Israeli investors Udi Gilboa and Yoram Avner are the sponsors of a 52-unit condominium at 1790-1792 Third Avenue in East Harlem, according to filings this week with the New York state Attorney General’s office. The target sellout for condos is $48 million and the developers have given the project the El Barrio-appropriate name “Cereza,” Spanish for cherry.
The property, between 99th and 100th streets, sold to an anonymous Israeli investor back in 2014. Africa Israel Investments [TRDataCustom], founded by Uzbek-Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev, filed construction plans for a rental building on behalf of the investors, but denied any further involvement, The Real Deal reported at the time.
The most prominent investor with the name Udi Gilboa is a biomedical entrepreneur best known for past ventures such as Alcobra and BioBlast Pharma, as well as the Israeli life sciences investment bank known as TopNotch Capital.
Avner is a real estate investor who bought 710 Third Avenue from Sam Chang for $17.4 million in 2015. He also sold one of the most expensive penthouses in Israel that year, an apartment on Rothschild Boulevard in Tel Aviv that went for 87 million shekels, or about $23.6 million.
The condominium attorney for the two investors did not immediately return a request for comment.
Bank Hapoalim has so far lent the pair $14 million in acquisition and construction loans for 1790 Third Avenue, on which Avner is the signatory.
IBI Group-Gruzen Samton, the firm designing Avner and Gilboa’s East Harlem project, released renderings last year. At the time, 6sqft reported that the project would be a 95-unit rental located between East 99th and 100th streets, despite the fact the building permit lists 55 units.
The most up-to-date construction permit applications were filed by Moshik Zemach of Next City Real Estate, who is listed as “Owner’s Rep” in the filings and who did not return a request for comment. It’s possible the developers now plan for a 95-unit building in which 52 units will be condos, but no construction plans to that effect have officially surfaced.
The decision to go condo could be tied to growing optimism about east-side real estate following the debut of the Second Avenue subway, which reaches 96th Street.
Chava Gourarie contributed reporting.