Aby Rosen Again Trying to Sell 281 Park Ave South

Aby Rosen’s RFR Holding is trying to unload an office building in Gramercy Park as its lone tenant exits. Anna Delvey need not make an offer.

RFR is looking to sell 281 Park Avenue South, Crain’s reported. It’s unclear how much the company is seeking for the 45,000-square-foot property, though it is willing to either sell it outright or lease it to another party.

RFR and Rosen have been down this road before. In 2022, Rosen sought $135 million for the six-story, landmarked property, a whopping $3,000 per square foot. That listing was held by Oren and Tal Alexander, who had only recently left Douglas Elliman to start the Side-backed Official at the time. Rosen and RFR partner Michael Fuchs will be choosing a different agent to market the property this time.

The property, built as an extravagant church in 1894, was first purchased by RFR from the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies for $50 million in 2014. RFR struggled to find a tenant for the massive space until 2017, when Swedish contemporary photography center Fotografiska signed a lease for the entire building.

Fotografiska is only halfway through its 15-year lease, but the center and its restaurant and lounge in the building are on the move. Verōnika and Chapel Bar are expected to close next month, while the museum will relocate to an undisclosed spot at the end of September.

The property’s claim to fame is socialite grifter Anna Sorokin, also known as Anna Delvey, who nearly landed a loan for a $40 million nightclub space. Sorokin posed as a German heiress with a massive trust fund. She was acquitted of trying to fraudulently obtain a $22 million loan from Fortress Investment Group for the club, but was convicted on larceny and fraud charges.

The sensational case was dramatized in Netflix’s “Inventing Anna,” starring Julia Garner as the memorable grifter.

— Holden Walter-Warner