Rockaway Courthouse Back on the Market?
By Katie McFadden
The old Courthouse is back on the market? A decade after the property was transferred to The Harmony Group to be transformed into a medical center, the property was quietly listed for sale or lease earlier this month.
Want your hands on the newly renovated historic bayside property on Beach 90th Street? Encore Real Estate Investment Services has it listed for sale for $7 million or for lease for $30 per square foot per year (NNN). With 6,525 sq. ft. of leasable space on the third floor to 13,088 sq. ft. on the first floor, that could mean anywhere from $195,750 to $392,640 per floor per year plus additional property-related expenses.
After a Request for Proposals process in 2013, the NYC Economic Development Corporation selected The Harmony Group, led by Uri Kaufman, to overhaul the historic property located at 90-01 Beach Channel Drive. In March 2015, The Harmony Group was awarded the property for $50,000, with the agreement that they would invest $10 million into overhauling it. Kaufman set out with an agreed-upon plan to turn the building into a medical center after the closure of Peninsula Hospital.
Things were looking good as Dr. Mark Gelwan and the Rockaway’s ASC Development group were expected to become tenants of the future medical facility, but by late 2014, Rockaway’s ASC Development had a falling out with The Harmony Group and instead opted to develop a brand-new medical facility at Beach 105th Street. That facility, which now serves as an extension for St. John’s Medical Group, opened in December 2020. Additionally, the Joseph P. Addabbo Health Center was undergoing an expansion. With competition, renting out the Courthouse for medical use became an insurmountable task, despite Kaufman pouring more than $11 million into asbestos abatement, renovations, a parking lot and more.
Closed for more than 60 years, the Courthouse, built in 1931, has remained underutilized. After the medical facility plan fell apart, Kaufman spent years trying to convince the community and the EDC to allow the building to be used for commercial and office space instead. In August 2022, the EDC voted to change the deed for the courthouse to allow the commercial and office use. It is unclear if any of the spaces were rented since then.
The recent property listing reads, “Newly constructed off-street parking with 63 dedicated spaces ensures hassle-free parking for staff and visitors, while multiple private entrances provide secure access for tenants and clients. The renovated property boasts modern elevator systems, high-capacity power infrastructure, and proximity to Beach 90th Street Station for prime transit access. Spanning 39,752 SF on 0.46 acres, this landmark property is ideally suited for healthcare, office, or educational use, with customizable spaces ranging from 6,525 to 13,088 SF.”
The listing comes as a surprise as the last time Kaufman appeared at a Community Board 14 Land Use meeting in January 2022, he told the members, “We are not allowed to sell it for 20 years. And any new owner would have to go through the current NYC Economic Development division process and be approved by the Community Board.”
The Rockaway Times reached out to the Encore Real Estate Investment Services agents mentioned on the listing to confirm that the building is up for sale but did not receive a response by press time. The RT also reached out to NYCEDC to inquire if any changes had been made to the deed that would allow the property to be sold sooner than 20 years but was still awaiting a response by press time after they said they would look into it.
