Williams Equities Buys Pre-War Manhattan Office Building
The investor applied the proceeds from a recent asset sale.
Williams Equities has purchased a 300,000-square-foot pre-war office building located at 470 Park Ave. South in Manhattan for $147.5 million, the company announced Monday. The deal continues Williams’ strategy of acquiring what the company describes as “high quality, tastefully restored office buildings with modern amenities,” with a focus on Midtown South.
Among Williams’ other properties in that submarket is 28-40 West 23rd St., which was refinanced for $155 million last April.
Global real estate firm Jamestown is a limited partner on 470 Park Ave. South.
470 Park Avenue South is also known as the Silk Building, for its famous cast-iron clock depicting a wizard calling upon the “Queen of Silk.”
The property consists of two interconnected office building, a 12-story North Tower and an 18-story South Tower Additionally, the property has ground-floor retail and an amenity space with outdoor workspaces, dining and recreational areas. The loft-style asset was recently renovated and rebranded with Energy Star certification, modern finishes and expansive open floor plans.
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The location, between 31st and 32nd streets, provides easy access to the Metro-North Railroad, Amtrak, PATH, LIRR and NJ Transit, as well as nearly a dozen subway lines.
Williams Equities Principals Michael Cohen, Andrew Roos and Robert Getreu and General Counsel William Stempel, along with Colliers Vice presidents Jessica Verdi and Mac Roos, assisted with negotiations and underwriting. The sale was brokered by Will Silverman of Eastdil Secured on behalf of the sellers, which were not disclosed.
The acquisition of 470 Park Avenue South completes a strategic portfolio exchange by Williams Equities. The company recently sold 653-655 Madison Ave. and used those proceeds to acquire 470 Park Ave. South.
Slow improvement
Midtown South has an overall availability of 18.0 percent on an inventory of 191.8 million square feet, according to a third-quarter report from Colliers. Net absorption in the submarket was about 1.6 million square feet for the quarter.
Borough-wide, Manhattan is seeing modest quarter-to-quarter increases in leasing volume, with generally positive absorption, albeit at lower pricing. Asking rents are an average of 6.8 percent below those in March 2020, Colliers reported.
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