Crains New York - October 29, 2012 - (Page 3)

NEIGHBORHOODIE: Two Trees Management’s Jed Walentas sports a hoodie to most meetings. His casual style is part of his charm. IN THE BOROUGHS BROOKLYN Under the bridge, a park grows business Only 1/3 done, B’klyn Bridge Park’s crowds eat, drink, play, spend BY KERRY MURTHA The crowd at Front Street Pizza has changed quite a bit since the Leonardis family opened shop in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge in Dumbo 23 years ago. Once just a lunch spot where workers from the mostly industrial area stopped for a plain slice and a soda, the pizzeria now also serves everything from Caesar salads to paninis. Customers include young families, visitors from the other boroughs and tourists from around the world. The slow evolution of the neighborhood to include more offices and apartments helped, but nothing like the opening two blocks down the street PRICE OF A RIDE of the Brooklyn on park’s 1922Bridge Park, a vintage carousel budding 1.3mile stretch of green along the waterfront that YEAR ROBERT FULTON started has become the Brooklyn ferry area’s hottest service drawing card. The increased foot traffic has been a boon for PRICE per square foot for condos at businesses in One Brooklyn Dumbo and Bridge Park Brooklyn Heights—the neighborhoods that sandwich the park—spurring a new wave of restaurants and shops as well as residential development. “Brooklyn Bridge Park is one of those once-in-a-century game changers that influence neighborhoods,” said Timothy King, managing partner of CPEX Realty in Brooklyn Heights. “I think the impact of the park has barely been felt.” When it is completed, it will sprawl over half a dozen piers and upland areas totaling 85 acres. Even with work on only two of the six piers done, the park is already drawing 90,000 people on a typical summer weekend, according to a spokeswoman for the Brooklyn Bridge Park Corp., the nonprofit organization that manages the property. Businesses like the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory, which sits at the entrance to Pier 1 on Old Fulton Street in Dumbo, are feeling the love. buck ennis REAL ESTATE’S RISING MAN Next-gen developer wins Domino sugar factory, hones deft touch for complexity BY AMANDA FUNG The $185 million acquisition of the historic Domino sugar factory Oct. 12 by Two Trees Management began with a phone call more than six months earlier. It was March. Not only was the 11.2-acre site not for sale, its future was clouded by community opposition, financial woes and litigation. But that didn’t deter Jed Walentas, a principal of Two Trees. The 38-year-old saw an opportunity and a path around the pitfalls. His first move was to phone the top executive of the site’s majority owner: Rafael Cestero of CPC Resources, the for-profit arm of an affordable-housing and community-development organization. The courtship had begun. “He stayed in constant contact,” said Mr. Cestero, former commissioner of the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development. “But he was not overly aggressive.” Mr. Walentas’ savvy navigation of a complex deal exemplified his sophisticated personal touch and showed why he is considered a leader of the next generation of city developers. “He is an important force,” said Deputy Mayor Robert Steel. “He knows all about the development and construction business.” The massive redevelopment will be the 38-year-old’s most ambitious since taking the helm of the real estate company his father, David, started more than four decades ago. It’s also the riskiest. Two Trees paid four times more than the previous buyer, and any changes to the existing plan, which See WALENTAS on Page 28 ODDS & ENDS $2 1814 $800 Ricky’s: As the CEOs turn Beauty chain brings in third chief exec this year to grab bigger market slice BY ADRIANNE PASQUARELLI There’s been a costume change at Ricky’s, but it has nothing to do with Halloween. The local beauty chain, known for its pop-up stores filled with wild wigs and kinky costumes, has quietly slipped into new leadership and ownership. Catherine Moellering, a retail trend forecaster and industry veteran, joined as chief executive last week. In addition, the Nussdorf family, a onetime silent investor, earlier this year became the majority stakeholder in the company founded 23 years ago by Todd and Ricky Kenig. The Nussdorfs run a multibillion-dollar empire that also includes fragrance retailer Perfumania Inc. and drug wholesaler Quality King Distributors. Ricky’s, which began in 1989 as an offbeat beauty-supply shop stocked with hard-to-find brands, is beloved by the young and fashionable for its still-punked-out The retailer’s main challenge is to face down big-name rivals decor and unique product mix, from upscale shampoos to bargain hair color. It has thrived by standing apart from cookie-cutter na- tional chains. But the recent changes at the top indicate that now a much bigger Ricky’s, which inside sources say has more than $50 million in revenue, may be looking to grab an even larger share in the growing beauty marketplace. Experts say Ms. Moellering has the managerial skills and retail background to transform Ricky’s into a national organization that takes advantage of the convergence of beauty and technology. First, she’ll have to help Ricky’s face down stiffening competition. Much larger rivals like Walgreen See RICKY’S on Page 28 See B’KLYN BRIDGE on Page 27 October 29, 2012 | Crain’s New York Business | 3

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Crains New York - October 29, 2012

IN THE BOROUGHS
IN THE MARKETS
THE INSIDER
BUSINESS PEOPLE
OPINION
ALAIR TOWNSEND
GREG DAVID
REAL ESTATE DEALS
REPORT: BUSINESS OF LAW
THE LIST
CLASSIFIEDS
SMALL BUSINESS
FOR THE RECORD
NEW YORK, NEW YORK
SOURCE LUNCH
OUT AND ABOUT
SNAPS

Crains New York - October 29, 2012

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