Blume pulls off another first with G&B Building deal.

In the age of the megadeal, many times, the small, but creative transaction is overlooked.

In another first, a venerable old building at 122 East 58th Street--also known as the G&B Building for Genealogical and Biographical Society--has been sold by the owners.

And not one or two, but all the existing tenants have moved to another famous old building; The General Society Center at 20 West 44th Street on Club Row in Midtown Manhattan.

Included in the move were the former owners, the G&B Society, The Holland Society, The Mayflower Society of New York, The Huguenot Society, The Society of Colonial Wars, The Society of Foreign Wars and The St. Nicholas Society.

Besides the six main tenants, there are nine subtenants, all 501(c)(3) entities organized in the 19th century.

They include The Daughters of the Cincinnati, The Pilgrims of the U.S., American Friends of the Georgian Group, Colonial Lords of the Manor in America, Military Order of Loyal Legions, Commandery of the State of New York, Sons of the American Revolution and The Naval Order of the United States.

The deal had been on since late summer of 2005 and is another first for the broker, Clinton W. Blume, Jr. of ABS Partners of Union Square.

Blume was the first to complete a lease by fax; first to net lease and build a Third Avenue corner with right of cancellation that relocated the tenant into the new skyscraper; first for a tenant to discount (present value) their own lease in order to buy out their position to satisfy pension fund requirements of the owner. He also targeted the first property that commenced the assemblage of 47th to 50th Streets on Sixth Avenue.

Blume was the first winner of the REBNY Lawrence Award for "ingenuity and professionalism" in 1983.

The General Society, founded in 1785, has the second oldest library in the city. It has as current tenants The Mechanics Institute, 100 Year Association of New York, Antiquarian Booksellers, Small Books publishers, and The Institute of Classic Architecture.

The Grand Central Art Center and the Moseman Lock Museum have wonderful exhibits. The famed Coffee House Club occupies half of the 6th floor.

The landmarked building is a veritable treasure trove of American history and world class art and architecture.

The ABS firm is a unique, tightly wound unit of professionals that own or manage nearly 4,000,000 s/f of commercial and residential space. The brokerage goal is to make clever, prudent and profitable use of real property.

This latest 10-year lease covered the fifth floor of 7,500 s/f and sustains the not-for-profit designation of the landmarked structure.

Designed by Lamb & Rich, and later rebuilt by Ralph Samuel Townsend supported by funds from Andrew Carnegie, the educational facilities support lectures and classes for crafts and trades.

The owner attorney was Larry Tetelman of Rosen & Tetelman and for the tenants, Nancy Connery of Schoeman, Updike & Kaufman. The architects respectively were William Rogers and Kenneth Barraclo.

Stephan Amiaga, president of the GSMT stated, "The Center, after operating for 220 years, plans to continue for at least another 100 years as a cultural and educational center as our founders envisioned in 1785.

"The arrival of these prestigious organizations will become part of our historical family."

The Holland Society's John Delmater noted, "They plan extensive classical improvements in the nearly 2,000 s/f to complement the usual ambiance of a building that is little changed since its completion in the 19th century."