Real estate firm sells Hicksville industrial site for 10 times its investment
One of the last major commercial parks in Nassau County was sold to a global asset management company for more than ten times the price paid for the 15-acre property less than four years ago.
Brookfield Asset Management spent $ 45 million on the Hicksville property, sources familiar with the sale said. The Brookfield real estate fund plans to build a 300,000 square foot warehouse distribution center.
The deal was announced Monday by seller Simone Development Companies, a Bronx-based real estate investment firm that paid $ 4.42 million for the land in December 2017, according to a deed.
Finding a large lot in Nassau County that can be used for industrial work without zoning changes is quite a feat, according to Jim MacDonald, Vice President and Director of Leasing and Acquisitions at Simone Development.
“It’s rare to find an area this size that is industrially delineated,” said MacDonald, who represented the company in sales negotiations. “Industrial land in Nassau County is few and far between.”
Manufacturers have used 125 New South Rd. Plastic, latex, and polyester manufacturing site, but the property has been vacant for years, said Simone Development.
Brookfield Properties, which manages real estate on behalf of Brookfield Asset Management, has plans to return activity to the property in the summer of 2023 when two high-ceilinged warehouses meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards for green buildings are completed.
Get the Biz Briefing Newsletter!
The latest LI business news in your inbox Monday through Friday.
By clicking on Register, you agree to our privacy policy.
“Brookfield Properties plans to develop two LEED-certified Class A distribution facilities totaling over 300,000 square feet with 36 [foot] headroom, with an existing rail spur, sufficient docking positions and above-average parking for cars or vans, “Brookfield spokesman Kerri McHugh Hayes said in a statement. Future tenants will likely include e-commerce and third-party logistics companies, she said.
Oyster Bay received a development application for 125 New South Rd days ago, which is entering the city’s review process, city spokeswoman Marta Kane said.
Brookfield Asset Management, based in Manhattan, didn’t respond when asked if it would apply for tax breaks on the project. The Nassau County Industrial Development Agency, which approves such incentives, has not received an application regarding this location, a spokesman said.
[1945TheRubberCompanyofAmericabuiltaplantmadeofplasticsandlatexonthesitesoSimoneDevelopmentThesitewasthenusedforpolyesterproduction[1945bauteTheRubberCompanyofAmericaaufdemGrundstückeineAnlageinderKunststoffeundLatexhergestelltwurdensoSimoneDevelopmentDerStandortwurdedannfürdiePolyesterproduktiongenutzt
The site became part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Superfund program for hazardous properties in 1986. The EPA said the land has since been cleared and is no longer a threat, although groundwater treatment and monitoring was ongoing. Industrial sewage, as well as spills and chemical spills, contaminated the soil and groundwater throughout the Hicksville country’s long history as a manufacturing center.
A later property owner, Bayer Corp., decided to demolish the facility in 2002, said Simone Development. The company said the property has been vacant since at least December 2017 when a deed shows Simone Development bought it from Covestro LLC, a Bayer spin-off.
Sarina Trangle covers affordability, the cost of living and other business topics. She previously worked as an editor and reporter at amNewYork.