Blue Man Group Sells its LES Studio for $5.4M

48 Clinton Street, Oct. 2017

The Blue Man Group finally divested from its longtime Lower East Side property. Their Clinton Street studio space traded hands this month for $5.4 million. It comes with an additional 4,653 square-feet of development rights, allowing for a new project of roughly 10,120 square-feet.

Buyer of record is Dr. Arani Bose, the co-founder of the medical device company Penumbra. He reportedly plans to redevelop for his foundation.

The building itself had been on the open market for more than a year at $7.2 million without takers. It’s also the first property in Manhattan “to be sold to a Qualified Opportunity Fund in an Opportunity Zone,” according to the New York Post.

The Tetris-like 48 Clinton Street typically keeps to itself, but a lot happened behind those doors. This was the last stop of the storied LoHo Studios, which got its start on Lafayette Street in 1983. The room – founded by brothers Edward and Victor Luke – became a popular destination, and acted host to artists Willie Nelson, Patti Smith, Joan Jett, Yo La Tengo, Art Garfunkel, and Joey Ramone. LoHo moved here in the late 1990s, where it would reside until Blue Man Productions purchased the facility in 2007 for $5 million. The blue-faced crew behind the off-Broadway show of same – purchased by Cirque du Soleil last year – used the space for rehearsals, recording sessions, producing commercial spots, and auditioning new Blue recruits.