Columbia Property Trust has paid $87.7 million for 149 Madison Avenue, a Midtown South office building, The 12-story, 127,000 square foot changed hands for just over $690 per sqf. The ditseal is subject to a ground lease that expires in January 2018. At that time, Columbia plans to start a comprehensive repositioning at the fully vacated building, which will include a full modernization of infrastructure, as well as upgrades to the interior and exterior finishes and to all common areas. Columbia has hired Redgate to serve as project manager, Gensler as architect, and Highland Associates as engineer. With the acquisition of this building from 1916, located in the heart of Manhattan’s NoMAD district, Columbia has now acquired four Midtown South properties totaling over 900,000 square feet in 2017.
“We view the redevelopment and subsequent re-leasing of 149 Madison Avenue as a compelling value creation proposition that complements our otherwise well-leased Manhattan portfolio,” said Nelson Mills, president and CEO of Columbia Property Trust. “We have enjoyed a tremendous amount of success with our similar small floor-plate, boutique buildings in Midtown South, and we intend to leverage our scale and expertise to reposition 149 Madison to compete among the best product in this thriving submarket.”
