Industry City Has Trouble Luring Tenants

The Journal has an article today about how these are tough times indeed for a developer’s grand vision to transform Sunset Park’s Industry City into a mecca for artists. To wit: “Beginning in 2007, [developer Rubin] Schron took out loans that ultimately totaled about $300 million which were converted into commercial mortgage backed securities, according to Realpoint. Soon after that the recession hit the outlook for his property, named Industry City, worsened. So far only about 600,000 square feet of its 6 million square feet of space has been converted and only about 400,000 square feet of that is occupied. The property’s occupancy has also dropped to the 60% range from 87.2% in 2007, according to Realpoint and a copy of the loan’s prospectus. The Schron group is hopeful it will be able to restructure the debt and hold onto the property, according to people familiar with the property.” While this is basically just another old-hat story about overleveraged investors, it tugs at the heart strings: The potential for revitalization in this area, with its amazing stock of warehouses and brilliant waterfront views, seems like a no-brainer.
Setback for Historic Warehouse [WSJ]
Industry City, a Photo Tour [Brownstoner] GMAP