In the worsening economic downturn, some real estate investment trusts and brokerages are showing signs of weakness.

On Jan. 2, stocks of Forest City Ratner parent Forest City Enterprises traded at $43.62 a share. On Aug. 4, they traded for nearly half the price, at $25.60. Leading office landlord SL Green, which started the year at $92.56 a share, was trading at $79.67 by Aug. 4. Meanwhile, CB Richard Ellis saw its stock fall from $21.38 on Jan. 2 to $13.45 on Aug. 4.

During its second-quarter earnings call on June 30, CBRE’s president and CEO, Brett White, said that “volume decline in both the capital markets and leasing businesses are approaching the worst decline seen since the early 1990s, and 2001 through 2003.  read more »

Bruce Ratner is looking for a new name for the signature office tower in his $4 billion-plus Atlantic Yards project.  read more »

The developers of Brooklyn’s $4 billion-plus Atlantic Yards project, Forest City Ratner, tried to assuage fears about the stalled development in a conference call with investors today, saying they are committed to the success of the project in the long term. The call was held by Forest City Enterprises, the parent company of Forest City Ratner.

“Today’s economic environment is challenging,” Forest City Ratner president Joanne Minieri said. “Projects of this size and significance are always subject to changing market demands and economic influences.”

Publicly traded real estate firms' conference calls are normally cheery affairs, with executives giving a bright outlook, matched with the footnote that their stock is quite undervalued.  read more »

Property owners and tenants filed an appeal late yesterday in U.S. Supreme Court for their case contesting the use of eminent domain in the $4 billion-plus Atlantic Yards project, an action that legal experts have said is likely to be the final chapter for the federal lawsuit, first filed in late 2006.

Even a favorable Supreme Court ruling for the plaintiffs (which would require a decision by the Court to hear the case in the first place) would not necessarily stop the use of eminent domain—it would only allow for the case to reach the trial phase.

If the lawsuit is dismissed, Matthew Brinckerhoff, attorney for the owners and tenants, said that there would still be an option to file an eminent domain case in New York State court.  read more »

Hale and Hearty Soup chain founders Andrew and Jonathan Schnipper have leased the last empty retail space in The New York Times Building.

The brothers will be opening a new restaurant concept described as "an updated version of a classic roadside eatery serving burgers, salads and other American favorites in a fast casual, relaxed setting," in 3,200 square feet at the corner of corner of Eighth Avenue and 41st Street, according to developer Forest City Ratner Companies.  read more »

The Renzo Piano-designed headquarters, expected to open later this year, will be co-owned by the newspaper company and the developer Forest City Ratner. On Tuesday, they announced that floors 23 through 27, which were in the half owned by The Times, and floors 29 and 30, owned by the real-estate company, had been leased to law firm Goodwin Procter.

But don't cry too hard, because the building, the target of an unsuccessful landmarking attempt, will come back in its next life as an insect or something: Some 75 percent of the demolition debris will be recycled.  read more »

Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn calls this a "shell game," considering how the money that Forest City is saving on EDC-approved uses like land acquisition can be spent lobbying state and city officials (and because a lot of the city money is going to the state because the railyards will cost $100 million).

Apparently, Mr. Fried and Mr. Frank persuaded Forest City that it needed their help persuading the state and the city to do things that they pledged when they signed a memorandum of understanding (PDF) back in 2005, and for a sweet price.