NY Times mortgages building, Zygi Wilf looks at Strib HQ, licks chops

Drudge is blaring the news this morning that the New York Times is tapping its fancy new HQ for equity:

The New York Times Company plans to borrow up to $225 million against its mid-Manhattan headquarters building, to ease a potential cash flow squeeze as the company grapples with tighter credit and shrinking profits.

The company has retained Cushman & Wakefield, the real estate firm, to act as its agent to secure financing, either in the form of a mortgage or a sale-leaseback arrangement, said James Follo, the Times Company's chief financial officer.

Could this be a precursor to the Star Tribune finally selling their downtown land to Zygi Wilf and the Vikings for a new stadium?

Earlier, we pointed out the seeming death spiral of the American daily and speculated about whether the Star Tribune could be next. But the NY Times' plight might be even more germaine. It's long been known that Zygi and company coveted 12.4 acres of the newspaper's downtown land for a new Vikings Stadium.

With ownership of the Strib falling to the debtors, including the badly faltering Credit Suisse, they may be looking to sell anything that isn't nailed down, and the downtown land is definitely the gem of this fire sale.