Cronheim, Estreich finance 300 Park

Real Estate Weekly, Feb 2, 2000

Andrew Stewart, executive managing director of David Cronheim Mortgage Corporation, and Jonathan Estreich, president of Estreich & Co., have arranged financing totaling $168 million for 300 Park Avenue in Manhattan.

The subject financing was placed with SunAmerica Investments, Inc. for the borrower - an entity conatrolled by Tishman Speyer Travelers Real Estate Venture III, LLC.

The property serves as the world headquarters for the Colgate Palmolive Corporation in 15 of its 25 floors, with the top nine floors serving a varied group of law firms, bankers and other users. It is one block from Saint Patrick's Cathedral and the 48th Street entrance to Grand Central Station. Corporate neighbors include Chase Manhattan Bank, Donaldson Lufkin, Jenrette, and Bear Stearns, among others.

The property occupies the entire blockfront of Park Avenue between 49th and 50th streets, (the site of the former Sherry's Hotel, which opened in 1921) providing 200 feet of frontage on Park Avenue. It was built in 1955, designed by Emory Roth and Sons for the Uris Brothers, and was owned by Uris until its recent purchase by the new owners.

Except for its red granite base, the Colgate-Palmolive Building was originally entirely sheathed in a curtain wall of aluminum and glass, with the spandrel panels painted a cream color that complemented the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel across the street. In contrast, the architects of Moed de Armas & Shannon have designed a new facade for 300 Park that follows the original form, with alternating horizontal ribbons of glass and metal. The new windows will be a transparent green glass called Solex, which has the unusual feature of changing its look according to the time of day and direction of light.

The acquisition financing has been structured to accommodate the renovation and repositioning of the asset to match the building's vastly improved physical plant with its world class location. According to Stewart, Tishman Speyer's superior, management team has had an immediate impact in adding value to what will again be among Park Avenue's finest properties.