Law school's 'ingenious deal' recognized

University Business, July, 2007 by Melissa Ezarik

COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES AREN'T EXACTLY KNOWN FOR THEIR real estate prowess. So it's not surprising that only one higher ed institution entered the 2006 Real Estate Board of New York's Sales Brokers' Most Ingenious Deal of the Year Awards. Yet it was New York Law School's entry that came out on top. Brokers Woody Heller and Howard Nottingham received the award this April for helping NYLS, which was founded in 1891, make four quick moves that will ultimately result in an additional 200,000 square feet, a 70 percent expansion.

The deal was spearheaded by Dean and President Richard A. Matasar, who joined the institution in 2000. "We've been looking at doing this project since the '70s but couldn't afford doing it," he says. It involved:

* Selling the most marketable building of NYLS's five-building complex for $136 million.

* Using those funds (plus fundraising dollars) to increase the endowment from $60 million to about $230 million.

* Securing favorable fiscal ratings to obtain $145 million in low-interest, tax-exempt bonds.

* Designing and constructing the new building over an underutilized campus parking tot.

While originally officials thought that moving the school from its Tribeca neighborhood to Downtown Manhattan would be the best way to fulfill space needs, an economic analysis showed otherwise. Selling a portion of what NYLS already owned and being able to stay put, Matasar explains, is "what people would say is the ingenious part." The new building is set for September 2008 completion and will be the first major institutional project to open in Lower Manhattan since 9/11. Existing NYLS buildings will then be renovated, with completion scheduled for 2010.

"It will be great to have buildings with all the fanciest bells and whistles," says Matasar. But he adds that the program enhancements mean more. "It's an exciting prospect to be able to fulfill your educational promises in ways we've never been able to do before."