Ivy Equities Sells Crosswest Office Center for $25M

The deal is the third transaction in less than 18 months between the RPW Group and Ivy Equities. In the summer of 2002, RPW acquired 244 Westchester Ave., an 85,000-sf building in Harrison and a year later the firm bought 2975 Westchester Ave., in Purchase, a 116,000-sf office building from Ivy Equities.

Cushman & Wakefield Metropolitan Area Financial Services Group specialists George Lambros III, Patrick R. Colwell and H. Gary Gabriel as well as leasing specialist Glenn Walsh represented the seller Ivy Equities and procured the buyer. Robert Weisz, principal of the RPW Group, says C&W has been named exclusive leasing agent for the property that is currently 97% leased. The purchase of 399 Knollwood Road raises RPW Group's office holdings on the I-287 corridor to approximately 500,000 sf.

"We have a strong presence on I-287 and we thought this would complement what we already had," Weisz says. In addition, he says that 399 Knollwood Road, located on the White Plains-Greenburgh border, gives the firm a presence near the Western section of the I-287 market, which covers Greenburgh, Elmsford and Tarrytown.

Weisz' firm also owns the Harrison Court office complex and has approvals to build 250 Westchester Ave. in Harrison, which will total 80,000 sf of office space. The transaction transfers ownership of Ivy Equities' last holding on the I-287 corridor. The New Jersey-based firm's sole Westchester County office property is 411 Theodore Fremd Road, a 116,000-sf building in Rye.

C&W's Colwell says the property attracted significant investor interest that netted one of the highest prices per sf (approximately $172 per sf) in years in Westchester County. A key to the deal was the building's multi-tenant base and stability, according to Lambros. Approximately 80% of the 45 tenants at the building have housed their operations at 399 Knollwood Rd. for more than 10 years, Walsh adds.