The Port Authority is in a $200 million bind trying to find a tenant to replace Condé Nast at the Durst Organization’s 4 Times Square, the New York Post reported.
As part of the sweetener to lure Condé downtown to 1 World Trade Center – which it is developing in partnership with Durst — the Port Authority had agreed in 2010 to reimburse Condé for the four years’ worth of rent left on its 800,000-square-foot lease at 4 Times Square.
The arrangement is a win-win for Conde and for Durst — who is faced with the lucrative prospect of a new tenant paying market rates rather than Conde’s below-market deal — but has left the Port Authority in a scramble to find tenants.
It’s that pressure, industry insiders told the Post,that has led the Port Authority to make questionable decisions such as paying $5 million to the Chicago-based Navigant Consulting to find ways to reduce the agency’s exposure at 4 Times Square, rather than going with brokerages well-versed in the New York market.
Navigant has so far appeared clueless and is thought to be “a waste of time” for the agency, these sources told the Post. [NYP, 1st item] – Hiten Samtani