Leviev buys New York Times building
Africa Israel gains control of historic tower in central Manhattan for $525 million
The original New York Times building at Manhattan's Times Square gave the square its name about 100 years ago. The paper's publisher Adolph S Ochs later decided to move its operations to a new building on 43rd Street, which was declared in 2001 a site for partial historic preservation.
The asset includes 75,000 square meters (807,300 square feet) of office and commercial areas and is currently rented by The New York Times, which is expected to move out at the beginning of July.
Africa Israel plans to have other investors join the deal, which is expected to be signed in June. The company plans to rent out the building after investing $170 million in its renovation.
In search of international projects
Africa Israel officials said Monday morning that the deal matched the company's strategy of entering international projects.
About a month ago, Africa Israel purchased half of the Apthorp building in Manhattan's Upper West Side for $426 million. The Apthorp is an historic full-block apartment building, which contains 163 apartments for rent covering an area of 32,000 square meters (344,448 square feet), and 2,600 square meters (27,986.4 square feet) of commercial areas.
Leviev is not the only Israeli entrepreneur purchasing historic buildings in New York City. Two years ago, real-estate mogul Yitzhak Tshuva bought the prestigious Plaza Hotel for $675 million.
