|
Multu-Housing News
10/10/2007
New York -- The ongoing redevelopment of lower Manhattan, which has seen a plethora of condominiums and apartments added to what had been primarily a business district for decades, took center stage this morning at 37 Wall St. with the high-profile opening of Tiffany & Co.
The world-famous jewelry store has returned to its downtown Manhattan roots to occupy a sparkling two-story space in this 371-unit building, where apartment lease-up is almost finished.
Located around the corner from the New York Stock Exchange, where Tiffany executives also rang the opening bell earlier this morning, 37 Wall St. is a 25-story, Beaux Arts-style building that had been used as offices for a number of financial institutions, such as J.P. Morgan & Co. Constructed in 1907, it was purchased in 1994 by Garden Homes, a Short Hills, N.J.-based company that focuses on residential, retail and office development and management.
In 2004, Garden Homes began the process of converting the building to residential use. Units range from studios to two-bedrooms with offices. The developer restored the building’s decorative façade, marble walls, crown moldings and carved cornice columns, while adding condo-quality finishes and amenities. In fact, the building’s elegant lounge was recently used as a location for a new Ashton Kutcher movie now filming in the Big Apple.
Leonard A. Wilf, a Garden Homes principal, tells MHN that the company chose to operate 37 Wall St. as a rental because there are not that many apartments downtown, especially compared to the larger number of condominiums in the area.
This developer also converted 75 West St. from offices to apartments about nine years ago, and converted 41 Broad St. from offices into the Claremont Academy Preparatory School. It is also engaged in a number of new construction multifamily projects as well.
Garden Homes’ ownership has remained in the hands of the Wilf family since its founding in 1955. Some family members also have an ownership stake in the Minnesota Vikings football team.
At the 11 A.M. ribbon-cutting ceremony, New York City Deputy Mayor Daniel L. Doctoroff heralded the store’s opening as “a new era for lower Manhattan, which is growing from 22,000 residents a few years ago to 70,000 residents.”
Tiffany chairman and CEO Michael J. Kowalski added, “We’ve come home at a time when lower Manhattan is being transformed.”
Tiffany opened its first store in 1837 at 259 Broadway. This new, 11,000-sq.-ft. store marks its sixty-fifth in the U.S. (it also operates 103 international stores). The jeweler’s trademarked Tiffany Blue tone brightened the Financial District early in the day with a number of colorful promotions, such as coffee carts with Tiffany Blue umbrellas dispensing free coffee and blue-and-white iced cookies while street musicians played “Moon River,” the Henry Mancini theme from the movie, “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.” Models in Tiffany jewelry and blue silk evening gowns reinforced the retailer’s presence.
|
