The Shops at Atlas Park has a new managing agent, and it is a familiar face to Queens businesses.
The Mattone Group, which develops and manages commercial and residential properties throughout the New York area, officially took over the management duty from the Hemmerdinger family on February 19, and the new management team is eager to get started at the site.
“We have a large part of our portfolio in Brooklyn and Queens,” said Michael Mattone, the CFO of the Mattone Group. “We have pretty good relationships with local retailers, and hopefully we can bring some of the local relationships to bear.”
At the beginning of this year, Damon Hemmerdinger, the former managing director for Atlas Park, announced that the property’s lenders – Calyon and Société Générale – decided to go with a different managing agent for the mall, which offers a mix of clothing stores, jewelry, shoes and gourmet foods as well as a variety of charming cafes, bistros and restaurants.
Mattone said after his company learned that a change was in the works, it made a pitch to the lenders and the Hemmerdingers.
“There was consensus that a change in management might have a different angle to attract some new tenants,” said Michael Mattone, who will be taking the lead on the Atlas Park project.
Currently, Mattone said he is making sure the day-to-day activities of managing the Glendale property run smoothly, but he plans to reach out to the tenants at the mall in the next couple of weeks to introduce himself to them and find out more about the existing businesses.
Meanwhile, the new managing agent is already generating some excitement amongst tenants and the surrounding community.
“We look forward to working with a new management company, and I feel like it’s going to be for the benefit of all,” said Joseph Faccibene, the managing partner of Shiro of Japan – one of the first tenants at Atlas Park.
Currently the Mattone Group manages and leases more than 1.5 million square feet of commercial property including the 6.5-acre Pathmark Plaza in Springfield Gardens, the Jamaica Center site and the Waldbaums Center in College Point – where the Mattone Group’s headquarters are located.
Community Board 5 Chair Vincent Arcuri attended the opening of Atlas Park in April of 2006, and he believes having the Mattones is good for the area.
“I think they will approach it with a fresh look; they are good people,” Arcuri said. “They are local Queens people. I think they will be fair to the tenants, existing and new, and I look forward to speaking with them and see what’s on their mind soon.”
