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Damianos eyes new med center near BMH by NICK ANASTASI

EAST PATCHOGUE - Hoping to develop one of the last pieces of vacant land in the vicinity of Brookhaven Memorial Hospital, the Damianos Realty Group is moving ahead with plans for an office development valued at $7 million. The Smithtown-based developer is in contract to acquire the five-acre parcel on Hospital Road, subject to Brookhaven Town's approval to develop the project. Currently, Damianos has plans to develop a 50,000-square-foot speculative medical office facility. Damianos principal Chris Damianos said the project could feature either one large building or two smaller sites. Why medical office? "It's the only angle to be played there," he said, noting the firm is hoping to attract local doctors looking for "first-class office space." Damianos said the five-acre tract is unique because it is located directly across from the hospital on the west side of Hospital Road.

The parcel also represents the last piece of commercially zoned land near BMH. "The rest is built out," he said. The majority of the land located across from the hospital has been developed as residential property. There are hurdles facing the development of the property, the most significant of which is the effluent discharge standard set by the Suffolk County Health Department. Damianos said his firm is considering tying in to one of two sewage treatment plants in the area. He has also held talks with BMH officials regarding the proposal and his efforts to come up with a design that will work in harmony with hospital operations. BMH spokesman Jeff Sievers confirmed that the hospital is in conversation with Damianos about the property but declined to comment further.

Joel Gersten, of Grubb & Ellis, said he did not expect the proposed facility, if built, to stay vacant for long. "You just don't see gluts of medical space," he said, noting that new medical groups are constantly forming either from pieces of bigger medical groups breaking off or smaller ones starting anew. "Medical office facilities always seem to find tenants." Bellbrook Realty's Gasper Celauro said the vacancy rate for medical office space in the area surrounding the hospital is below 5 percent.


Damianos acquires bank site by NICK ANASTASI SMITHTOWN

The Damianos Realty Group has acquired a 30,000-square-foot office facility at the intersection of Routes 111 and 25 for $3.5 million. The firm plans to invest $600,000 to renovate the three-story brick colonial, once known as the Marine Midland Bank building. Damianos acquired the site from real estate investor Paul Elliot. Principal Chris Damianos said the bank site is 98 percent leased. Renovations on the facility, which he described as "tired," are scheduled to begin immediately and will take a year to complete, Damianos said.

Damianos signs 3 new tenants at Smithtown site

The Damianos Realty Group has signed three new leases at 260 Middle Country Road, a 50,000-square-foot office facility it recently acquired in Smithtown. The 6,700-square-foot lease to the Suffolk Heart Group represented the largest of the new tenants. Other new tenants include St. Charles Hospital & Rehabilitation, which signed for 4,700 square feet, and North Shore Eye Care, which signed for 3,800 square feet. Overall, the vacancy rate at the site has dropped from 70 percent when the building was acquired six months ago to 20 percent, according to Damianos' John Finn. In the lease negotiations, Finn represented Damianos while Marie Zere of Zere Associates represented the Suffolk Heart Group. St. Charles was represented by Mike Quadrino of Concord Real Estate Co. North Shore Eye represented itself in the lease negotiations

Legend nabs Westbury space

Legend Abstract, a new title abstract company, has taken more than 5,100 square feet of space at 900 Merchants Concourse in Westbury. Kraig Silver, senior vice president of Carle Place-based TreeLine Companies, brokered the five-year lease. Legend expects to move into its new facilities later this month. John Finn, of Damianos Realty Group represented the landlord, in the leasing transaction

Damianos buys Babylon building

Damianos Realty of Smithtown has acquired a Babylon office building at 500 West Main St. from its developer, Slayton Development Corp. Slayton built the facility in 1970 to lease to Bell Atlantic, the baby bell now called Verizon. Damianos President Cristofer Damianos plans to redevelop the address as office space. Steven Tomback, CEO of American Corporate, brokered the transaction. In another American Corporate deals, Tomback, along with American Corporate President Jack Britvan, signed a lease with American Continuity Centers, a disaster recovery site. The lease, for 9,000 square feet in Woodbury, is at 1000 Woodbury Road. Also in Woodbury, Tomback brokered a 10,000-square-foot transaction that expanded the offices of Larry Beck, a computer programming and solutions group, at 7600 Jericho Turnpike.