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Plans to redevelop Hudson River Park's Pier 40 are back to square one after Gov. Andrew Cuomo vetoed a bill that would have transformed the space into a commercial hub, Curbed reported. In an eleventh-hour veto on New Year's Eve, Cuomo rejected an amendment to a state law that would have allowed office space to rise up to eight stories on the 15-acre pier. Plans to develop the doughnut-shaped space have stalled for years, and this veto is the latest setback to the Hudson River Park Trust's goal to turn the pier into a revenue-generator that will help financially support the four-mile-long waterfront park. In one of its last big deals of 2019, Gary Barnett's Extell Development tightened its grip on a Midtown development site, and sewed up $440 million in new financing for a future project there, The Real Deal reported. The site, not far from Extell's International Gem Tower, is comprised of a 13-part assemblage at Fifth Avenue between 46th and 47th streets. In two separate transactions in late December, Extell bought out Hong Kong-based Meridian Capital Limited's stake in the assemblage for $263.7 million. It also bought out SL Green's interest at 562 Fifth Avenue for $52.4 million. Wells Fargo is jump-starting Rockrose Development‘s planned residential skyscraper near Hudson Yards with a $255 million round of construction financing, the Commercial Observer reported, citing New York City Department of Finance records filed this week. The San Francisco-based lender originated a $218.7 million building loan and a $36.3 million project loan on Rockrose's rental project, at 555 West 38th Street, in a deal that closed a week before Christmas and was filed with the city yesterday. Plans for the building, drawn up by Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, call for a 52-story glass tower at the site, between 10th and 11th Avenues. A trio of real estate companies have joined together to buy an affordable housing portfolio in the Bronx for $170 million, the Real Deal reported. LIHC Investment Group, Belveron Partners and Camber Property Group are buying eight buildings in the borough from Cammeby's International Group. The Mitchell-Llama buildings contain 1,275 affordable housing units in total, along with 10 commercial units. They were built in the 1970s and renovated in 2014, and the units are meant for low-income families earning 60 percent of area median income. In a victory for New York City Hotel Trades Council union, Mayor Bill de Blasio's administration will seek to enact a special permit requirement for hotel construction, The Real Deal reported. The citywide requirement would mandate hotel developers receive City Council approval for projects - giving the HTC the opportunity to ensure new hotels are unionized, according to the New York Times. Developers say the requirement would hinder hotel development at a time when New York tourism is booming, but the HTC sees the move as a win for hotel workers in the face of threats from short-term rental companies like Airbnb.
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