Time Square to take Wings

Manhattan’s first Buffalo Wild Wings will soon be flying into a newly constructed retail building off Times Square.

The new 15,000 square-foot roost at 253 W. 47 ^th St. will serve up New York-style wings with 16 sauces and five flavorings, bottles of craft and tapped beer, and every sport known to city fans displayed on its multimedia systems.

The 22-foot-high ground floor is tall enough for its flying Buffalo logo and is wrapped by a 2,000 square-foot mezzanine. The restaurant, which features stadium seating areas, will be topped with a rare Times Square 2,000 square-foot roof deck for dining.

Friedland Properties recently developed the modern, single-tenant structure on a former parking lot between the Barrymore Theater and another parking structure. According to CoStar data, Friedland, which was represented in-house by Aaron Prince, had an asking rent of $800,000 a year.

Michael Gleicher and Jeff Winick, CEO of Winick Realty Group, represented the local White Plains-based franchisee Four M Capital, which already has 13 Buffalo Wild Wings in the metro area.

“It will be a fabulous addition to the city and…the sports capital of the world,” said Gleicher.
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The board of The Setai, at 40 Broad St., filed suit in New York State Supreme Court yesterday against Zamir Equities, its principals and Ziel Feldman’s HFZ Capital for $5 million in construction defects.

The complaint alleges water penetration issues and missing design elements including glass railings on terraces.

HFZ, which bought the project’s highly discounted mortgage from Anglo Irish Bank, became the “de facto sponsor,” according to the suit, when it paid rent obligations for the sublease of the spa unit, took over the completion of construction and repairs, negotiated with third parties and marketed the 167 units for the original sponsor, Zamir Equities. Only 13 units remain unsold.

Rob Braverman of Braverman Greenspun, which represents the board, said, “This is not a lawsuit we charged into. We have been trying to settle for a long time. HFZ is a player in the industry, and we are hoping they will do the right thing.”

HFZ’s attorney had not yet seen the legal papers, and the company said it does not comment on litigation.
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Stolichnaya is setting up its first city headquarters since the brand was recaptured by parent company SPI North America.

Stoli will soon move to entire 9 ^th floor of 13,280 square feet at 135 E. 57 ^th St. from temporary space after building out a luxurious sales and tasting office.

SPI brought in John Esposito, the former chairman of Bacardi and Moet & Chandon, as president of the Americas in January to take over distribution from William Grant & Sons USA and give a shot to sales.

The liquor company was repped by Jamie Mitchell, Anita Grossberg and Neal Sroka of the Sroka Worldwide Team at Douglas Elliman, which declined comment.

Building owner Charles Cohen of Cohen Bros. was represented in house by David Nevins and a Cushman & Wakefield team led by Bruce Mosler.

“I’m very excited to bring this signature brand to the building,” Cohen said.
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Sam Schneider and Daniel Glaser of Imperium Capital, along with Centurion Realty and an institutional partner, paid $80 million for the retail condo at the base of the Jean Nouvel-designed 40 Mercer.

Woody Heller and Will Silverman of Studley marketed the 9,400 square feet on the ground and 4,700 square feet below grade at 465 Broadway on behalf of sellers Christopher Schlank and Nicholas Bienstock of Savanna, which just bought it a year ago for $57 million.

The retail space caps the southern end of the block with 75 feet along Broadway, 200 feet on the north side of Grand Street and 45 feet on Mercer Street. Unlike most of Noho and Soho’s cast-iron edifices, the modern storefronts were designed for retailers.

Tenants Bose, Wells Fargo, Vivienne Tam and Dermologica are all at what are now considered way-under-market rents, providing future upside for the buyers.
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For its first US store, men’s clothier Kent & Curwen has sewed up a 2,200 square-foot spot with 1,800 feet below grade at 816 Madison in the Marquand on the northwest corner of East 68 ^th Street.

Mattew Seigel and Joe Sitt of Thor High Street Advisors represented the “Outfitters to Gentlemen of sport,” which is part-owned by Tommy Hilfiger.

Since 1926, its tailored clothes have been worn by celebrities from Douglas Fairbanks Jr. to Mick Jagger.

Vornado Realty Trust’s Sherri White and Nicholas Howell represented the building. Asking rents in this area are much less than the $1,325 per-foot average found below 72 ^nd Street.

Neither Thor nor Vornado returned calls for comment.

http://nypost.com/2013/07/10/times-square-to-take-wings/

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