Cancer Society buys W31st St. building for new HQ.

Cushman & Wakefield's Serko and Liantonio advise the American Cancer Society in site search and purchase of 77,000 s/f location at 125 W. 31st St. for offices and lodging

In a complex transaction that was three years in the making and required the consent of The Vatican, Cushman & Wakefield announced that the American Cancer Society has purchased a 77,000 s/f condominium interest in a major midtown south development to relocate its New York City headquarters and to establish the city's first Hope Lodge.

The site, 125 W. 31st St., is located on a thru-block parcel of land with frontage on 31st and 32nd Streets between Sixth and Seventh Avenues.

The deal was struck between the American Cancer Society's Eastern Division and the site's developers, a joint venture consisting of The Durst Organization, Sidney Fetner Associates, Inc. and The Order of Friars Minor of the Province of the Most Holy Name, or the Franciscan Friars.

Cushman & Wakefield professionals Jonathan Serko, executive director, and Frank Liantonio, executive vice president, advised the American Cancer Society in its site search and in negotiations with the developers.

The Franciscan Friars own five small buildings on the site, which will be demolished to begin construction of a 58-story mixed-use commercial and residential facility, consisting of two condominium interests at the base of the building and a 460-unit residential tower. The Franciscan Friars and the American Cancer Society will occupy the two condominiums.

The American Cancer Society's space will be accessible on 32nd St., with an exclusive entrance and lobby. The organization will occupy the second through eleventh floors, where the space will be split between the American Cancer Society's New York headquarters office and the Hope Lodge facility.

Hope Lodge is the American Cancer Society's temporary residential housing concept for cancer patients and their caregivers, which allows for free housing while in treatment at any of the area hospitals. The organization plans for 60 patient suites at the new Hope Lodge.

"After a two-and-a-half year site search, this project, proved to be a great solution for the American Cancer Society," said Mr. Liantonio.

"It met our requirements in terms of its central location and access to transportation, which are crucial for patients and their families traveling to and from city hospitals. And as a commercial condominium, it offered financial advantages to the American Cancer Society, which benefits from its non-profit status and will not pay real estate taxes."

Mr. Serko commended the development team in its vision for the project. "This transaction would not have been possible without the strong support of the development partnership," Mr. Serko said.

"On the one hand, you had two non-profits in the Friars and the American Cancer Society, who came together for the public good. And on the other hand, two private entities both of whom are extremely well respected families who immediately saw the importance of the project and made it happen."