Hotelier Richard Born has been revealed as the previously unnamed investor in the acquisition of 600 Third Avenue, Commercial Observer has learned. Born is joining L&L Infinite, a joint venture formed by former Silverstein Properties CEO Marty Burger and L&L Holding CEO David Levinson. This group is acquiring the 42-storey Midtown East office building from BlackRock for $245 million, according to sources familiar with the transaction.
Born now holds approximately 25 percent of the property, with each investor owning a roughly equal share. Furthermore, affiliates of Richard Mack's Mack Real Estate Group, BLDG, and BD Blakely are involved in the purchase. BD Blakely is a subsidiary of BD Hotels, which was founded by Born and Ira Drukier in 1986. Bloomberg was the first to report on the sale, but did not mention Born's involvement, stating only that an institutional investor had partnered with L&L Infinite.
Significant Change of Ownership and Financing
The transaction represents a significant change for the office building, in which BlackRock had held a 99.5 percent stake for the past approximately 20 years, while L&L Holding owned just 0.5 percent. According to one source, BlackRock divested the property to reallocate capital. L&L Infinite and Born secured an acquisition loan of $185 million from Bain Capital for the purchase of the property, built in 1970 and renovated in 2015, located between East 39th and East 40th Street. Jordan Roeschlaub of Newmark arranged the loan with Bain.
Newmark was also responsible for the sales transaction, with a team comprising Adam Spies, Adam Doneger, Josh King, Marcella Fasulo, Avery Silverstein, and Doug Harmon. According to sources, the property was 93 percent leased at the time of the deal. Anchor tenants include L-3 Communications, occupying nearly 59,000 square feet, as well as law firms Polsinelli PC and Aaronson Rappaport Feinstein & Deutsch.
Market Activity in Midtown East
Aaronson Rappaport renewed a lease for 42,764 square feet for their headquarters across the entire fifth and sixth floors in February 2025, as first reported by CO. Polsinelli PC signed a ten-year lease in early 2023, extending the lease until 2036 while also expanding their space by 13,129 to 52,516 square feet. L&L Infinite and BlackRock did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
News of the 600 Third Avenue sale follows two other significant transactions along the corridor. SL Green Realty is offering 711 Third Avenue at a price of approximately $160 million, while Fisher Brothers' 605 Third Avenue is for sale for around $425 million, according to sources. Both transactions are being marketed by Newmark.
