East 47th Street, where South Korean apparel firm SAE-A recently filed plans to demolish its 11-story building at 576 Fifth.
But what the company hopes to do at the site remains unknown. It didn’t respond to requests for comment.
The Post reported in 2021 that SAE-A paid, or overpaid, $101 million for the now-empty jewelry building. The purchase was a surprise as SAE-A isn’t known mainly for real estate; it’s one of the world’s largest apparel manufacturers, with plants in Asia and Central America.
Extell, 576 Fifth’s owner, is still mulling two possible office and/or hotel projects, for which it filed plans with the Buildings Department.
No sign of the King
There’s still no sign of a supposedly reopened Papaya King on the Upper East Side.
The legendary hot dogs and tropical drinks stand, a favorite of Martha Stewart, closed at the corner of Third Avenue and East 86th Street early this year over issues that included alleged nonpayment of rent.
The owner said in April that he’d signed a new lease at 1535 Third Ave., across the street, and would reopen “in two weeks.” But the space is dark and padlocked, to the frustration of fans who stop by the veterinary clinic next door to ask if they have any information.
“We get asked all the time,” a manager said. “But we don’t know a thing.”