SL Green’s 1515 Broadway Downgraded After Failed Casino Bid

8 minutes read

SL Green’s 1515 Broadway in Times Square last year lost out in the race for casino projects, and the property has more losses in sight.

Credit agency S&P Global downgraded SL Green’s property in a report this week, Crain’s reported. The landlord said it has concerns that the 57-story, 1.7 million-square-foot tower could lose its fully occupied status as its lone tenant, Paramount Global, is looking to downsize after it was sold to Skydance Media last year.

The $675 million mortgage backing the building is slated to mature in two years, but S&P is already flashing warning lights about SL Green’s ability to refinance. It also estimated the building’s value at $500 million, less than half of its pre-pandemic value.

Marc Holliday’s firm is expressing confidence in the property nonetheless.

Plans for the building were upended in the fall when an advisory committee shot down SL Green’s bid for a casino at the property. After the proposal for a casino with Caesars Entertainment, Roc Nation and Live Nation was rejected in September, Holliday lashed out at the committee members while the proposal wasn’t “completely dead.”

It’s already been a busy year for one of Manhattan’s largest office landlords.

The firm began executing a plan to sell roughly $2.5 billion of property while pursuing about $1 billion in acquisitions and development opportunities, pairing opportunistic buying with a steady recycling of capital.

Longtime investment chief Harrison Sitomer was promoted to president, charged with executing the company’s asset sales plan while steering new acquisitions and developments.

And the firm started the year with one of the strongest leasing runs in its history, signing more than 900,000 square feet of deals across its portfolio in the first quarter alone.

— Holden Walter-Warner