Now that the Durst Organization and Vornado Realty Trust are also-rans in the Hudson Yards sweepstakes (but hey, a silver medal ain't bad), the companies' proposed anchor tenant—magazine megapublisher Condé Nast—may be looking to switch sides. In today's Women's Wear Daily (a Condé title), Amy Wicks writes that the company "possibly has a shot at office space under Tishman Speyer's plan." Also, Morgan Stanley may be back on board, even though they dumped Tishman a little while back. Oh, so now that Tishman is the hot shit in town, you want to get back together, Morgan? Yeesh! Anyway, getting back to Condé Nast, a memo was sent out to employees by COO John Bellando that read:
Last October, I informed you of our intention to consider constructing a new office tower in connection with a proposal by The Durst Organization and Vornado Realty Group to develop the West Side Rail Yard - also known as the Hudson Yards.
Yesterday, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority selected a different bidder to develop this property. However, several other promising real estate development opportunities have been brought to our attention and we intend to continue to explore all of our options for a new office tower in the 2013 - 2016 timeframe.
With Tishman Speyernow in the driver's seat at the Hudson Yards (proposal images above), let's take a closer look at the West Side's new overlords. Founded in 1978 by partners Robert Tishman and Jerry Speyer, Tishman Speyer has grown to become one of the largest real estate development/investment/management firms in the country, if not—dramatic pause—the world. Signature properties in Tishman Speyer's portfolio include the Chrysler Building, Rockefeller Center and Berlin's Sony Center.
In 2006, Tishman Speyer purchased the middle-class enclave of Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village in Manhattan for a record $5.4 billion, and the company has been busy gussying it up and shifting the apartments to pricey market-rate rentals. Soon after, the company set another record, selling the office building at 666 Fifth Avenue for $1.8 billion. Phew. OK, now that that's settled, let's focus on the future of the rail yards, twice the acreage of the World Trade Center and almost as complicated. The $1.004 billion deal with the MTA for the development rights may be settles, but there are many questions left to be answered.
With megalandlord Tishman Speyer nearly in possession of the West Side Rail Yards, the other bid still in consideration—the joint proposal made by the Durst Organization and Vornado Realty Trust—is getting a late push to remain in the Hudson Yards conversation (above, a refresher on the eco-friendly, slightly insane Durst/Vornado bid, designed by FXFowle and Pelli Clarke Pelli). Charles Bagli wades into the showdown in the Times today, and here's why the Durst/Vornado bid makes sense, according to some: 1) Durst/Vornado has an anchor tenant in place for office space, Condé Nast. Morgan Stanley dropped out of Tishman's bid. 2) The Durst/Vornado proposal includes twice as much housing (7,000 units), seen as a safer bet in these troubled times than Tishman's office-heavy plan. 3) Tishman Speyer came in dead last in our Hudson Yards poll. OK, the MTA probably isn't taking that one into consideration. So why are the powers-that-be leaning toward Tishman Speyer? Because of the company's "blue-chip aura and its access to capital from around the world," Bagli writes. Well, if those are the characteristics that matter, we should feel lucky the MTA didn't enlist Bear Stearns to help out with financing.
· At 11th Hour, Rivals Vie for Deal on West Side Railyards [NYT]
· West Side Yard [durstvornado.com]
· Yardsmania Update-o-rama: Tishman Must Get Sexy? [Curbed]
· CurbedWire Special: Tishman Speyer Taking Hudson Yards? [Curbed]
After weeks of closed-door wheeling and dealing, the Hudson Yards—soon to be the biggest development project in the city, if the whole thing doesn't completely fall apart—have exploded with activity. Here, a primer on the most recent headlines:
1) The Winner: The Timesreported it over the weekend, and the Sun echoes it today: the MTA is on the verge of announcing that Tishman Speyer is the winning bidder for the rail yards, with the joint Vornado/Durst bid still in play. The board will meet on Wednesday, perhaps to approve a deal. The MTA had initially set this week as the deadline, and even though there were rumors the decision would be delayed, it looks like the MTA may actually deliver on a promise. If you want to review Tishman's bid, here you go. [Sun]
Um, about that delay. Well, it looks like it was a very brief one. The Real Estate is reporting that the MTA may choose a winning bid for the Hudson Yards as soon as tonight, with the list being whittled down to Tishman Speyer's officepalooza and the joint Durst/Vornado High Line-destroying hippie lovefest. Yes, the early favorite—The Related Companies' News Corp.-loaded Rupert Murdoch playground, is doneski, at least per these anonymous sources. The problem is that Murdochville, oddly, doesn't have a firm commitment from News Corp., though that line of thought doesn't make much sense because Tishman recently lost Morgan Stanley as its anchor tenant, but that doesn't seem to be hampering the bid. Should a West Side Rail Yards selection be made, it would need to be finalized by the MTA board, perhaps at its Wednesday meeting. In the biggest sense of the word: DEVELOPING...
· Durst/Vornado and Tishman Speyer Lead as Decision Close on West Side Yards [TRE]
· The Other Big Rail Yards Thing is Also Kinda Screwed Up [Curbed]
· Full Curbed Hudson Yards Coverage [Curbed]
With a decision on the Hudson Yards bids supposedly one month away, the MTA has chucked a curveball right at the groins of competing developers Extell, Related, Tishman Speyer, Vornado/Durst and Brookfield Properties. Over the weekend, Charles Bagli reported in the Times that the MTA has cold feet about selling the 26 acres of prime waterfront land currently serving as the West Side rail yards. Now, the MTA has two new requests: the winning developer gets a 99-year lease, and the MTA gets an "equity-type interest" in any project built on the land. Whoa now! It's like the cash-strapped MTA woke up one day and was like, "Oh crap, we forgot about the billions more we could be making off this one piece of land!" But how will the developers react to these new demands? As Bagli points out, the move comes right when commercial developers are growing uneasy about the market and the economy. One anonymous bidder told the Times, "I think these people don't realize what the financial climate is like." Another classic case of the unpredictable MTA doing its thing, or an awesome muscle move because—in the end—the winner will pay whatever it takes to get the deal done?
· New Bids Are Sought for Building on Railyards [NYT]
· Yardsmania Nonshocker: Underdogs Still Underdogs [Curbed]
· Yardsmania: Is Related's Murdochville Inevitable? [Curbed]
· Curbed Poll Reminder: The Hudson Yards Winner Is... [Curbed]
Phew! Now that the five Hudson Yards bid are in, it's time for the swift, cruel hammer of judgment to come down. But given that the MTA won't say how much the developers are bidding (pissing off some), and since the building designs will surely change as the winning bid navigates various approval stages, how can the proposals be accurately assessed by the public? Simple: by Curbed poll! So, the first task is to read up on the Brookfield Properties, Extell, Related, Vornado/Durst and Tishman Speyer bids. The second is to forget all about what will win (Related, most likely), and what has no chance of winning (Extell). The third is to simply ask yourself...
Developer: Vornado Realty Trust/Durst Organizatin Architects: FXFowle and Pelli Clarke Pelli Biggest building: 80 stories, 1,205 feet tall Housing: 7,000 units Public space: 12 acre park in the middle, assorted green space mixed in High Line?: Saved and destroyed! The 30th Street chunk would remain, but the portion curving north up Twelfth Avenue toward the Javits Center would be removed. Online?: Nope!
Eco-friendly developer Douglas Durst and deep-pocketed Vornado have teamed up for this proposal (and Condé Nast would anchor one of the four commercial buildings), which we've dubbed Dr. Feelgood. It's all about sustainable development, water conservation, efficient energy, blah blah blah. It's also more dedicated to residential development than the others, a move that should rally support among housing advocates. But, there's controversy here. Durst/Vornado wants to tear down the wooden portion of the High Line along the Hudson. The space-age elevated walkway cutting through the development and over the West Side Highway to Hudson River Park is called the "Skyline." Oh, and FXFowle's Daniel Kaplan told the Sun today that the Skyline would be "21st century version of the High Line." Now that's ballsy. Friends of the High Line already emailed us to say, "Isn't the High Line the 21st century version of the High Line?" They have a point.
Click on the image at right to take in the full sorrow of the Durst Organization, who placed this ad in the Wall Street Journal earlier this week to apologize for that whole glass shower on Sixth Avenue thing. My, how the salty taste of developers' tears mixes well with a Dunkin Donuts reduced fat blueberry muffin! The letter says, "We are redoubling our safety efforts at One Bryant Park, adding more site safety personnel, as well as reviewing and strengthening our safety procedures." Hopefully they realize that just saying the word "safety" a lot does not, in fact, make the construction site more safe. Hey Toll Brothers, where was your apology? You even had a second crack at one, too!
· BREAKING CurbedWire: Construction Accident at B of A Tower [Curbed]
The Observer files their report on the Hudson Yards bids today, and they agree with pretty much every expert's take: Related, Tishman Speyer and Vornado/Durst are the frontrunners to win the development rights because they already have corporate partners raring to move in (News Corp., Morgan Stanley and Conde Nast, respectively), and Brookfield and Extell are the dark horses. The good news is that the MTA will eventually show the proposals to the public, which was sort of unclear. State Senator Tom Duane will meet with the MTA to decide the how and when in the next couple of weeks. Will our Curban Planning winner be on display right next to the big dogs' designs? Probably not, but we're cool with that as long as we get to see some people mover napkin sketches.
· It Begins: Titans Bid On Western Rail Yards [NYO]
· Hudson Yards: Bankers vs. Hotties (& Three Other Bids) [Curbed]
The bids are in on for the 26-acre Hudson Yards development site. The various projects could include up to 24 million square feet of office space and 13,000 apartments. There will be a decision by spring, give or take, from the MTA, which will select the winner. How one feels about the bidders depends on the relative value one places on, say, bankers versus fashion models and writers, etc. Here's the list:
In the most stunning mass transit idea since Santiago Calatrava's gondolas to Governors, the Post reports today that part of the Durst Organization's bid for the 26-acre Hudson Yards site on the West Side involves building a "people mover" to shuttle residents and office workers to and from Penn Station. The light rail system would be run by the MTA, meaning the alleged one-minute ride would actually take a half-hour. Pictured at right is the city of Detroit's people mover. You hear that, everyone, we can be just like Detroit!
· Jump the Fast Track to Penn [NYP]
· Idiot's Guide to the Hudson Yards Building Bonanza [Curbed]
Now that the Durst Organization and Vornado Realty Trust are also-rans in the Hudson Yards sweepstakes (but hey, a silver medal ain't bad), the companies' proposed anchor tenant—magazine megapublisher Condé Nast—may be looking to switch sides. In today's Women's Wear Daily (a Condé title), Amy Wicks writes that the company "possibly has a shot at office space under Tishman Speyer's plan." Also, Morgan Stanley may be back on board, even though they dumped Tishman a little while back. Oh, so now that Tishman is the hot shit in town, you want to get back together, Morgan? Yeesh! Anyway, getting back to Condé Nast, a memo was sent out to employees by COO John Bellando that read: 
Comments
After weeks of closed-door wheeling and dealing, the Hudson Yards—soon to be the biggest development project in the city, if the whole thing doesn't completely fall apart—have exploded with activity. Here, a primer on the most recent headlines:
The 
In the most stunning mass transit idea since Santiago Calatrava's 
