Mary McFadden Building Sheds for $58M

NEW YORK CITY-A joint venture of locally based Hidrock Realty and Scarsdale, NY-based Meritage Properties has acquired a 162,000-sf office building, known as the Mary McFadden Building, at 240 W. 35th St., between Seventh and Eighth avenues. According to a source close to the deal, the purchase price was $58 million. The seller was the Eretz Group, who couldn’t be reached by deadline for comment; however the source tells GlobeSt.com that the reason for selling was simply that it was “offered a good price,” for the asset.

The source tells GlobeSt.com that the firm chose this building because it is similar to others in its portfolio–240 W. 35th St. is on a side street in the Herald Square/Penn Station submarket. “Hidrock is extremely invested in the Times Square South neighborhood due to its convenient subway and Long Island Railroad access,” the source says. “Hidrock prefers to buy side street buildings because they are viable options for small-sized and mid-sized businesses that cannot afford hefty avenue rents.”

The 17-story building is the fourth purchased by Hidrock Realty in the Herald Square/Penn Station submarket. Hidrock is also the owner and landlord of 65 W. 36th St., 53 W. 36th St. and 35 W. 36th St., all located between Fifth and Sixth avenues. The building is fully occupied, with about 40 tenants. Among its largest tenants are Doubledown Media, which monitors online and print media for financial companies; First Funds, a provider of cash advances to small-sized and mid-sized business; and A Better Chance, a preeminent resource for identifying, recruiting and developing leaders among young people of color in the US.