Michael Dana of Onex and Sky View Parc

One month after deciding to settle a lawsuit and return 75 percent of down payments made by buyers who reneged on their contracts, the developers of the Sky View Parc complex in Flushing have been hit with another harrowing dose of reality: three years since launching sales in the three-tower, 448-unit complex, just 10 percent of the homes have sold, the New York Post reported.

Nevertheless, Onex, the New York- and Toronto-based private equity firm that took over the bulk of the management duties for the first phase of the planned $1 billion mixed-use complex from its partner Muss Organization last year, remains upbeat. [more]

A rendering of Sky View Parc, attorney Adam Leitman Bailey

Dozens of buyers at Queens’ Sky View Parc, the massive new condominium and shopping center in Flushing, filed a lawsuit yesterday in an attempt to renege on their contracts and get their deposits back from the developers, the Wall Street Journal reported. The complaint, filed by attorney Adam Leitman Bailey, makes use of a 1968 federal law known as the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act, which requires developers of large buildings to provide full disclosure to protect buyers from corruption. In the wake of the real estate crash, a surge in condo buyers’ remorse has put Bailey at the forefront of a number of similar efforts to try to help buyers get out of their obligations, but the complaint at Sky View Parc is the largest of its kind thus far.
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Rendering of Sky View Parc

[Update: 11:42 a.m.] Two big-box retailers are set to open their doors this week at Flushing’s new Sky View Parc complex. A new 180,000-square-foot Target will open to the public tomorrow morning at 8 a.m., a spokesperson for the retailer confirmed to [more]

The developer of Flushing’s massive Sky View Parc mixed-use complex is shopping for nearly $150 million in financing to complete the first phase of its delayed condo and retail project, which is already over budget, according to the Post. Onex Real Estate Partners, the general partner for the 1,000-unit, 15-acre development, wants a three-year extension on its $519.3 million construction loan, plus an additional $144.6 million. The deal is likely to be reached within weeks, sources said. Other sources said that Onex and the Related Companies, which was brought in a few months ago to replace Muss Development in its sales and leasing roles, have also offered to buy out the project’s debt at a 50 percent discount, in a deal that would require Related to put in some of its own equity. [Post]

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Toronto-based private equity firm Onex has quietly taken the reins from Muss Development in their new 3.3. million-square-foot Sky View Parc complex in Flushing Queens, reportedly “calling the shots” while Muss takes a back seat in planning, according to the Post. Onex has been said to be anxious about slow sales in the buildings, prompting a recent move to bring in the Related Companies as a sales and leasing consultant for the six planned residential towers, set atop a three-story, 800,000-square-foot shopping center. The first apartments at the complex had originally been slated for occupancy last summer, but still none of the buildings are complete. While Muss has said 40 percent of the 448 apartments in the first three “Phase I” towers are sold, none have closed. Crain’s had reported last week that both Muss and Onex had approached Related about the deal, in which the developer would have no equity, but sources said Onex actually did so of its own accord. [Post]

Related Companies is close to signing a contract to manage sales and leasing at Muss Development’s new 3.3 million-square-foot Sky View Parc complex in Flushing, Queens, Crain’s reported. The development will set six residential towers and a rooftop park atop a three-story, 800,000-square-foot shopping center. The first three towers are almost complete, but Muss’ financial partner, private equity firm Onex, is said to be anxious about slow sales in the buildings and wanted a change. In a press release last year, Muss said 70 percent of the 448 condo units in the first building were sold, while 30 percent were sold in the second. Sales had not yet started in the third tower at the time. Retail space in the shopping center below had been 70 percent leased, with tenants including BJ’s Wholesale Club and Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar. Onex invested $66 million in the Sky View Parc project, and both Muss and Onex approached Related as part of a plan to get things back on track, sources said.