This list in 2009 and 2010 reflected a recessionary New York, one thoroughly upended by economic maelstroms like high unemployment and the odd major bank collapse. No one had need of more office space; no one had financing for investments; no one had much to do save get on the blower and commiserate, or, on Read More
"I want to have one of the great investment records of all time, why not?" Bill Ackman, founder of hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management said nonchalantly over breakfast one Saturday in early April.
He had just come from two hours of tennis on Randall's Island, still in his sweat-stained black nylon warm-up pants, for which Read More
Score another win for Big, Bad Gary Barnett.
A State Supreme Court judge ruled yesterday that a case against the attorney general's office filed by Barnett could not be dismissed, according to The Real Deal. Buyers want out of their contracts at The Rushmore, one of Barnett's Riverside South developments, but Barnett charges thatRead More
Leslie Wohlman HimmelManaging Partner, Himmel + Meringoff PropertiesLeslie Himmel met her business partner, Steve Meringoff, at a lecture at N.Y.U., where she was the first one to raise her hand and ask the speaker, Harry Helmsley, a question. "What's been your greatest achievement to date?"
Mr. Meringoff was so impressed with her "moxie," as Ms. Himmel Read More
Last year was a busy one for Tony Malkin, and 2011 is looking to be more of the same. He was embroiled in a minor scandal for refusing to light his landmark Empire State Building in honor of Mother Teresa's centennial. A few months later, Malkin, seeking to protect views of his tower, was unable to Read More
In a recent article in The Times, developer Douglas Durst complained that too many of New York's fallen developers—the Macklowes and Eichners and Glucks of the world—were getting off too easy from the bursting of the real estate bubble, as they recapitalized and returned to the work of building. "That has Read More
Back in the fall, The Observer profiled development scion William Macklowe as he stepped out on his own. His father, Harry, along with Billy, had lost much of the Macklowe empire in the bursting of the real estate bubble, and parting ways seemed best. He launched the William Macklowe Company last year. "So much Read More
Ever since the credit crisis hit and the real estate market collapsed, the news has been filled with disgraced developers--including in these very pages. Yet for every plucked chicken, there seems to be an equal number of phoenixes who, year after year, decade after decade, return from the construction graveyard to build again. (The Observer, Read More
Gary Barnett is trying once again to polish the rough diamond that is his International Gem Tower.
The 32-story project designed by SOM has been in the works for years now, with the hopes of creating a modern, centralized complex for the city's arcane diamond industry. From the start, it has aggravated other landlords along 47th Read More
Gary Barnett has made plenty of enemies at his developments at Riverside South, including litigious tenants and Borough President Scott Stringer. Now, local little leaguers are up in arms too.
Part of the agreement to develop the massive residential complex, which was begun by Donald Trump in the 1980s, was to extend Riverside Park Read More
Sometimes, the best things in life really are free.
Steve Ross, head of the Related Companies, is one of the city's most influential developers--he is hard at work on Hudson Yards and Hunters Point South, among so much else--as well as one of its richest, worth $3.4 billion, putting him at No. 277 Read More
If a few thousand observant Jews protesting outside his Lever House headquarters could not convince Aby Rosen to renege on his plans to build a luxury hotel in Israel, what could? How about a hundred or so black hats annoying the developer at home?
The Chasidic hay-makers showed up as promised today, having vowed not Read More
Bill Rudin has not given up on dearly departed St. Vincent's Hospital, according to The Journal. The third-generation developer, looking to live up to the great works of his pops and pop-pop, is "working quietly to salvage his ambitious project," which includes a condo tower and a number of smaller apartments and townhouses Read More
Joe Moinian, the blockbuster developer who bought up millions of square feet for billions of dollars during the boom, is set for a court date later today with rival developer Steve Ross, head of the Related Companies, over Moinian's redevelopment of 1775 Broadway.
Moinian began redeveloping the art deco office building two years ago, rebranding it Read More
David Walentas and his Two Trees Management made a name for itself--well-worn by now--transforming Dumbo into the BroBo, live-work paradise it is today. Taking a page from his father's book, Jed Walentas is hard at work on transforming a former industrial building in Williamsburg into a luxury hotel.
Granted Williamsburg is well beyond the undiscovered frontier Read More
