Chairman and CEO Douglas Shorenstein notes, "This opportunity to participate as a junior lender in the capital structure of prime Manhattan office real estate is a natural extension of our traditional role as an equity owner. We will consider similar future investments on a selective basis." Shorenstein purchased the loan on behalf of its sixth investment fund, a private commingled fund formed in 2001 to make equity and debt investments in class A office buildings located throughout the US. This fund has previously made investments in US Bank Plaza in Sacramento, 500 West Monroe in Chicago, Two Liberty Place in Philadelphia, and 450 Lexington Ave. in New York. The fund is capitalized with $609 million of equity and is currently more than 50% invested.

Shorenstein Co. currently owns and operates more than 22 million sf of prime commercial office space throughout the US. During the past decade Shorenstein has sponsored a series of closed-end investment funds. Since 1992 these funds have acquired and developed more than 16 million sf at a gross acquisition/development cost in excess of $2.8 billion.