Yair Levy and 620 Sixth Avenue

A state Supreme Court judge today agreed to lift a temporary restraining order on developer Yair Levy to allow the $500 million sale of 620 Sixth Avenue, pending the immediate deposit of about $8 million in proceeds into an escrow fund for his former Rector Square condominium project.

The sale of the 700,000-square-foot retail complex is scheduled to close on Friday, and funds will immediately be transferred to an escrow account, according to lawyers for the Battery Park City condo.

Judge Joan Lobis continued to block the sale or transfer of any additional assets from Levy or his family, however, which lawyers for the Battery Park City condo say was done to illegally circumvent a judgment after the troubled developer was banned from the real estate industry for raiding the Rector Square reserve fund.
[more]

From left: Yair Levy, Rector Square and 620 Sixth Avenue

Rector Square condominium this past Friday obtained a temporary restraining order on the $500 million sale of the Chelsea building home to Bed Bath & Beyond and other real estate assets connected to Yair Levy, in order to collect on a $7.4 million judgment against the embattled developer.

The suit, filed Dec 16 in New York state Supreme Court, alleges the Levy sold off or illegally transferred his real estate holdings after a court found that he illegally raided the Battery Park building‘s reserve fund.

In June, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman banned Levy from selling real estate in New York after a judge ruled that he illegally spent Rector Square reserve fund money on personal expenses. [more]