Having just closed on the Malcolm S. Forbes townhouse in Greenwich Village for a 52 percent discount from its original asking price, Icon Realty Management’s Terrence Lowenberg and Todd Cohen have made another high-profile acquisition. The duo has purchased two adjacent mixed-use buildings at 58-60 Ninth Avenue, according to James Kinsey, CEO and partner at ERG Property Advisors, who represented the buyer and seller in the deal, the lower floors of which house celebrity restaurant hangout Pop Burger.
With three locations so far in the city, Pop Burger, a glamorous late night burger joint designed by New York-based architect Ali Tayar, has drawn a celebrity clientele, including Sarah Jessica Parker, Kanye West, Mick Jagger and Karl Lagerfeld, according to previous reports. Actress Catherine Zeta-Jones also filmed there with Justin Bartha in 2009 for their movie “The Rebound.”
Icon acquired pop Burger’s retail premises as part of a $7.75 million acquisition of the two buildings at 58-60 Ninth Avenue, , between 14th and 15th streets , which comprises a combined 11,000 square feet-plus of retail on the ground floor and rental apartments above. The transaction, which closed last month, was valued at approximately $696 per square foot. The seller was Vectra Management Group, a real estate management firm based in New York, according to public records, which also recently sold the New York City headquarters of Planned Parenthood — a commercial condominium unit at 424 West 33rd Street — for $34.8 million.
Pop Burger’s lease is up for renewal in January 2015.
“[This] was a great buy for [Icon] both in terms of price and location,” said Kinsey, who added that he sees a great deal of value in the Meatpacking District in general.
“Google was a game-changer for office space in the Meatpacking District,” he said. “By committing to being a major growing presence in the area through the acquisition of their office building, [Google] ensures an inflow of highly skilled workers as well as tech firms, especially startups, to the neighborhood. This will naturally increase the demand for retail services, restaurants and high-quality housing.”
Neither Icon nor Vectra was immediately available for comment.