NEW YORK CITY-Herald Center, the behemoth 10 story, 250,000 square-foot black glass retail and office property at the southwest corner of 34th Street and Broadway, is about to undergo a major transformation, owner JEMB Realty announced on Thursday. The property will be entirely re-clad to create a bright space for its tenants.
Susan Kurland, EVP of retail brokerage services for CBRE, is the exclusive leasing agent for Herald Center, which offers 50,000 square feet of retail space.
Located at what JEMB calls “one of the most heavily trafficked, high-visibility corners in the world, Herald Center was conceived as a vertical mall and built in 1982. Owner JEMB Realty, which acquired the property in 1986, is “turning the property 'inside out' in 2013,” according to the announcement.
It will remove the black glass panels on the first three floors and replace them with transparent panes, allowing flagship retailers to showcase their brand and goods to passersbys who, JEMB reports, number over 100 million each year. In addition to the new façade on the base floors, floors four through 10 also will be transformed with L.E.D. panels, creating a light display.
Three floors of visibility as well as frontage on both Broadway and 34th Street will be available upon completion of JEMB's multi-million dollar façade replacement plan. The company also plans to update the pedestrian plaza in front of the building, though it didn't provide specific details on that part of the improvement plan.
The restoration was made possible by JEMB's recent acquisition of the former Daffy's lease at Herald Center out of bankruptcy. In addition, ASA College has expanded to over 100,000 square feet at the property and will have a ground floor lobby entrance on 33rd Street.
JEMB principal Morris Bailey is excited about the restoration—so much so that he is overflowing with superlatives. “For a few lucky retailers, the new Herald Center really will be a 'Miracle on 34th Street',” he says in the announcement. “The redevelopment of our retail space creates a tremendous opportunity for a retailer to capture a remarkable audience, to take command of one of the greatest landmark locations in the nation.”
His enthusiasm isn't unwarranted though. According to JEMB's announcement, Herald Square merchants generate over $1.3 billion in annual sales, and over 20 million shoppers visit Macy's flagship department store in Herald Square, which sits right across from Herald Center on 34th Street. Further, the announcement notes, over 550,000 daily commuters use nearby Penn Station.
Adds Joseph Jerome, also a principal of JEMB Realty, in the announcement, “We have owned this property for a quarter of a century, and are thrilled to bring it to the market with the appeal and appearance we believe will best serve our tenants and the neighborhood. We have been dreaming of this redevelopment for years, and we are delighted to begin the transformation.”
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Rayna Katz
Rayna Katz is a seasoned business journalist whose extensive experience includes coverage of the lodging sector, travel and the culinary space. She was most recently content director for a business-to-business publisher, overseeing four publications. While at Meeting News, a travel trade publication, she received a Best Reporting award for a story on meeting cancellations in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.
