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myassholealt t1_iutbyrr wrote

Dude smells a recession on the horizon and doesn't want to get bogged down on new developments is my uneducated guess.

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Burymeincalamine t1_iutdfnu wrote

It doesn’t take a billionaire multiple rate increases to “smell a recession”, and real estate developers who are flush with cash do not pause bottoms up new builds that take many, many years for cyclical events. Either they have run out of cash flow or this is election-driven

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well-that-was-fast t1_iuxsapj wrote

>>>But Evercore ISI analyst Steve Sakwa told Crain’s that Roth’s statement means the project is “certainly delayed” due to lack of office demand. “They won’t spend billions to build an empty building,” he said.

Presumably this means they don't think Class A occupancy will be back to normal for 3+ years.

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Burymeincalamine t1_iuxtvkl wrote

Maybe. Or every big firm has recently signed a long lease over at Hudson yards or another new shiny building (one Vanderbilt, etc) recently — all of which are like 100% lessed — and maybe they haven’t seen much interest in their upcoming penn hotel replacement

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well-that-was-fast t1_iuxv2lb wrote

It's hard for me to imagine Hudson Yards being full while buildings above Penn are unrentable. I know what I'd find more convenient. But I'm not a billion dollar developer.

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D14DFF0B t1_iuto0q2 wrote

This is a multi-year plan. A year-long recession isn't material, and may be helpful.

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Johnnadawearsglasses t1_iuw6u2c wrote

Not when you need to fund it during a recession and a period of multi year high interest rates. To the extent the rest of their portfolio suffers, will create credit and liquidity risk.

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Rottimer t1_iuwpwwh wrote

I doubt it’s about a recession and more about will they be able to get a return on that investment given how many people work from home.

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Burymeincalamine t1_iux73ry wrote

The types of tenants that occupy these buildings (banks, law firms, consulting firms, tech) are back in the office for front office teams - banks 5 days a week, and the others 3+ days a week. Just because average companies have gone remote doesn’t mean that anchor trophy tenants have also.

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cbnyc0 t1_iuxsfa5 wrote

Not a whole lot of new offices opening in midtown right now.

He knows he doesn’t have enough customers to demand developing more towers.

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pixel_of_moral_decay t1_iv32kgv wrote

It also buys time for more tax breaks.

He’s not going to be able to lease the space, which means money is tied up in that project and high interest rates.

Much better to leave money in the bank, spend the time insisting he needs tax breaks to help “create jobs” then try to time construction with the emergence out of a recession.

He’ll get $100M+ out of this move.

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thebruns t1_iutdri9 wrote

Uh, arent they in the process of currently knocking down two massive buildings, including the hotel? They plan on leaving giant holes?

.....oh, I guess they could leave the giant holes there until they get enough "incentives" to fill them with something

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gaiusahala t1_iuutuy0 wrote

I believe the Hotel Penn site is separate from the rest of the Penn developments as it is not on the Penn Station footprint so doesn’t involve NYS cooperation. It could similarly be affected by the current economic situation but probably isn’t what they were referring to.

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thebruns t1_iuuvu4f wrote

My understanding is that the hotel penn project included new entrances to penn and reopening the tunnel to Herald square

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cbnyc0 t1_iuxt8ab wrote

Yes, it does.

It was built directly over the Amtrak and LIRR lines that lead into Penn Station from the East. Its foundations straddle the tunnel. So, I’m guessing upgrades to that tunnel are much easier to accomplish with its removal.

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Pool_Shark t1_iut7109 wrote

That’s good news, but there’s something afoot here. Hopefully the plan will shift to building housing since this would be the most logical place to increase housing in NYC with all the transportation and even walking distance to offices.

Either way you never see a mega real estate developer pull out of a project like this for fun so there’s more to this story.

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Status_Fox_1474 t1_iutcuzn wrote

Honestly, this may be the worst place to have housing. It's where so many commuters and travelers are coming into. Building for commercial here is great for Jersey residents who work in Manhattan, as well as out-of-town travelers coming in for meetings.

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thebruns t1_iutdvrz wrote

Tons of people get jobs in NJ but want to live in the city. Theres currently not a good place for that

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vanshnookenraggen t1_iuuqro7 wrote

"Tons"? Gonna need a source on this.

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thebruns t1_iuuvrf3 wrote

Visit /asknyc it comes up every other day. Folks get job in Morristown but want to live in nyc and take the train

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FarFromSane_ t1_iuva9v5 wrote

I have a roommate who works in that area. We live on Roosevelt Island. I could understand the commute if we lived closer to Penn Station (or Hoboken Terminal), but from all the way here it seems like a lot.

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cbnyc0 t1_iuxtqes wrote

They’re a commercial real estate developer and state money for the project is from a completely different part of the state budget. That area is also a major commercial zoning block, very little (legal) residential space over there. Slowing the Penn area development will not correlate with new housing in any way.

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Burymeincalamine t1_iutc23c wrote

Housing can’t go up everywhere. There are zoning regulations, etc.

New office buildings are not the worst thing in the world either and Class A is certainly not ‘sitting empty’ — look at Hudson Yards. It’s the older buildings that are tenantless, but there’s an opportunity there to convert or raze those into residential like they did in Fidi.

Anyway, they are pulling out using soft wording because it’s not as clear 100% anymore if Hochul is going to stay put. It is pretty obvious.

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cbnyc0 t1_iuxuqek wrote

If we get a Republican governor we are kinda screwed. The economy is already trashed and their policies would make it so much worse.

She’s not the best, but I’d rather have her in office than the racist robber barons.

She did okay taking over for Dickish Rich, er, Chris— I mean, Luigi— I mean Super Mario Cuomo— I mean, Andrew Cuomo.

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Jimmy_kong253 t1_iutude0 wrote

It's going to be built regardless of who wins in November the developers have both parties in their pockets

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Burymeincalamine t1_iuuk4g0 wrote

Roth is BFF status with Trump but donated heftily to Hochul’s campaign so that he could finagle this Penn Station deal. Now that she is looking iffy, he’s reeling it back and waiting probably

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HourlyEdo t1_iuvjl06 wrote

Sounds like they're not a fan

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ChrisFromLongIsland t1_iutigf8 wrote

Hochul should just eminent domain the lots and use it to build more tracks and a tunnel to NJ. It's easier if the existing buildings are torn down. Then when things are right the city can give 100 year leases out to developers.

Hochul should play hard ball.

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Wowzlul t1_iuwoknp wrote

Land Acquisition isn't what's slowing down the Gateway project. They already have everything they need. It's just plain ol' American red tape and bureaucracy.

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cbnyc0 t1_iuxv3ur wrote

You realize the real estate industry basically owns like 8/10 or more politicians in NY, right?

No career politician is going to do anything to piss them off that much.

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Brooklyn-Epoxy t1_iux5ueh wrote

Can we just knock down and relocate MSg and rebuild the old Penn with improvements?

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cbnyc0 t1_iuxv9z1 wrote

That would be nice.

Put a vintage pinball acrcade in there somewhere maybe.

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