A seven-story industrial building that houses NYCHA offices in Long Island City was recently purchased for $195 million and will be turned into office space for ‘creative’ tenants.
Located at 24-02 49th Ave., the 640,000-square-foot building is mostly used by NYCHA. The first five floors are used as office space for the city agency and its lease expires in 2020. Innovo Property Group and Westbrook Partners purchased the property and do not plan on renewing NYCHA’s lease, Commercial Observer first reported.
The city agency, responsible for managing 328 public-housing projects with 400,00 residents, pays only $9 per square feet, Crain’s New York reported. They rent a total of 480,000 square feet.
Last year, the Daily News found that NYCHA was selling millions of dollars worth of unused supplies out of the Long Island City building. The agency collected $18.1 million worth of supplies such as refrigerator parts and office furniture that had not been used for years.
Victor Martinez, a NYCHA employee, told the Daily News that the system used to purchase supplies was “wasteful.”
Renovations to the building “are several years out,” GFI Realty Services, the brokers for the sale, told the Commercial Observer.
QNS has reached out to GFI Realty Services and is awaiting response.
