A pair of NYC actual property titans duped a consumer into shopping for an $80 million Park Avenue penthouse with a surprising Central Park view — speeding the sale earlier than information broke {that a} high-rise subsequent door would wreck the vista, in response to a lawsuit.
Arthur and William Lie Zeckendorf perpetrated “a brazen fraud” on the client of the five-bedroom, 6.5-half tub duplex at 520 Park Ave., the unidentified purchaser stated in a Manhattan Supreme Court docket submitting which seeks to undo the November deal.
The 8,300-square-foot Higher East Facet house, full with solarium, personal elevator, balcony and a hearth, is billed as having “dazzling panoramic views from all four exposures,” in response to an actual property itemizing.
Effectively-heeled residents of the Park Avenue constructing embody former UFC-owning billionaire Frank Fertitta, who purchased one of many constructing’s 4 penthouse duplexes in 2017; James Dyson, the billionaire founding father of the Dyson equipment firm; and Bob Diamond, former head of Barclays.
The complete view of the Massive Apple’s iconic inexperienced house is the duplex’s “defining feature,” the client, recognized solely as Park Ave. Rental LLC, stated within the authorized submitting.
However a 37-story skyscraper with 62 items deliberate by Extell Improvement and Solil Administration on a number of mixed heaps subsequent door “is all but certain to ruin the Penthouse’s unobstructed Central Park view,” in response to the lawsuit. It’s unclear when the brand new constructing is anticipated to be accomplished.
The Zeckendorfs realized concerning the new constructing “given their status as part of a small circle of New York City real estate insiders,” and understood “that if the public ever caught wind of the Extell-Solil development, the penthouse would never sell — and certainly not at an $80 million price tag,” the client alleged.
The “crown jewel” of the Zeckendorf’s 62-story constructing started as a triplex which the pair hoped would promote for nicely above $100 million, breaking a then-city document.
However the $100 million benchmark was reached by a special developer in 2017, and the triplex sat for years unsold, forcing the pair to alter their method, the client stated in court docket papers.
They break up the triplex into two flats, however nonetheless couldn’t simply unload the duplex, in response to court docket papers.
The present purchaser voiced curiosity within the duplex within the fall. However the Zeckendorfs didn’t alert the consumers to the “specific, existing risk that the penthouse’s west-facing Central Park windows would be obscured,” the client stated.
As an alternative, the constructing’s providing plan talked about solely that the view was an amenity “that potentially can be lost” to future development, in response to the lawsuit.
Along with asking the court docket to allow them to ditch the penthouse, the unidentified purchaser is looking for unspecified damages.
The lawsuit is “a shameless attempt to renegotiate a binding agreement,” stated Zeckendorf attorneys Terrence Oved and Darren Oved.
“We are confident the court will readily see this for what it is – a transparent case of buyer’s remorse masquerading as a complaint – and readily dismiss it.”
The Zeckendorfs are famed for developments comparable to 15 Central Park West, nicknamed “Limestone Jesus.” Present and previous residents of the apartment tower embody Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein, Robert De Niro, Denzel Washington and Alex Rodriguez.
