Charney Companies pays $38M for Riverside Church residential building, last sold for $46.5M

Charney Companies through the entity 99 Claremont Owner LLC paid $38 million to the Riverside Church in the City of New York through the entity TRC Cornerstone LLC for the 44-unit residential building at 97-101 Claremont Avenue in Morningside Heights, Manhattan. This property is adjacent to the Riverside Church house of worship.

The Riverside Church bought the dorm from the Union Theological Seminary in 2018 for $46.5 million, beating out BCN Development in part because of a right of first offer Riverside Church had, the New York Post reported that year.

The new sale closed on March 18, 2024, and was recorded on March 27, 2024. The contract was signed August 17, 2024. The sale price was $484 per built square foot.

The signatory for the church was Natalie Fein, the chief operating officer of the church. The signatory for Charney Companies was Sam Charney.

Charney Companies, which frequently partners with Tavros Capital, is developing several projects in the city, including in Gowanus and Long Island City.

The property

The specialty building with 44 residential units in Morningside Heights has 78,397 square feet of built space and 8,036 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 86,387 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 225 feet and is 100 feet deep with a total lot size of 14,350 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R8 which allows for up to 6.02 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $14.1 million.

Prior sales and revenue

This property was sold for $46.5 million on October 15, 2018.

Violations and lawsuits

According to city public data, the property has received one DOB violation in the last year.

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the property for the past 24 months.

The neighborhood

In Morningside Heights, The bulk, or 45 percent of the 19.1 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 43 percent of the space. In sales, Morningside Heights has near average sales volume among other neighborhoods with $42.6 million in sales volume in the last two years and is the 41st highest in Manhattan. For development, Morningside Heights has near average amount of major developments among other neighborhoods and is the 32nd highest in Manhattan. It had 552,860 square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 3 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owner of the one commercial property that spans that spans 78,397 square feet on the block.The identified owner is Union Theological Seminary. There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The owner

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Union Theological Seminary owned at least one commercial property with 44 residential units in New York City with 78,397 square feet and a city-determined market value of $14.1 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio consists of at least a single specialty property. It is located in Manhattan.

The owners according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development includes Shanniel Morrison, head officer and Richard Glassey, officer. The business entities are Union Theological Seminary and Trc Cornerstone, Llc.

The surrounding

This is the first commercial real estate event of interest identified within the 400-foot radius of 101 Claremont Avenue in the past 24 months.

Direct link to the property’s ACRIS page and link to DOB NOW portal.