Address
Pier 40,
New York, NY
Submarket
Chelsea, New York
Square Feet
1,200,000 SF
LEASE
COMMENCEMENT
PIER 40
Property Overview
Originally built in 1963 by the Holland American Line, Pier 40 is a 1,200,000 SF, semi-enclosed
pier located on the far west side of Manhattan’s West Village neighborhood. A departure from the
traditional finger pier design, Pier 40 was built as a semi-enclosed square structure that could
handle passengers, trucks, break-bulk freight and the emerging container business. After shipping
largely moved out of Manhattan by the mid 1970’s, Pier 40 had long stood vacant and was allowed to
deteriorate to a state of near worthlessness.
Investment Strategy
In a classic example of seeing value where others did not, C&K was one of the only bidders for Pier
40’s master lease when it was offered by the city of New York in 1997. Realizing the opportunity to
acquire the lease hold interest in a well located and historically significant property for well below
it’s true market value, C&K bid on Pier 40 with the intention of turning it into a premier parking and
distribution facility for Manhattan’s newly revitalized far west side. Having established its reputation
within city government as a proactive and competent property manager in its past work along the
waterfront, C&K was awarded the master lease for Pier 40 by the State of New York. Within a year
of taking possession, C&K completely recapitalized Pier 40 and leased 100% of the building to a
variety of top tier corporate tenants including Federal Express, Airborne Express, and the New York
Times. C&K no longer manages the facility but is proud of its stewardship of Pier 40 and the creative
business model that achieved excellent risk adjusted returns while revitalizing a remarkable piece of
New York City history.
1997
LEASE
EXPIRATION
Fall 2003
Major Tenants
Federal Express,
Airborne Express,
New York Times