Dune Real Estate Partners has agreed to pay $190 million for Anglo Irish Bank’s mortgage loan on the embattled Mark Hotel on the Upper East Side, the Wall Street Journal reported. The note, which had a face value of around $300 million, had several interested bidders, including Starwood Capital, in an offering that had been ongoing for months. Dune now plans to work with Alexico Group, the developer of the landmark, 84-year-old hotel, whose renovation and partial co-op conversion had landed the property in financial straits. Comments

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Developer Simon Elias and Flatotel

Developers Simon Elias and Izak Senbahar of the Alexico Group are suing Anglo Irish Bank for $1 billion in a funding dispute over $500 million of loans that the bank gave to the men and their companies to redevelop three Manhattan hotels, the Mark, the Alex and the Flatotel, the Irish Times reported. The bank would not comment, but sources said it intends to defend the lawsuit and that the developers’ case has no merit. [more]

Louise Sunshine and the Mark

Anglo Irish New York is quietly selling loans on three upscale
hotels owned by Alexico Group totaling $350 million
to $400 million, industry sources told Crain’s. It was
unclear if Alexico had defaulted on one or more of the loans
associated with the properties, which are the Mark Hotel on East 77th
Street, the Alex Hotel on East 45th Street and the Flatotel
on West 52nd Street. But sources familiar with the deal said the
prospective buyers were only interested in the mortgages because they
hoped to eventually foreclose on the company. Alexico, where industry veteran Louise Sunshine is director of development, recently
invested at least $100 million into renovating the 16-story Mark, hotel. It planned to convert some suites into private
residences that it would sell to pay off debt, but fell short of the
cash it needed and borrowed $255 million from Anglo Irish. The other
hotels don’t appear to have the same issues as the Mark. However,
Alexico has had problems with some of its residential developments
such as the Laurel condos
on the Upper East Side, where buyers have filed lawsuits to break
contracts. [Crain's]

[more]

Louise Sunshine and the Mark

Anglo Irish New York is quietly selling loans on three upscale
hotels owned by Alexico Group totaling $350 million
to $400 million, industry sources told Crain’s. It was
unclear if Alexico had defaulted on one or more of the loans
associated with the properties, which are the Mark Hotel on East 77th
Street, the Alex Hotel on East 45th Street and the Flatotel
on West 52nd Street. But sources familiar with the deal said the
prospective buyers were only interested in the mortgages because they
hoped to eventually foreclose on the company. Alexico, where industry veteran Louise Sunshine is director of development, recently
invested at least $100 million into renovating the 16-story Mark, hotel. It planned to convert some suites into private
residences that it would sell to pay off debt, but fell short of the
cash it needed and borrowed $255 million from Anglo Irish. The other
hotels don’t appear to have the same issues as the Mark. However,
Alexico has had problems with some of its residential developments
such as the Laurel condos
on the Upper East Side, where buyers have filed lawsuits to break
contracts. [Crain's]

[more]

At least four buyers are trying to back out of their contracts at the Mark Hotel, the landmark property at 25 East 77th Street and Madison Avenue that reopened in January after a $200 million renovation, according to the Wall Street Journal. Developer Alexico Group had originally planned to finance the makeover by selling 42 suites in the high-end hotel and residences, but scaled back that offering to 10 units due to a lack of demand. Seven contracts have been signed, but only two have closed for a combined $15.7 million. [more]

The New York Observer looks at the current status of 2008′s most
expensive apartment listings. Of the 10 properties listed for over $45
million in late 2008, half have been taken off the market without
selling. The one property that sold, a penthouse in the Time Warner
Center, saw its price reduced to $37.5 million from $65 million before
selling. Two of the 10, a $60 million penthouse at the Mark and Aby
Rosen’s $75 million 22 East 71st Street home, have not seen price cuts. [more]