[NYguy]

https://www.bisnow.com/new-york/news...vestors-132377

Gary Barnett Is Chasing Cash Flow Over Condos


December 15, 2025
Sasha Jones

……. Extell's most dramatic venture is 740 Eighth Ave., where Extell is building a supertall mixed-use hotel featuring a drop ride a thousand feet above Times Square. Roughly nine floors of the 52-story tower have risen so far, he said.

He said on the Nov. 30 call that Extell expects to close a construction loan for the project, known as The Torch, during the first quarter. Bisnow previously reported that the firm has lined up as much as $1.3B in financing for the development.

“We're in a position where the hotel could open up in less than three years. The building should be finished in four years,” Barnett said. “We're expecting it to generate enormous cash flow for the company.”

The company already owns a handful of hotels in Times Square and resorts in other parts of the country, as well as operating third-party management firm Extell Hospitality Services.

Extell picked up 655 Madison Ave. for approximately $160M after Williams Equities was determining a new future for the building, having already filed a demolition permit at the site. There, Barnett is planning a mixed-use supertall with residential, office and retail, according to filings with the Department of City Planning.

Extell’s project pipeline also includes the former Wellington Hotel at 871 Seventh Ave., where it is planning a 1,050-foot tower with 156 hotel rooms, 130 residential units, 55 parking spaces and ground-floor retail, according to city filings.

The developer also acquired the multiproperty former Disney campus on Columbus Avenue and West 66th Street. The firm has filed permits to build a 25-story building at 37 W. 66th St., though Barnett has a habit of changing plans to dramatically add square footage later in the process.

It is also planning a 1,200-foot tower at 77 W. 66th St. that has faced pushback from the well-to-do neighborhood, with actor Tony Danza leading protests against Barnett.

Many of the coming projects are being supported by $1.2B of preferred equity from an unidentified hedge fund, Bisnow first reported. Barnett said the financing deal closed in early July and that “we have all the money we need” as a result.