MTA Picks Transwestern to Manage 2 MSF NYC Portfolio

 By Gail Kalinoski, Contributing Editor

2 Broadway
Photo: MTA New York City Transit/Marc Hermann.

Transwestern will manage a 2 million-square-foot portfolio in the New York City region, including 2 Broadway in Manhattan, for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

The high-profile assignment comes about two years after the Houston-based firm expanded into the Northeast and opened a New York City office, led by Patrick Robinson, president of the Northeast division, and Lindsay Ornstein, principal.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with such a reputable organization,” Jim Millard, principal with Transwestern, said in a news release about the MTA, which is the largest transportation system in the United States. “We’re confident that the disciplines and resources we bring to this major property management assignment in New York City will enable us to deliver legendary service to the MTA. We hope to develop a long-standing, value-enhancing relationship with them going forward.”

The MTA deal calls for Transwestern to manage 2 Broadway, a 1.59-million square-foot, 34-story, Class A office tower in Manhattan’s Financial District. It is the headquarters for the MTA’s New York City Transit and is slated to become the sole headquarters for the MTA as it consolidates office space during the next year. The building also has offices for MTA Bridges and Tunnels and MTA Capital Construction. Built in 1959, the MTA is the sole tenant of the property owned by The Sapir Organization.

Transwestern will also oversee management of the Jamaica Control Center, 141-41 94^th Ave. in Jamaica, Queens, a 165,000-square-foot, seven-story, Class A office building that houses the Long Island Railroad Company, MTA Police Department and the Port Authority of NY/NJ. The 10-year-old building also has a transfer station from the subway to the Air Tran to JFK International Airport.

The third major property in the portfolio is 525 North Broadway, an 87,000-square-foot building located next to the North White Plains Metro-North train station, which has offices for the Metro-North Railroad operations and a key data center. Two other buildings are included in the portfolio assignment – 242 and 250 Old Country Road in Mineola, N.Y., on Long Island.

Millard and Eric Mockler, Transwestern’s President, Mid-Atlantic, will be overseeing property management services for the MTA portfolio. Millard, who has more than 30 years of experience in New York City commercial real estate, joined Transwestern in May 2011 and heads up the Northeast region’s landlord services, agency leasing and tenant advisory groups. The Tranwestern Northeast team now has 36 members and offices in New York City, Parsippany, N.J., and Greenwich, Conn.

“Our next target in the Northeast is Boston. We are currently exploring opportunities in that market,” a Transwestern spokesperson told Commercial Property Executive.

Transwestern has been growing in the U.S. and abroad in the last few years. Besides opening the New York City office in 2011, the privately held firm also entered into a joint venture in Saudi Arabia. A year later, Transwestern formed a global alliance with Paris-based BNP Parabis Real Estate allowing it to serve clients in more than 180 offices in 36 countries. Earlier this year, Transwestern created two new executive positions to help grow the firm’s presence in the U.S. Southwest region and in Latin America.