Rockefeller Center sold

Rockefeller no more: sale ends 70 years of family involvement

The home to New York's stunning ice rink and much admired Christmas tree - Rockefeller Center - has been sold for $1.85bn.

In one sense, it seems sad, but the fact that the new owners are good friends makes a big difference

David Rockefeller

The 22-acre complex of sky scrapers was built during the heart of the Depression in the 1930s, and has since become a potent symbol of commerce and capitalism in the heart of New York.

The sale of one of the Big Apple's best known buildings ends 70 years of involvement in the complex by one of the world's most famous moneyed families, the Rockefellers.

"In one sense, it seems sad, but the fact that the new owners are good friends makes a big difference," a nostalgic, 85-year-old David Rockefeller told the New York Times.

The building was sold to the developer Tishman Speyer Properties and the billionaire Crown family from the Windy City. The pair already owned a 5% stake in the centre.

Their partners in - and the sellers of - the development include the banker David Rockefeller; the Goldman Sachs Group; the Agnelli Family of Italy; and the estate of Greek shipping magnate Stavros Niarchos.

"Rockefeller Center is that singular real estate asset which has transcended time to become one of the country's enduring architectural and cultural treasures," said the president and chief executive of the developer that acquired the centre, Jerry Speyer.

An investment partnership will be formed between the Crowns and Tishman Speyer.

The sale price is much lower than the $2.5bn initially sought by when the centre was first put on the market in May, but above the$1.2bn it paid for it 4 years ago.

The complex earned $43.5 million in 1999, according to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Despite a sharp rise in rents, office vacancies are below 1%, down from 26% four years ago.