Goldman Sachs Finds Opportunity in Bedford Stuyvesant

This post is the second installment in a 3 part series, with the first title Whose Responsible for the Urban Blight at 1576 Fulton Street

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Over the last 10 years we’ve seen New York City politicians align their political futures with well financed real estate developers.

Tishman Speyers, Larry Silverstein, Kent Swig, Aby Rosen and other Real Estate titans have wielded great power and influence in New York City politics.

However, none of those mentioned will come close to the reach and wealth that a recent entrant into the real estate landscape possess.

Goldman Sachs is a venerable financial institution, with a storied past that mirrors the history of Wall Street in the 20th century.  It is the premiere Investment Bank in the United States, and finds itself with few peers after the demise of Bear Sterns and Lehman Brothers.

In the last 25 years, many of the firms executives have held or currently hold high public office, which is further evidence of it’s influence on a national and global scale. (see Henry Paulson, John Corzine, William C. Dudley, Robert Rubin)

With a client list that reads the who’s who among the Forbes 400 wealthiest Americans and Fortune 500 CEO’s, Goldman Sachs has a cadre of investment analysts committed to identifying undervalued opportunities.

And recently, they’ve been hard at work evaluating opportunities available under a specific investment criteria.

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Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group is part of the Merchant Banking Division of Goldman Sachs Inc., whose investment objective is stated in a press release dated December 13, 2007;

It invests the firm’s capital in real estate projects and operators in emerging or transitional urban areas.

After reading this, I wanted to learn more about Goldman Sachs interest in real estate and unearthed the following information from their Urban Investments web site;

The Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group is the primary vehicle through which Goldman Sachs provides long-term capital for both corporations operated or owned by ethnic minorities and real estate developers targeting urban communities.

Reading further, I came upon the opportunity identified by the Urban Investment Group for realizing a significant return on investment of the firm’s capital;

Strong demand for urban living continues to be fueled by growth in immigrant populations and the relocation of “baby boomers” and suburbanites back into dense and ethnically diverse urban areas

Unless anyone reading has any insight into what is meant in the above statement, it is subject to broad interpretation.  However, it appears the Urban Investment Group isn’t waiting for anyone to interpret their intentions, as it appears they’re open for business in New York under the following entity.

The above represents the corporate filing for GS UDC PARTNERS MEMBER LLC, a foreign Limited Liability Company whose domestic registration exists in Delaware (a common business registration strategy for risk management purposes by large corporations).

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You can visit the Delaware Department of State Entity Search and enter their filing registration number 4439295 to examine their corporate filing.

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As you’ll see below, it appears that the GS UDC PARTNERS MEMBER LLC have taken an interest in the part of Fulton Street where 1576 Fulton Street stands, having purchased quite a number of vacant lots and properties recently;

GS UDC PARTNERS LLC are the proud owners of the following property parcels that are located in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn:

• 1562 Fulton Street – Vacant Land
• 1564 Fulton Street – Vacant Land
• 1566 Fulton Street – Vacant Land
• 1596 Fulton Street – Vacant Land
• 1604 Fulton Street – Vacant Land

The purchase of the above properties were closed on November 30th 2007 for $9,705,000.

The only questions left to ask is, who are the “Suburbanites” and “Baby Boomers” eager to return to the inner city’s densely ethnic neighborhoods?

As you’ll begin to see in our final post in this series, local politics are involved in arranging real estate deals under the guise of community development in the outer boroughs of New York City.

Since it appears that a deal has been in the works for Goldman Sachs’ GS UDC PARTNERS MEMBER LLC, why haven’t you been informed about this in the latest newsletter sent by Community Board #3, Councilman Al Vann or Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz.

The above links are provided for you to send an email inquiring about the plans for Fulton Street between Albany Avenue and Marcus Garvey Boulevard.

Our series continues at Property and Politics: NYC’s Unlicensed Real Estate Agents, the final post in this 3 part series.