The Power is Now

New York company makes City’s largest real estate purchase – Santa Monica Daily Press

The largest real estate deal in the city’s history closed this week with the sale of eight properties to New York based real estate company Tishman Speyer.

According to a statement from brokerage Walker & Dunlop, Tishman’s purchase of 3.1 acres from WS Communities is one of the largest entitled land sales on the West Coast and the largest in Santa Monica’s history. The sale price was not disclosed by press time.

In total, the downtown development portfolio includes 325,391 net rentable square feet, including 31,473 square feet of commercial space and 627 multifamily units – all of which are fully entitled and approved by city authorities.

In a statement, Tishman Speyer said it would develop 620 Class A apartments, 116 of which will be designated as affordable, as well as the retail space. The company said Phase One of project construction is expected to begin by late 2022, with the first buildings complete by the end of 2024.

“The Santa Monica Collection project represents a rare opportunity to develop a critical mass of new housing in a market where demand is acute,” Tishman Speyer President and CEO Rob Speyer said. “Over the past decade, we have created exciting new residential communities in major cities across the U.S., including New York City, Boston, San Francisco and Washington, DC, with additional projects planned or underway. We’re excited to be able to establish a significant residential foothold in the Los Angeles market as well.”

WS Communities put its entire 23-parcel portfolio, which is entitled for the development of over 2,100 units and more than 200,000 square feet of commercial space, up for sale last year.

WS Communities is a spin-off of Neil Shekhter’s NMS Properties. While NMS was mired in a legal fight with a former partner over ownership of several apartment buildings, WS Communities was able to secure several additional projects in the Downtown area.

Tishman Speyer said its projects aim to address demand from individuals and families that want to live in the area but are priced out of home ownership.

“We were extremely pleased to find such a well-located collection of sites for our initial residential project in the Los Angeles market,” said Paul De Martini, Senior Managing Director for Tishman Speyer. “The proximity of beautiful beaches and mountains, along with other aspects of the local lifestyle, make it one of the region’s most compelling places to live, work and visit.”

editor@smdp.com

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