Kirkland said Formula One was a "large pie" and there was more to the sport than hosting a grand prix, as Union Properties was proving with its MotorCity development in Dubai.

CNN: Middle East fuels Formula One's expansion

The committee also backed the removal of the Union flag at two other council properties, the Ulster Hall and the Duncrue complex.

BBC: Belfast council committee votes to take down Union flag

The appetite for real estate among top tier of wealthy Americans remains strong, brokers said, for the same reason that it is attracting activity by international buyers in the former Soviet Union, Asia and Latin America: a growing confidence that New York luxury properties can provide a haven for wealth in a turbulent economy.

WSJ: A Wynn-Win in $70 Million Purchase

The only properties in the Dow Jones industrial index with depressed earnings are Boeing, Union Carbide, International Paper and Eastman Kodak.

FORBES: Dow 10,000 -- in 2005

Dubai World still owns properties in New York, including 450 Lexington Avenue, The W Hotel Union Square, The Mandarin Oriental Hotel and the Knickerbocker on Times Square.

FORBES: Dubai Exits Helmsley Building