The Albanese Development Corp. (ADC), a full-service real estate development and acquisition firm, has purchased 510 West 22nd St. for $54.5 million. ADC has made plans to redevelop the site from a vacant, five-story garage into the first new class A commercial office building directly adjacent to the High Line in West Chelsea. CBRE's Brian Gell, vice chairman, and Laurence Briody, senior vice president, are the exclusive leasing agents on behalf of ADC for the property. The site was purchased from Highland Capital, a Texas-based investment fund. ADC has enlisted Cook+Fox Architects, the renowned designer of the Bank of America Tower at One Bryant Park, to design the nine-story, 175,000 s/f building with 200 feet of frontage along the High Line in West Chelsea. The plan calls for 14 to 20 foot ceiling heights and column-free, highly efficient floor plates ranging from 15,000 to 20,000 s/f. The Olayan Group, a private, multi-national enterprise, is a major investor in the development of this project. Alf Naman, a West Chelsea developer, is also participating as an investment partner. Acquisition financing was provided by HSBC Bank USA, N.A. "Zoning for 510 West 22nd St. allows for the development of commercial office, retail, hotel, and non-profit museums. Previous owners and developers looking at the site analyzed 510 West 22nd St. specifically for its hotel potential," said Gell. "Albanese Development Corp. looked at the site with a fresh perspective, recognizing a need for office space in the neighborhood, and is leading the way with this new development. West Chelsea has increasingly become a neighborhood that companies are looking to be located within - fashion, technology, new and old media are several of the industries drawn to it. With one of the lowest vacancy rates in the nation at 3.2%, Chelsea is ripe for this new office development and there is no better location than on the High Line." "The market is ready for a project like this, and our recent experience in the neighborhood with Hewlett Packard's lease of the Chelsea Art Museum at 556 West 22nd St. solidifies this notion," said Christopher Albanese, principal of ADC. "We purchased this site with the intention of adding to the neighborhood's creative feel, and envision one or two major tenants occupying the new building. This will be one of the first properties of this size and quality to be built in West Chelsea over the last two decades." 510 West 22nd St. will be targeting LEED Platinum standards and will feature technologically advanced spaces, including individual occupant controlled HVAC systems; under-floor cabling systems; state-of the-art-access, control and monitoring; and improved indoor air quality levels that will be above standard code. There will be outdoor spaces on the second and eighth floors, as well as on the rooftop. Expansive eastern and western views of the High Line from the building will be exaggerated by floor-to-ceiling glass walls, many granting Hudson River views. Anthony Fusco, The Olayan Group's U.S. vice president for real estate, said, "We are impressed with Albanese and are happy to invest alongside them in this project. We are confident that the development of this prime location will further enhance New York's exciting High Line corridor."