Fried Frank Advises on Complex Real Estate Matters

Washington, D.C. – January 14, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — Fried Frank played a role in many high-profile real estate matters that dominated the headlines in 2015. The Firm continues to be at the forefront of major real estate transactions, including representing:

• American Bible Society in connection with the US$300 million sale of its national headquarters building located at 1865 Broadway in Manhattan and the lease for its new home in Philadelphia. The American Bible Society, a 199-year-old non-profit organization, is leasing a new headquarters that encompasses nearly 100,000 square feet of space at 401 Market Street in Philadelphia’s historic district.
• Blackstone in connection with a US$590 million construction loan by Blackstone, Bank of China, Deutsche Bank, and Crédit Agricole for the development of the Miami Design District, a creative neighborhood and shopping destination in Miami, Florida.
• Brookfield in connection with all aspects of the development of Manhattan West, a proposed US$20 billion development that is expected to include seven million square feet of office space in three buildings, and residential, hotel, retail and open space spanning five acres in the Hudson Yards District. A couple of the recent matters include a 20-year lease of 550,000 square feet at One Manhattan West to Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and a construction loan for that building in the amount of US$1.25 billion from a syndicate led by Wells Fargo. Fried Frank also represented Brookfield in connection with its US$8 billion joint venture with Qatar Investment Authority with respect to the entire project.
• Carr Properties as landlord in a 700,000-square-foot lease of a building that will be constructed for Fannie Mae’s new headquarters at 15th and L Streets in Washington DC. The lease is the largest-ever non-government lease in Washington DC.
• CVS Health Corporation in its US$2 billion acquisition of the pharmacy and clinic businesses of Target Corporation, and the long-term license or lease of space for the pharmacies and clinics in approximately 1,700 Target stores.
• CW Capital Asset Management, which is owned by Fortress Investment Group, in its US$5.3 billion sale of Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village to Blackstone Group, in partnership with Ivanhoé Cambridge. With more than 11,200 units, Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village is the largest apartment complex in Manhattan, and the sale is one of the largest single real estate transactions in history.
• Exeter Property Group in the US$3.15 billion sale of a 58-million-square-foot portfolio of core industrial properties to a joint venture of Henley Holding Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), and one of the largest Canadian pension investment managers.
• Metro Loft in its acquisition and related financing of a long-term leasehold interest at 20 Broad Street, which abuts the New York Stock Exchange building, from Vornado Realty Trust.
• Murray Hill Properties and Clarion Partners on the US$470 million acquisition of 180 Maiden Lane in New York City, a 1.2-million-square-foot tower.
• Onex Real Estate in its phase II construction financing of the residential portion of the Sky View Parc Condo and Retail Complex in Flushing, New York. Fried Frank also represented Onex in the US$400 million sale of the retail condominium units at Skyview Center in Flushing to Blackstone Group.
• Related Companies in connection with numerous aspects of the development at Hudson Yards, including zoning approvals; all of the ground leases from the Metropolitan Transit Authority, including those affecting the pavilion, retail podium, residential tower, and office and retail tower (the future site of the headquarters of Time Warner); and transactions with the Industrial Development Authority to effectuate tax abatements for the development. Fried Frank also represented Related in numerous commercial leases at 10 and 55 Hudson Yards, including leases to Boies, Schiller & Flexner and Boston Consulting Group.
• RFR in its joint venture with the Qatar Investment Authority in the US$235 million refinancing of 350 Madison Avenue, a 400,000-square-foot office building located near Bryant Park and Grand Central Terminal. Fried Frank also represented RFR in its joint venture with Vanke to develop 610 Lexington Avenue and in the joint venture’s construction financing for the project.
• RXR Realty in connection with both its agreement to sell an approximately 49% interest in the companies that own a portfolio of six New York City office buildings valued at approximately US$4 billion (including 620 Sixth Avenue, 450 Lexington Avenue, 1330 Sixth Avenue and the Starrett-Lehigh building at 601 West 26th Street) to Blackstone Property Partners and its joint venture with Blackstone to continue as the manager of the portfolio. Fried Frank also represented RXR in connection with the acquisition and financing of the 1-million-square-foot building located at 32 Old Slip in New York City.
• SL Green in connection with the proposed development of One Vanderbilt, a 1,200-foot, 65-story office tower to be located directly across from Grand Central Terminal. Fried Frank also represented SL Green in its US$1.8 billion acquisition financing of 11 Madison Avenue in New York City.
• Time Warner Inc. in the development and purchase of a new headquarters at 30 Hudson Yards. The acquisition consists of more than one million square feet of commercial space in the 80-story, 1,227-foot skyscraper designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates.