New-York tribune., 1919-07-22
Cilnbels Pay Over
@,OOO,00O to ct
Greeley Square Site
One of Largest Real Estate
Deals in Years Gives Own
ership of Present Home
to the Department Store

The largest real estate deal Of the
year was consummated yesterday, when
Glmbel Brothers signed contracts for
the purchase of their big department
store building and the site it occupies,
fronting on Greeley Square. The city
values the property at s6.63O,0 900 From
interests close 70 the deal it is under
stood that the price agreed upon is
greater than this figure.
For the last nine years Gimbel
Brothers have been paying S630,000 a
year for the use Of the building, which
contains about twenty eight acres of
floor space and is one of the largest of
its kind in the country.
Former Plans Changed
The property was bought by the
Hudson Manhattan Company with the
idea of erecting on the site a great
hotel covering its terminal. After the
property was obtained-4OO feet in each
street and 200 feet on Greeley Square
1T was discovered that the franchise
OF the company could not be stretched d
to permit the building of the hotel. The
company agreed the cost of the prop
erty was SO high it could not be used
exclusively as terminal, and that a
structure which would bring financial
retufn to compensate for the invest
ment should be permitted.
The terminal was built under the
street surface and the property Offered d
tor sale or lease, subject to the rail
road rights.
The defeat of the plans of the Hud-
SON Manhattan Company to improve
the site with hotel resulted in the
formation of the Greeley Square Realty
Company, which includes Pliny Fisk,
w. G. Oakman, W. Fl. Barnum and AL
bert Tllney, representing the Manhat-
tan-Hudson Company, for the purpose
OF marketing the property. The site
was suggested to Gimbel Brothers by
Brown Company, and deal was closed
for the Improvement of the property
with ten story building, containing
twenty eight acres of floor space, served i
by fortysx elevators and 100 sair-
cases, 900 telephones, and lighted by
electricity equal to $40 candle
power, and by forty-six large show
wincows
1t is one of the most spacious stores
IN the country.
Old Tenderloin Ends
The coming of Gimbels' store meant
the passing of lot of old Tenderloin
landmarks lrainors, at the corner
of Sixth Avenue and Thirty third
street, and the Standard Theatre
where Gilbert & Sullvan's comic
operas were first staged in this coun-
try, and number of dwellings, on the
side streets were removed to make
way for the new big store.
The first deal made by Gimbel
Brothers with the Greeley Square
Realty Company gave the drygoods
merchants control of the property for
1O5 years, the rentals to be adjusted
every twenty years, according to
the valuations of the property at the
end of each period.
About six months ago Simon New
man, vice e-president of the Douglas
Robinson, Charles S. Brown Company
undertook to close the deal 1t has
been under active negotiation since.
Is Record Transaction
The purchase by the United States
Steel Corporation of the Empire Build
ing, at the corner of Broadway and
Rector Street, is the nearest approach
to this transaction The Steel Corpor-
alton paid $4,1OO,OOo for the property
The Gimbel deal is perhaps the largest
real estate transaction since General
du Pont and associates purchased from
the Equitable Life Assurance Society
the "one-acre" site on which stood the
charred ruins of the old Equitable
Building. 1t is understood that S13,-
100000 was paid over for this prop
erty.