Eastern Consolidated chairman and CEO, Peter Hauspurg, with Brian Ezratty, vice chairman, executive directors Eric Anton and Ronald Solarz, and Scott Ellard, director-financial services, exclusively represented the sellers. Ezratty procured the purchaser.

"This building is typical of the better commercial loft buildings in the Penn Plaza/Chelsea submarket, and its location is prime," says Ezratty. "An added advantage, and one that drove the sale, is that by mid 2007, a big block of space totaling 80,486 sf can be made available which could help in repositioning the building as an upscale office destination."

Just completing its transition from accommodating companies in the printing industry, 229-239 W. 28th St. now caters primarily to office-oriented users paying annual rents averaging $17.64 per sf for the upper floors, approximately half the market rate for the area, according to Eastern Consolidated. It is 85% occupied by predominantly full-floor tenants including Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization and the Fitch Group.

According to Ezratty, the new owners plan to continue to upgrade the asset and cater to more upscale loft/office users. Key tenants in neighboring buildings include Martha Stewart Living, the Swedish Institute, Costas Kondylis Architects, Stella Adler Studios, the Fashion Institute of Technology and Der Skutt Architects.

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Natalie Dolce

Natalie Dolce, editor-in-chief of GlobeSt.com and GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum, is responsible for working with editorial staff, freelancers and senior management to help plan the overarching vision that encompasses GlobeSt.com, including short-term and long-term goals for the website, how content integrates through the company’s other product lines and the overall quality of content. Previously she served as national executive editor and editor of the West Coast region for GlobeSt.com and Real Estate Forum, and was responsible for coverage of news and information pertaining to that vital real estate region. Prior to moving out to the Southern California office, she was Northeast bureau chief, covering New York City for GlobeSt.com. Her background includes a stint at InStyle Magazine, and as managing editor with New York Press, an alternative weekly New York City paper. In her career, she has also covered a variety of beats for M magazine, Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, FashionLedge.com, and Co-Ed magazine. Dolce has also freelanced for a number of publications, including MSNBC.com and Museums New York magazine.