An area real estate developer bought the historic Oppenheim Building in downtown Scranton for $3.3 million.
DDCP Oppenheim LLC, a holding company affiliated with D&D Realty, bought the building at 401 Lackawanna Ave. and the adjacent Lewis and Reilly Building from three New York City partners who acquired the bank-owned building back in 2017.
It’s unclear what exactly D&D Realty has in store for the 123-year-old building that comprises nearly 200,000 square feet.
One key anchor tenant, the U.S. Social Security Administration, signed a deal last year with the Marketplace at Steamtown and will relocate when renovations in the mall are complete. Other Oppenheim tenants include the Internal Revenue Service, state Sen. John Blake, Hemmler and Camayd Architects and Ion Television.
D&D, a prolific restorer of old downtown buildings, also owns the former SNB Plaza bank building at 401 Lackawanna Ave., now called Twelve, where partners Nicholas Dye and brothers Adam and Casey Donahue converted much of the the towering office building into high-end apartments.
In October, they bought the former Gianetta Music store and Grzyboski Train Store spots across the street, at 428 and 430 Lackawanna Ave., where they’re installing 18 residential units.
“We’re under construction right now. We expect to be finished before the end of the year,” Dye said.
They bought those buildings for $525,000, according to county records. He declined to speak further about any plans for the Oppenheim.
The Oppenheim’s recent history has been fraught with ambitious starts and hard stops, but enjoys an important part in Scranton’s history of architecture and commerce.
Before it was the Oppenheim, the building was Scranton Dry Goods. It was first in the area to offer modern amenities including escalators, an air-conditioned tea room and garden center, according to Hinerfeld Commercial Real Estate, which has been heavily involved in its history and with its owners.
Most recently a trio of Brooklyn investors, led by majority stakeholder Shimon Friedman, bought the Oppenheim for $1.2 million with plans for a modern mixed-use building with apartments and commercial space.
Friedman found inspiration in the Marketplace at Steamtown’s part in the Scranton central business district’s revival and said he had renewed confidence in the area.
But it was the Marketplace that lured away one of his most important tenants, the Social Security Administration, in November. It’s unclear whether Social Security’s departure prompted him to sell. At the time, Friedman was optimistic. He said he had invested $1 million in renovations and was gearing up to find new tenants.
D&D got their start in Scranton, Dye said. The partners own other multi-family apartment buildings in the city.
But until now, most of their central business district work has happened in Wilkes-Barre, including loft apartments on South Main Street and the PNC Bank building.
When it comes to downtown real estate, Scranton is now rivaling their Wilkes-Barre holdings, Dye said.
“After Oppenheim, it will be for sure,” he said.
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