Retail strip sold to Queens company

A building at 200 W. 231st St., that includes the headquarters for the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club and a handful of other businesses — including the Golden Gate Express restaurant — has a new owner in charge.

SDME Capital Group, which shares a Forest Hills address with real estate property manager Simkho Aranbayev, has bought the small block of stores at the corner of West 231st and Tibbett Avenue for $3.1 million, according to city property records. The property had previously sold in 2013 for about the same price.

SDME paid $800,000 in cash and financed the rest, according to documents.

It appears it will be business as usual on the property for now, however. SDME has not filed any development permits or announced any other plans.

Librarian's most favorite book is ...

It hasn’t been easy taking books out of the library in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, but that hasn’t stopped people from reading — especially as many have some extra time on their hands.

What book was the most popular among staff members of the New York Public Library? That title belongs to author N.K. Jemisin and her urban fantasy novel “The City We Became.”

Probably no surprise to anyone, it was followed by “Hamnet: A Novel of the Plague” by Maggie O’Farrell.

Topping the list of children’s books was “Black Heroes of the Wild West” by James Otis Smith, and “Evelyn Del Rey is Moving Away” by Meg Medina.

For teens, it was George M. Johnson’s “All Boys Aren’t Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto” as well as “Displacement” by Kiku Hughes.

CORRECTION: The top books of 2020 shared by the New York Public Library was based on selections made by librarians and library staff members. A Press Points item in the Dec. 3 issue provided another source of the selections.