Rex can’t be afraid to bench Geno Smith

Here's where the great divide could begin: the place where a coach who needs to win now bumps heads with a general manager whose eye is on building a team for the future.

Less than 24 hours after Geno Smith's four turnovers cost the Jets any chance of beating the Titans Sunday in Nashville, Tenn., Rex Ryan reaffirmed the rookie will remain the starting quarterback for Monday night's game at Atlanta. Though insisting Smith must "do a much better job," Ryan gave no indication he's thinking of benching Smith should the second-round draft pick duplicate Sunday's disaster, when his two interceptions and two fumbles handed the Titans 28 points in their 38-13 victory over the Jets.

No doubt, Smith will be told over and over again this week to protect the football. But the message hasn't gotten through thus far. He is responsible for 11 of the Jets 12 turnovers with eight interceptions and three lost fumbles. If he starts to give the ball away again against the Falcons, Ryan can't be afraid to bench Smith and give Matt Simms a shot to provide a spark and try to win a game.

The switch doesn't have to be permanent, and Geno Smith isn't so fragile or entitled that he can't be benched.

Rex Ryan is sticking with his rookie quarterback.

But here's where the great divide comes in.

At 2-2, the Jets still have a season, still have a chance to finish 8-8 or better and maybe salvage Ryan's job for another season. But that might mean making a switch at quarterback if Smith's turnovers continue. Ryan needs to win games now — not necessarily develop a quarterback that can be good in 2014 or 2015.

But that thinking could conflict with general manager John Idzik who likely prefers to keep Smith as the starting quarterback to work though his problems and gain the kind of experience that only comes from being on the field.

Idzik's thinking might serve the long-term interests of Smith and the Jets. But that may not help Ryan keep his job in the short-term if Smith's turnovers produce a 7-9 or 6-10 finish. Many more games like the one Smith had in Nashville, and Ryan might as well get his resume ready.

Four games into the season and the quarterback situation is still a headache for Ryan. First, it became clear he didn't have full say on who the starting quarterback would be when Smith and Mark Sanchez were initially competing for the job during training camp.

Then, Ryan took the blame for getting Sanchez injured by putting him behind an inexperienced offensive line in the fourth quarter of a meaningless preseason game against the Giants. Sanchez, a fifth-year veteran who might have given the Jets the best chance to win this season, is now on injured reserve and contemplating shoulder surgery.

Smith, meanwhile, won the job by default but might be too much of a liability to keep on the field. At this rate, it won't be long before the defense starts pointing fingers at the offense.

Ryan said on Monday benching Smith is "not a thought at this point right now." But it should be if things go bad early against the Falcons. If Smith keeps turning over the ball, Ryan should give Simms a shot.

His fiery attitude might create the kind of spark the Jets need. He's a streaky player who learned to have thick skin from the taunts he took growing up the son of Giants quarterback Phil Simms.

"Those experiences have made me a stronger man," Matt Simms said on Monday. "I learned a lot of lessons the hard way from him."

Sanchez, who like Smith became a starter as a rookie, wasn't threatened with being benched until his confidence was shattered late last season. He was coddled and entitled. He never faced tough love until it was too late. The Jets shouldn't make the same mistake with Smith. Players are benched all the time for poor performance. It should apply to the quarterback as well.

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Giants need to focus on 1-0

It is a testament to how much he cares about his brothers and his team, to how much he bleeds Giants blue, when Antrel Rolle asks Tom Coughlin if he can speak to the team, and it is a noble attempt to rouse a fire intended to unleash hell even as he stood at the gates of hell when he tells the room: "I believe we can go 12-0 from this point on."

When you have one foot in the grave, when you find yourself knocking on death's door, when you need something or someone to keep you believing, to keep hope alive, you probably want to hear one of the only men among you who has not been stripped of his swagger, who you know will fight until his last breath, you probably need to hear it.

Rolle knew he wasn't standing among Broncos, that Peyton Manning was not his quarterback, and it didn't matter to him one bit.

It is a noble and gallant attempt, launching this rallying cry — Hey, Ho, 12-0 — in the 0-4 Giants' most desperate hour.

Tom Coughlin thinks a win could help the team's confidence.

It is, unfortunately, also laughable, if only because you notice the Packers and Seahawks on the schedule, and because these Giants have revealed themselves to be a good team playing bad at best, or a bad team playing bad at worst.

Here's the best idea: Believe you can go 1-0 from this point on.

We have seen this season how words spoken on a Monday inside the Quest Diagnostics Crisis Center can be long forgotten by Sunday, and suddenly here comes a Sunday that becomes a Super Sunday at MetLifeandDeath Stadium against Chip Kelly's Manic Eagles.

"A win would be big for this locker room, and the morale, and just get that feeling again," Eli Manning said.

Bill Parcells called it the psychology of results: "Confidence is only born of demonstrated ability. A team's collective mental state is ruled by the psychology of results. A team teaches itself what it is on the field, in action."

When asked if he senses his team needs a win for its confidence and self-esteem, Coughlin said: "Yeah. Why not?"

"We all could use one, but this is a pretty resilient, tough bunch of guys and we've got to find a way to win," Coughlin said. "We win one and it will help get us started. Let's put it that way. We don't have to do this on Monday, which I can't stand."

Then enough of the no-offense huddle, let's see more of the no-huddle offense. Manning likes it. Manning was 7-for-9 for 54 yards in the no-huddle at the end of the half. You want him to lift the team the way a franchise quarterback is supposed to? Try that.

"If we can do something that can get us an advantage, I'm up for whatever," Manning said.

Why do you enjoy the no-huddle?

"You enjoy it 'cause we've been pretty good at it," Manning said. "The plays that you're running, a lot of 'em are your base plays, and you run 'em all the time, and you get great decisions, I think it slows down the pass rush and confuses the defense a little bit. It's going to be different if you do it a whole game, it will be a little slower, you have to be able to get into all your plays … if you ran the same ones over and over again, eventually the defense will catch on."

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. It's broke.

"We always utilize it at some point in the game, whether it's a true two-minute or whether it's just what we call 'rally,' when we're up on the ball and whatever the personnel is in, trying to decide what is the best play with run or pass," Coughlin said. "We have that capability. It is something that we talk about using a little bit more, a little bit less accordingly. It is a point that you make, which is before the half over the ball no-huddle offense was very productive."

The Giants don't need to become the Eagles. They do need an offensive change of pace. "It's not the plays, it's not the tempo, it's more our execution has to be better," Manning said.

Coughlin showed the Giants the NFC East standings Monday. "Dallas is going to Denver this week, so we feel we got to get a win here, and hopefully we can be one game back," Manning said.

Manning volunteered that the Super Bowl XLVIII Giants lost four in a row. "It's still early," he said.

Believe you can go 1-0.

"Over the years, we've kind of been a streaky team — we can get hot, we can get cold," Manning said. "We've been pretty good at starting out hot, so maybe we just kind of switched the rotation this year, and start cold, and get hot and stay hot."

When Manning was asked about the Countdown to Super Bowl XVLIII sign on the wall, he said: "I'm not even looking at it."

He smiled and added: "We got six days 'til Philly."

Believe you can go 1-0 from this point on.

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Google grows to the west

In an impending mega-deal, Google is close to signing a 360,000 square-foot lease at Related Cos.' 85 10th Ave., sources told The Post.

Related has not formally put the space on the market. The hush-hush talks are so secret that some major players at CBRE, which is said to be working both sides, had not heard about it.

The 540,000 square-foot address, the former Nabisco factory, stands between 15th and 16th streets and between Chelsea Market and the High Line. It's home to restaurants Del Posto and Colicchio & Sons.

Google, led by CEO Larry Page, owns the mammoth 111 Eighth Ave. nearby, where it has a significant chunk of its nearly 3 million square feet. But its expansion needs are so great that it has unsuccessfully tried to nudge out other tenants with long-term leases, such as Nike.

* * *

Residents of 22 River Terrace in Battery Park City will soon have a new landlord. Rockrose, which opened the 27-story, 324-unit luxury rental apartment tower in 2001, has a contract to sell it to Los Angeles-based Centurion Real Estate Partners for $265 million, sources told Realty Check and Page Six Editor Emily Smith.

Speculation was rife that the prospective new owners would convert the property to condos but no one involved could be reached last night.

Centurion, whose principals include Jeffrey Worthe and John Tashjian, owns and manages an extensive commercial and residential US portfolio. In 2010, Centurion was tapped to turn around Battery Park City's Riverhouse at One Rockefeller Park when an original partner ran into trouble.

Rockrose put 22 River Terrace on the block last summer through Cushman & Wakefield. The brokers declined to identify the buyer because the deal has yet to close.

The sale would represent the highest price paid for a residential building in the area since 2011's sale of 95 Wall St. for $325 million and last year's sale of 10 Hanover Square for $261 million, both brokered by Eastdil Secured's Doug Harmon.

* * *

Thanks to a broader noshing zone uptown, this year's New York City Wine & Food Festival will have grazing room not only for more burger maniacs, but also for Annabelle the Cow.

The Old Homestead Steakhouse's life-size bovine sculpture, perched over its entrance, will mooove for the first time to the festival site — among innumerable additions to the four-day culinary extravaganza.

After five years in cramped Meatpacking District quarters, the annual charitable fest will set up shop from Oct. 17-20 on the west side of Midtown. It will be anchored on Vornado-operated Piers 92 and 94 between 53rd-55th streets.

NYCWFF founder/director Lee Schrager says the Food & Wine magazine-presented event will pay $450,000 to rent both piers, compared with $305,000 for Pier 57 near West 15th Street and other venues downtown.

But it will have nearly twice as much space as before — a total 406,500 square feet compared with 224,000 square feet downtown.

The festival's two signature events will mushroom — the Grand Tasting from 80,000 square feet last year to 130,000 feet, and the Burger Bash from 55,000 to 85,000.

"Pier 57 was our nucleus, but we outgrew it," Schrager said. The festival also used Basketball City on South Street and other locations — "We were all over downtown and it wasn't efficient," Schrager said.

The city tapped Vornado's Merchandise Mart Properties to redevelop and operate piers 92 and 94 in 2008. "Vornado approached us to look at their space," Schrager said.

The deal enabled the festival to "consolidate five different venues into one compound," Schrager said.

Superstar participating chefs such as Mario Batali, Scott Conant, Bobby Flay and Marcus Samuelsson will strut their stuff within a less than 1-mile radius, compared with 3 miles downtown.

The Hudson Hotel on West 58th Street will replace the Standard as host hotel.

* * *

Here's more on the two big downtown deals we first reported Friday on nypost.com:

The gross rent for the 20-year lease which brought the city's Health & Hospitals Corp. to 240,000 square feet at 55 Water St. was in the "high $30s per square foot, approaching $40," says Harry Bridgwood, executive vice-president of building manager New Water Street Corp.

It leaves less than 100,000 square feet available at the nation's second-largest office tower. New Water Street is wholly owned by 55 Water's owner, Retirement Systems of Alabama.

Last fall, the tower was flooded with nearly 50 million gallons of seawater by Hurricane Sandy. Bridgwood, who led the reclamation effort, said HHC is consolidating from several locations.

He also revealed for the first time that Alabama's full repair cost after the storm "approaches $150 million."

HHC was repped by Cushman & Wakefield's Bob Ballard. The landlord was repped by CBRE's Mary Ann Tighe, Howard Fiddle, Brad Gerla and Evan Haskell.

At Jack Resnick & Sons' 255 Greenwich St., meanwhile, Fairway Market's retail lease for over 52,000 square feet is worth $100 million over 20 years, according to Resnick executive managing director of leasing Dennis Brady. He said the food store, three blocks north of the World Trade Center, will have 40,000 square feet of concourse space now used by printer RR Donnelly.

"It was perfect for Fairway because it has high ceilings once used to accommodate big presses and an off-street loading dock," Brady said.

Brady and Brett Greenberg repped Resnick in-house. Fairway was repped by Newmark Grubb Knight Frank's Jason Pruger and Welco Realty's Alan Cooperman.

* * *

Manhattan third-quarter office vacancy rose from 10.6 percent to 11.8 percent in the third quarter of 2012, but fell from 12.1 percent in the second quarter of this year to 11.8 percent, according to the latest market data from Jones Lang LaSalle.

Absorption over the last quarter was due mainly to strong leasing downtown and in the Midtown Class-B market.

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Anthony sidesteps contract talk

It's as much a rite of fall as leaves changing colors and New Yorkers panicking over their pro football teams: Media Day talk of NBA championship aspirations.

The Knicks were true to form Monday. And they wandered into one other arena of the obvious: Their desire to keep Carmelo Anthony a Knick.

While the session was laced with talk of re-signing the NBA's reigning scoring champ, Anthony wasn't doing the talking.

"When that time comes, I'll deal with that," said Anthony, who can opt out and become a free agent at season's end. "I'm not going to go through the season thinking about my contract. I'm actually under contract now, so I'm not going to think about what I'm going to [do].

"I'm not going to keep addressing that situation," added Anthony, who upon coming to the Knicks in 2011 signed a three-year, $65 million extension with the ability to opt out after 2013-14. "My focus is really on being here, being a Knick, doing what I have to do to: hopefully, win a championship."

So others addressed the contract issues for Anthony, who among other tidbits noted, A) his knee and shoulder both feel "great," although he hasn't been 100 percent "since I was a little kid," B) he doesn't give a hoot some feel the Knicks regressed over the summer, and C) he doesn't want the pressure of "championship or bust" weighing on the Knicks' noggins.

Obviously, the Knicks fell short last season. After tinkering and juggling and front-office shaking, the Knicks return for another try.

They won't go anywhere with a subpar Anthony — some feel they won't even live up to last year. Anthony dismissed those thoughts quicker than the chance to talk contract.

"I'm not worried about people's opinions of whe-ther we took a step back," Anthony said. "As players we know what we have, we know what we can do, we know how good we can be."

Knicks brass craves success for obvious reasons, but also as a means to keep Anthony. Kind of tough to sell a star on a rotten environment.

"We are fortunate to have a player like Carmelo Anthony. He's one of the superstars who don't come around very often," new general manager Steve Mills said. "While it is premature in the process, we have made it very clear we have every intention of making Carmelo a Knick for a long time to come."

The best way to do that is to win.

"For me it's all about being involved, being a part of a winning organization, a winning atmosphere," said Anthony, sidestepping the recent Mills-for-Glen Grunwald move.

"I really don't know the reason behind Mr. Dolan, Steve Mills and Glen Grunwald. I can't worry about that."

Keeping Anthony is worry enough for the Knicks.

"There is no doubt that we want Melo in a Knick uniform," said coach Mike Woodson, whose contract option getting picked up for 2014-15 was the day's appetizer. "Our ultimate goal is to win a title."

For which they need another Carmelo Anthony-like season from Carmelo Anthony. See how all this stuff ties together?

"I expect him to have a great season, so therefore I expect us to have a great season," Tyson Chandler said.

Kenyon Martin insists the star loves New York.

"It's the city, man," Martin said. "People out here love him. It's home for him. … The city alone should entice him to re-sign. But ultimately, it's going to be his choice.

"Personally, I can't see him going anywhere else."

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Intel boss joins Hulu CEO contenders

Intel's Erik Huggers, central to the company's nascent OnCue TV service, appears to have one eye on the exit door, The Post has learned.

Erik Huggers

Huggers has recently expressed interest in the long-vacant Hulu CEO post, sources close to the situation said.

The Intel Media honcho joins former NBCUniversal Executive Vice President Lauren Zalaznik and Fox Networks Group President Mike Hopkins, the executive in charge of distribution and digital outlets, who are also said to be interested in the Hulu top job.

Huggers' name is interesting in that the OnCue TV service aims to rival Hulu. However Intel's new CEO Brian Krzanich has been less than enthused about the prospects for the over-the-top service, which has yet to sign any major program contracts.

Huggers did not respond to requests for comment.

Intel said it had no comment.

Hulu's leadership has been an open question since founder and CEO Jason Kilar exited with a $40 million pay-out last Dec. 31.

Hulu, the premium online video company owned by Disney, NBC Universal and 21st Century Fox, has been counting on acting CEO Andy Forssell since March.

Forssel was the content boss at Hulu under Kilar.

While some outsiders have expressed interest in the job, Hulu is leaning toward an internal candidate, sources said.

But that could change quickly, sources added.

"Each side has been alternating in shooting them [the candidates] down!" said another sources close to the situation.

"I think Hopkins is the favorite but [ABC digital chief] Albert Cheng is in the mix as well," the source added.

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Rex can’t be afraid to bench Geno Smith

Here's where the great divide could begin: the place where a coach who needs to win now bumps heads with a general manager whose eye is on building a team for the future.

Less than 24 hours after Geno Smith's four turnovers cost the Jets any chance of beating the Titans Sunday in Nashville, Tenn., Rex Ryan reaffirmed the rookie will remain the starting quarterback for Monday night's game at Atlanta. Though insisting Smith must "do a much better job," Ryan gave no indication he's thinking of benching Smith should the second-round draft pick duplicate Sunday's disaster, when his two interceptions and two fumbles handed the Titans 28 points in their 38-13 victory over the Jets.

No doubt, Smith will be told over and over again this week to protect the football. But the message hasn't gotten through thus far. He is responsible for 11 of the Jets 12 turnovers with eight interceptions and three lost fumbles. If he starts to give the ball away again against the Falcons, Ryan can't be afraid to bench Smith and give Matt Simms a shot to provide a spark and try to win a game.

The switch doesn't have to be permanent, and Geno Smith isn't so fragile or entitled that he can't be benched.

Rex Ryan is sticking with his rookie quarterback.

But here's where the great divide comes in.

At 2-2, the Jets still have a season, still have a chance to finish 8-8 or better and maybe salvage Ryan's job for another season. But that might mean making a switch at quarterback if Smith's turnovers continue. Ryan needs to win games now — not necessarily develop a quarterback that can be good in 2014 or 2015.

But that thinking could conflict with general manager John Idzik who likely prefers to keep Smith as the starting quarterback to work though his problems and gain the kind of experience that only comes from being on the field.

Idzik's thinking might serve the long-term interests of Smith and the Jets. But that may not help Ryan keep his job in the short-term if Smith's turnovers produce a 7-9 or 6-10 finish. Many more games like the one Smith had in Nashville, and Ryan might as well get his resume ready.

Four games into the season and the quarterback situation is still a headache for Ryan. First, it became clear he didn't have full say on who the starting quarterback would be when Smith and Mark Sanchez were initially competing for the job during training camp.

Then, Ryan took the blame for getting Sanchez injured by putting him behind an inexperienced offensive line in the fourth quarter of a meaningless preseason game against the Giants. Sanchez, a fifth-year veteran who might have given the Jets the best chance to win this season, is now on injured reserve and contemplating shoulder surgery.

Smith, meanwhile, won the job by default but might be too much of a liability to keep on the field. At this rate, it won't be long before the defense starts pointing fingers at the offense.

Ryan said on Monday benching Smith is "not a thought at this point right now." But it should be if things go bad early against the Falcons. If Smith keeps turning over the ball, Ryan should give Simms a shot.

His fiery attitude might create the kind of spark the Jets need. He's a streaky player who learned to have thick skin from the taunts he took growing up the son of Giants quarterback Phil Simms.

"Those experiences have made me a stronger man," Matt Simms said on Monday. "I learned a lot of lessons the hard way from him."

Sanchez, who like Smith became a starter as a rookie, wasn't threatened with being benched until his confidence was shattered late last season. He was coddled and entitled. He never faced tough love until it was too late. The Jets shouldn't make the same mistake with Smith. Players are benched all the time for poor performance. It should apply to the quarterback as well.

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Giants need to focus on 1-0

It is a testament to how much he cares about his brothers and his team, to how much he bleeds Giants blue, when Antrel Rolle asks Tom Coughlin if he can speak to the team, and it is a noble attempt to rouse a fire intended to unleash hell even as he stood at the gates of hell when he tells the room: "I believe we can go 12-0 from this point on."

When you have one foot in the grave, when you find yourself knocking on death's door, when you need something or someone to keep you believing, to keep hope alive, you probably want to hear one of the only men among you who has not been stripped of his swagger, who you know will fight until his last breath, you probably need to hear it.

Rolle knew he wasn't standing among Broncos, that Peyton Manning was not his quarterback, and it didn't matter to him one bit.

It is a noble and gallant attempt, launching this rallying cry — Hey, Ho, 12-0 — in the 0-4 Giants' most desperate hour.

Tom Coughlin thinks a win could help the team's confidence.

It is, unfortunately, also laughable, if only because you notice the Packers and Seahawks on the schedule, and because these Giants have revealed themselves to be a good team playing bad at best, or a bad team playing bad at worst.

Here's the best idea: Believe you can go 1-0 from this point on.

We have seen this season how words spoken on a Monday inside the Quest Diagnostics Crisis Center can be long forgotten by Sunday, and suddenly here comes a Sunday that becomes a Super Sunday at MetLifeandDeath Stadium against Chip Kelly's Manic Eagles.

"A win would be big for this locker room, and the morale, and just get that feeling again," Eli Manning said.

Bill Parcells called it the psychology of results: "Confidence is only born of demonstrated ability. A team's collective mental state is ruled by the psychology of results. A team teaches itself what it is on the field, in action."

When asked if he senses his team needs a win for its confidence and self-esteem, Coughlin said: "Yeah. Why not?"

"We all could use one, but this is a pretty resilient, tough bunch of guys and we've got to find a way to win," Coughlin said. "We win one and it will help get us started. Let's put it that way. We don't have to do this on Monday, which I can't stand."

Then enough of the no-offense huddle, let's see more of the no-huddle offense. Manning likes it. Manning was 7-for-9 for 54 yards in the no-huddle at the end of the half. You want him to lift the team the way a franchise quarterback is supposed to? Try that.

"If we can do something that can get us an advantage, I'm up for whatever," Manning said.

Why do you enjoy the no-huddle?

"You enjoy it 'cause we've been pretty good at it," Manning said. "The plays that you're running, a lot of 'em are your base plays, and you run 'em all the time, and you get great decisions, I think it slows down the pass rush and confuses the defense a little bit. It's going to be different if you do it a whole game, it will be a little slower, you have to be able to get into all your plays … if you ran the same ones over and over again, eventually the defense will catch on."

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. It's broke.

"We always utilize it at some point in the game, whether it's a true two-minute or whether it's just what we call 'rally,' when we're up on the ball and whatever the personnel is in, trying to decide what is the best play with run or pass," Coughlin said. "We have that capability. It is something that we talk about using a little bit more, a little bit less accordingly. It is a point that you make, which is before the half over the ball no-huddle offense was very productive."

The Giants don't need to become the Eagles. They do need an offensive change of pace. "It's not the plays, it's not the tempo, it's more our execution has to be better," Manning said.

Coughlin showed the Giants the NFC East standings Monday. "Dallas is going to Denver this week, so we feel we got to get a win here, and hopefully we can be one game back," Manning said.

Manning volunteered that the Super Bowl XLVIII Giants lost four in a row. "It's still early," he said.

Believe you can go 1-0.

"Over the years, we've kind of been a streaky team — we can get hot, we can get cold," Manning said. "We've been pretty good at starting out hot, so maybe we just kind of switched the rotation this year, and start cold, and get hot and stay hot."

When Manning was asked about the Countdown to Super Bowl XVLIII sign on the wall, he said: "I'm not even looking at it."

He smiled and added: "We got six days 'til Philly."

Believe you can go 1-0 from this point on.

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Google grows to the west

In an impending mega-deal, Google is close to signing a 360,000 square-foot lease at Related Cos.' 85 10th Ave., sources told The Post.

Related has not formally put the space on the market. The hush-hush talks are so secret that some major players at CBRE, which is said to be working both sides, had not heard about it.

The 540,000 square-foot address, the former Nabisco factory, stands between 15th and 16th streets and between Chelsea Market and the High Line. It's home to restaurants Del Posto and Colicchio & Sons.

Google, led by CEO Larry Page, owns the mammoth 111 Eighth Ave. nearby, where it has a significant chunk of its nearly 3 million square feet. But its expansion needs are so great that it has unsuccessfully tried to nudge out other tenants with long-term leases, such as Nike.

* * *

Residents of 22 River Terrace in Battery Park City will soon have a new landlord. Rockrose, which opened the 27-story, 324-unit luxury rental apartment tower in 2001, has a contract to sell it to Los Angeles-based Centurion Real Estate Partners for $265 million, sources told Realty Check and Page Six Editor Emily Smith.

Speculation was rife that the prospective new owners would convert the property to condos but no one involved could be reached last night.

Centurion, whose principals include Jeffrey Worthe and John Tashjian, owns and manages an extensive commercial and residential US portfolio. In 2010, Centurion was tapped to turn around Battery Park City's Riverhouse at One Rockefeller Park when an original partner ran into trouble.

Rockrose put 22 River Terrace on the block last summer through Cushman & Wakefield. The brokers declined to identify the buyer because the deal has yet to close.

The sale would represent the highest price paid for a residential building in the area since 2011's sale of 95 Wall St. for $325 million and last year's sale of 10 Hanover Square for $261 million, both brokered by Eastdil Secured's Doug Harmon.

* * *

Thanks to a broader noshing zone uptown, this year's New York City Wine & Food Festival will have grazing room not only for more burger maniacs, but also for Annabelle the Cow.

The Old Homestead Steakhouse's life-size bovine sculpture, perched over its entrance, will mooove for the first time to the festival site — among innumerable additions to the four-day culinary extravaganza.

After five years in cramped Meatpacking District quarters, the annual charitable fest will set up shop from Oct. 17-20 on the west side of Midtown. It will be anchored on Vornado-operated Piers 92 and 94 between 53rd-55th streets.

NYCWFF founder/director Lee Schrager says the Food & Wine magazine-presented event will pay $450,000 to rent both piers, compared with $305,000 for Pier 57 near West 15th Street and other venues downtown.

But it will have nearly twice as much space as before — a total 406,500 square feet compared with 224,000 square feet downtown.

The festival's two signature events will mushroom — the Grand Tasting from 80,000 square feet last year to 130,000 feet, and the Burger Bash from 55,000 to 85,000.

"Pier 57 was our nucleus, but we outgrew it," Schrager said. The festival also used Basketball City on South Street and other locations — "We were all over downtown and it wasn't efficient," Schrager said.

The city tapped Vornado's Merchandise Mart Properties to redevelop and operate piers 92 and 94 in 2008. "Vornado approached us to look at their space," Schrager said.

The deal enabled the festival to "consolidate five different venues into one compound," Schrager said.

Superstar participating chefs such as Mario Batali, Scott Conant, Bobby Flay and Marcus Samuelsson will strut their stuff within a less than 1-mile radius, compared with 3 miles downtown.

The Hudson Hotel on West 58th Street will replace the Standard as host hotel.

* * *

Here's more on the two big downtown deals we first reported Friday on nypost.com:

The gross rent for the 20-year lease which brought the city's Health & Hospitals Corp. to 240,000 square feet at 55 Water St. was in the "high $30s per square foot, approaching $40," says Harry Bridgwood, executive vice-president of building manager New Water Street Corp.

It leaves less than 100,000 square feet available at the nation's second-largest office tower. New Water Street is wholly owned by 55 Water's owner, Retirement Systems of Alabama.

Last fall, the tower was flooded with nearly 50 million gallons of seawater by Hurricane Sandy. Bridgwood, who led the reclamation effort, said HHC is consolidating from several locations.

He also revealed for the first time that Alabama's full repair cost after the storm "approaches $150 million."

HHC was repped by Cushman & Wakefield's Bob Ballard. The landlord was repped by CBRE's Mary Ann Tighe, Howard Fiddle, Brad Gerla and Evan Haskell.

At Jack Resnick & Sons' 255 Greenwich St., meanwhile, Fairway Market's retail lease for over 52,000 square feet is worth $100 million over 20 years, according to Resnick executive managing director of leasing Dennis Brady. He said the food store, three blocks north of the World Trade Center, will have 40,000 square feet of concourse space now used by printer RR Donnelly.

"It was perfect for Fairway because it has high ceilings once used to accommodate big presses and an off-street loading dock," Brady said.

Brady and Brett Greenberg repped Resnick in-house. Fairway was repped by Newmark Grubb Knight Frank's Jason Pruger and Welco Realty's Alan Cooperman.

* * *

Manhattan third-quarter office vacancy rose from 10.6 percent to 11.8 percent in the third quarter of 2012, but fell from 12.1 percent in the second quarter of this year to 11.8 percent, according to the latest market data from Jones Lang LaSalle.

Absorption over the last quarter was due mainly to strong leasing downtown and in the Midtown Class-B market.

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Anthony sidesteps contract talk

It's as much a rite of fall as leaves changing colors and New Yorkers panicking over their pro football teams: Media Day talk of NBA championship aspirations.

The Knicks were true to form Monday. And they wandered into one other arena of the obvious: Their desire to keep Carmelo Anthony a Knick.

While the session was laced with talk of re-signing the NBA's reigning scoring champ, Anthony wasn't doing the talking.

"When that time comes, I'll deal with that," said Anthony, who can opt out and become a free agent at season's end. "I'm not going to go through the season thinking about my contract. I'm actually under contract now, so I'm not going to think about what I'm going to [do].

"I'm not going to keep addressing that situation," added Anthony, who upon coming to the Knicks in 2011 signed a three-year, $65 million extension with the ability to opt out after 2013-14. "My focus is really on being here, being a Knick, doing what I have to do to: hopefully, win a championship."

So others addressed the contract issues for Anthony, who among other tidbits noted, A) his knee and shoulder both feel "great," although he hasn't been 100 percent "since I was a little kid," B) he doesn't give a hoot some feel the Knicks regressed over the summer, and C) he doesn't want the pressure of "championship or bust" weighing on the Knicks' noggins.

Obviously, the Knicks fell short last season. After tinkering and juggling and front-office shaking, the Knicks return for another try.

They won't go anywhere with a subpar Anthony — some feel they won't even live up to last year. Anthony dismissed those thoughts quicker than the chance to talk contract.

"I'm not worried about people's opinions of whe-ther we took a step back," Anthony said. "As players we know what we have, we know what we can do, we know how good we can be."

Knicks brass craves success for obvious reasons, but also as a means to keep Anthony. Kind of tough to sell a star on a rotten environment.

"We are fortunate to have a player like Carmelo Anthony. He's one of the superstars who don't come around very often," new general manager Steve Mills said. "While it is premature in the process, we have made it very clear we have every intention of making Carmelo a Knick for a long time to come."

The best way to do that is to win.

"For me it's all about being involved, being a part of a winning organization, a winning atmosphere," said Anthony, sidestepping the recent Mills-for-Glen Grunwald move.

"I really don't know the reason behind Mr. Dolan, Steve Mills and Glen Grunwald. I can't worry about that."

Keeping Anthony is worry enough for the Knicks.

"There is no doubt that we want Melo in a Knick uniform," said coach Mike Woodson, whose contract option getting picked up for 2014-15 was the day's appetizer. "Our ultimate goal is to win a title."

For which they need another Carmelo Anthony-like season from Carmelo Anthony. See how all this stuff ties together?

"I expect him to have a great season, so therefore I expect us to have a great season," Tyson Chandler said.

Kenyon Martin insists the star loves New York.

"It's the city, man," Martin said. "People out here love him. It's home for him. … The city alone should entice him to re-sign. But ultimately, it's going to be his choice.

"Personally, I can't see him going anywhere else."

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Intel boss joins Hulu CEO contenders

Intel's Erik Huggers, central to the company's nascent OnCue TV service, appears to have one eye on the exit door, The Post has learned.

Erik Huggers

Huggers has recently expressed interest in the long-vacant Hulu CEO post, sources close to the situation said.

The Intel Media honcho joins former NBCUniversal Executive Vice President Lauren Zalaznik and Fox Networks Group President Mike Hopkins, the executive in charge of distribution and digital outlets, who are also said to be interested in the Hulu top job.

Huggers' name is interesting in that the OnCue TV service aims to rival Hulu. However Intel's new CEO Brian Krzanich has been less than enthused about the prospects for the over-the-top service, which has yet to sign any major program contracts.

Huggers did not respond to requests for comment.

Intel said it had no comment.

Hulu's leadership has been an open question since founder and CEO Jason Kilar exited with a $40 million pay-out last Dec. 31.

Hulu, the premium online video company owned by Disney, NBC Universal and 21st Century Fox, has been counting on acting CEO Andy Forssell since March.

Forssel was the content boss at Hulu under Kilar.

While some outsiders have expressed interest in the job, Hulu is leaning toward an internal candidate, sources said.

But that could change quickly, sources added.

"Each side has been alternating in shooting them [the candidates] down!" said another sources close to the situation.

"I think Hopkins is the favorite but [ABC digital chief] Albert Cheng is in the mix as well," the source added.

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