General
SL Green Realty Corp., also referred to as the Company or SL Green, a Maryland corporation, and SL Green Operating Partnership, L.P., which is referred to as SLGOP or the Operating Partnership, a Delaware limited partnership, were formed in June 1997 for the purpose of combining the commercial real estate business of S.L. Green Properties, Inc. and its affiliated partnerships and entities. The Operating Partnership received a contribution of interest in the real estate properties, as well as a 95% economic, non-voting interest in the management, leasing and construction companies affiliated with S.L. Green Properties. We refer to these management, leasing and construction entities, which are owned by SL Green Management Corp, as the "Service Corporation." All of the management, leasing and construction services with respect to the properties wholly-owned by us are conducted through SL Green Management LLC which is 100% owned by us. The Company has qualified, and expects to qualify in the current fiscal year, as a real estate investment trust, or REIT, under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code, and operates as a self-administered, self-managed REIT. A REIT is a legal entity that holds real estate interests and, through payments of dividends to stockholders, is permitted to reduce or avoid the payment of Federal income taxes at the corporate level. Unless the context requires otherwise, all references to "we," "our" and "us" means SLGOP and all entities owned or controlled by SLGOP.
Substantially all of SL Green's assets are held by, and its operations are conducted through, the Operating Partnership. The Company is the sole general partner of the Operating Partnership. As of December 31, 2011, noncontrolling investors held, in the aggregate, a 3.12% common limited partnership interest in the Operating Partnership. See Note 12.
Reckson Associates Realty Corp., or Reckson, and Reckson Operating Partnership, L.P., or ROP, are subsidiaries of the Operating Partnership.
As of December 31, 2011, we owned the following interests in commercial office properties in the New York Metropolitan area, primarily in midtown Manhattan. Our investments in the New York Metropolitan area also include investments in Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island, Westchester County, Connecticut and New Jersey, which are collectively known as the Suburban assets:
As of December 31, 2011, our Manhattan office properties were comprised of 27 fee owned properties, including ownership in commercial condominium units, and six leasehold owned properties. As of December 31, 2011, our Suburban office properties were comprised of 30 fee owned properties and one leasehold property. We refer to our Manhattan and Suburban office properties collectively as our Portfolio.
PART I
We also owned investments in nine stand-alone retail properties encompassing approximately 349,282 square feet, seven development properties encompassing approximately 1,395,838 square feet and three land interests as of December 31, 2011. In addition, we manage three office properties owned by third parties and affiliated companies encompassing approximately 0.9 million rentable square feet.
Our corporate offices are located in midtown Manhattan at 420 Lexington Avenue, New York, New York 10170. As of December 31, 2011, our corporate staff consisted of approximately 263 persons, including 163 professionals experienced in all aspects of commercial real estate. We can be contacted at (212) 594-2700. SL Green maintains a website at www.slgreen.com. On this website, you can obtain, free of charge, a copy of our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, as soon as practicable after we file such material electronically with, or furnish it to, the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC. SL Green has also made available on its website its audit committee charter, compensation committee charter, nominating and corporate governance committee charter, code of business conduct and ethics and corporate governance principles. We do not intend for information contained in SL Green's website to be part of this annual report on Form 10-K. You can also read and copy any materials we and SL Green file with the SEC at its Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, DC 20549 (1-800-SEC-0330). The SEC maintains an Internet site (http://www.sec.gov) that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.
Business and Growth Strategies
SL Green Realty Corp., New York City's largest office landlord, is the only fully integrated REIT that is focused primarily on acquiring, managing and maximizing the value of Manhattan commercial properties.
Our primary business objective is to maximize the total return to stockholders, through growth in funds from operations and through asset value appreciation. Our core business is the ownership of high quality office buildings that are strategically located in close proximity to midtown Manhattan's primary commuter stations. The commercial real estate expertise resulting from owning, operating, investing and lending in Manhattan for over 31 years, has also enabled us to invest in a collection of premier retail properties, selected multifamily residential assets, and high quality debt and preferred equity investments. We also own high quality office properties in the surrounding markets of Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island, Westchester County, Connecticut and New Jersey.
We are led by a strong, experienced management team that provides a foundation of skills in all aspects of property ownership and management including investment, leasing, operations, capital improvements, financing, repositioning and maintenance. It is with this team that we have achieved a market leading position in our targeted submarkets.
We seek to enhance the value of our company by executing strategies that include the following:
Leasing and Property Management
We seek to capitalize on our management's extensive knowledge of the Manhattan and suburban markets and the needs of our tenants through proactive leasing and management programs, which include: (i) use of in-depth market experience resulting from managing and leasing 31.4 million square feet of office and retail space, predominantly in Manhattan; (ii) careful management to ensure adequate average lengths of leases and manageable lease rollovers; (iii) utilization of an extensive network of third-party brokers; (iv) use of comprehensive building management analysis and planning; and (v) commitment to tenant satisfaction by providing high quality tenant services at attractive rental rates.
It is our belief that our proactive leasing efforts have directly contributed to our average portfolio occupancy consistently exceeding the market average.
Property Acquisitions
We acquire core properties for long-term appreciation and earnings growth. We also acquire non-core properties that are typically held for shorter periods during which we attempt to create significant increases in value. This strategy has resulted in capital gains that increase our investment capital base. In implementing this strategy, we continually evaluate potential acquisition opportunities. These acquisitions may come from new properties as well as properties in which we already hold a joint venture interest or from our debt and preferred equity investments. Although we continuously review our acquisition pipeline, there is not a specific metric that we apply to acquisitions that are under consideration.
Through intimate knowledge of our markets and operating base we have developed a keen ability to source transactions with superior risk-adjusted returns by capturing off-market opportunities that lead to acquisitions at meaningful discounts to replacement costs. In rising markets, we acquire strategic vacancies that provide the opportunity to take advantage of our exceptional leasing capability to increase cash flow and property value. In stable or falling markets, we target assets featuring credit tenancies with fully escalated in-place rents to provide cash flow stability near-term and the opportunity for increases over time.
In acquiring core and non-core properties, directly or through joint ventures with a predominance of high quality institutional investors, we believe that we have the following advantages over many of our competitors: (i) senior management's average 25 years of experience leading a full-service, fully-integrated real estate company focused on the Manhattan office market; (ii) the ability to offer tax-advantaged structures to sellers through the exchange of ownership interests as opposed to solely cash transactions; and (iii) the ability to close transactions quickly despite complicated ownership structures.
Property Repositioning
Our knowledge of the leasing markets and our ability to efficiently plan and execute capital projects provide the expertise to enhance returns by repositioning properties that are underperforming. Many of the retail and commercial office buildings we own or seek to acquire feature unique architectural design elements, including large floor plates, unique amenities and characteristics that can be appealing to tenants when fully exploited. Our strategic investment in these buildings, combined with our active management and pro-active leasing, provide the opportunity to creatively meet market needs and generate favorable returns.
Debt and Preferred Equity Investments
We seek high-yield debt and preferred equity investments. See Note 5—"Debt and Preferred Equity Investments" in the accompanying consolidated financial statements. Knowledge of our markets and our leasing and asset management expertise provide underwriting capabilities that enable highly educated assessment of risk and return. The benefits of this investment program, which has a carefully managed aggregate size generally not to exceed 10% of our total enterprise value, include the following: