Minskoff buys rest of 101 Sixth Avenue

Steve Cuozzo

REALTY CHECK

Climaxing a sometimes bumpy 20-year ride, Edward Minskoff has bought out his partners in 101 Sixth Ave., giving the prominent developer/landlord sole control of the soon-to-be-vacant 425,000-square-foot tower.

Minskoff bought out the Andalex Group for an undisclosed price in a deal that closed Friday. Along with the imminent move-out of the longtime sole tenant — much-in-the-news union SEIU Local 32BJ — Minskoff’s move marks the start of a new era at the architecturally praised tower, a pioneer at the once-rough location just north of Canal Street.

Amanda Schwab/Startraksphoto.com

Developer Edward Minskoff (above) bought out his partner in 101 Sixth Ave, a prominent 425,000 square-foot tower north of Canal Street and the longtime home of the gigantic SEIU Local 32BJ, for an undisclosed sum.

Although Minskoff was often described as the owner of 101 Sixth, he held just 32 percent. The majority interest belonged to Andalex, whose principals are Allen, Andrew and Alexander Silverman.

Minskoff has tapped Jones Lang LaSalle to market the office space at asking rents from $65-$75 per square foot. The JLL team will be led by Mitchell Konsker and Paul Glickman and also include Matthew Astrachan, Jonathan Fanuzzi and regional CEO Peter Riguardi.

Konsker said the space will be targeted to entertainment, media and technology companies of the sort often drawn to the area where lower SoHo brushes against Hudson Square and TriBeCa. He said the address at the corner of Watts Street, close to new hotels and shopping, offers “tremendous branding opportunities.”

Minskoff and Andalex built 101 Sixth expressly for Local 32BJ of the Service Employees International Union — now threatening to strike city office buildings at year’s end — in 1991. The union is moving out at year’s end, giving Minskoff a chance to rent all 23 floors at market rents.

Although the owners didn’t need to worry about finding tenants as long as 32BJ was there, sources said Minskoff and the Silvermans often clashed, especially after the union announced it was leaving. “They could have had a new tenant three times,” a source told us. “Minskoff recognized the value of the asset and wasn’t about to let it slip away.”

As The Post’s Lois Weiss reported last week, the tower is getting a gut rehab, including new systems, lobby, elevators and plaza, and a prospective LEEDS silver rating for environmental features.

The tower boasts open views from large windows. Designed by Bruce Fowle, it was praised by Times critic Herbert Muschamp in 1992 as “a finely wrought homage to a heroic age in the history of the New York workplace.”

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The owners of 4 New York Plaza are putting the 1.1 million square-foot downtown tower on the market through a CB Richard Ellis team led by Darcy Stacom and Bill Shanahan, sources said.