The residents of a 243-unit residential co-op building in Greenwich Village banded together to acquire the master lease for the retail and office space at its base for $25.8 million, nearly $1,400 per square foot.
The 18,650-square-foot space at Bleecker Court, located at 77 Bleecker Street (649-657 Broadway), spans the ground floor and basement. The ground floor houses four retail tenants – including Sprint, yogurt store Yogorino and body-piercing shop Venus by Maria Tash — and has one vacant space. There are 14 office units, all with windows, on the basement level, as well as 1,800 square feet of storage space.
The building also houses Blades, a skateboard shop, that is not included in the commercial deal.
The co-op’s shareholders view the purchase as a long-term investment, according to MHP Real Estate Services’ Randy Sherman, who represented the residents.
Jeffrey Elghanayan’s Bi-Coastal Properties, an Upper West Side-based investment firm, owned the building’s commercial component. In the 1980s, the Elghanayan family’s TF Cornerstone converted the property from a warehouse to a 250,000-square-foot residential co-op. Jeffrey Elghanayan, who is a member of the real estate family but is not affiliated with Cornerstone, could not be immediately reached for comment.
JLL’s Richard Baxter and Glenn Tolchin represented Bi-Coastal Properties in the deal.
The building, constructed in the 1930s, is part of Greenwich Village’s Noho Historic District. Retail rents are north of $400 per square foot.
Earlier this year, Jeff Sutton bought a retail co-op at 85 Fifth Avenue, near Union Square, from Aby Rosen for $86 million.