Will Canadians control all of the waterways in Downtown New York?

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Update January 23, 2015- Brookfield did indeed win the RFP to run North Cove Marina, as suspected. Also, Howard Hughes announced that the same IGY marina company, run by close ally to Governor Cuomo Andrew Farkas, will run the Seaport marina as well. Read the December 29th article, below, to learn more.

Update December 29, 2014- Brookfield actually took the Rouse Property assets, traded under ticker RSE, after GGC emerged from bankruptcy. The South Street Seaport and gated community assets of GGC went to the Howard Hughes corp., owned by Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square and others, we believe. Therefore, Brookfield would not be running both marinas Downtown.

However, we are also getting conflicting reports that Brookfield still owns debt, perhaps, in Howard Hughes corp (see comment below). Real estate ownership is very opaque and murky.

December 29, 2014- By Steven E. Greer

No news outlet has yet connected the dots between Brookfield Properties and the control of Downtown Manhattan waterways. If Brookfield succeeds in taking over the North Cove Marina, then they could control all of the waterways in Lower Manhattan given that the Howard Hughes Corporation Seaport project, with its own marina planned, is largely owned by Brookfield Properties as well.

Howard Hughes Corporation was created in 2010 after its parent company, GGC, a conglomerate of shopping malls that were struggling in the bad economy that went bankrupt, later emerged from bankruptcy spinning of Howard Hughes corp. The mall business became known as Rouse, and the large gated-community assets, along with the South Street Seaport, went to Howard Hughes.

Immediately buying large chunks of equity in the two new companies in 2010 was Canadian real estate conglomerate Brookfield Asset Management. They invested $2.6 Billion in 2010, and another $1.7 Billion in 2013.

The equity ownerships in these complex real sate holding companies is hard to pin down. However, since the current total value of the Howard Hughes corp., trading under ticker HHC, is only $5.3 Billion, and the stock has more than quadrupled since Brookfield made the investments in 2010, then the equity percentage ownership of Brookfield in Howard Hughes must be very significant (If any real estate experts read this and know the exact number of shares owned by Brookfield, please email us).

Also buying into the new Howard Hughes was hedge fund activist Bill Ackman and his Pershing Square hedge fund. He became the Chairman of Howard Hughes corp.

Since the new Seaport development that Howard Hughes is planning to build includes a large marina, and Brookfield is heavily involved in that project, then if Brookfield also gains control of the North Cove Marina, a Canadian conglomerate will control the entire waterway of Lower Manhattan, from the east River to the Hudson River. Recall, BatteryPark.TV has previously reported that the BPCA RFP process for assigning the new 10-year lease for the marina seemed to be going in favor of Brookfield, until the CB1 recently passed a resolution calling for the RFP to be nullified.