Donald Zucker accused of waging war against parking garage, Keller Williams sued over tech: Daily digest

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Donald Zucker flew into a rage when a parking garage operator refused to give up their lease, according to a new lawsuit. The suit, filed Thursday, claims that Zucker sent eviction notices to all of the parking garage operator’s locations in his portfolio. Select Parking got a five year lease for the garages in April, but Zucker wanted the buildings vacated for a sale he was negotiating, the lawsuit claims. [Crain’s]

Million Dollar Listing New York star agent Ryan Serhant was hit with a dual agency suit. The buyer of a Tribeca condominium claims that Serhant allegedly“falsely inflated” the unit’s price. A lawsuit seeks $1 million in damages and names Nest Seekers international as well as Wells Fargo’s Elad Rahamim, the buyer’s financial advisor. [TRD]

A developer’s $1.2 billion bet on a casino went bust. Resorts World Catskills has been in the red every quarter since their opening 18 months ago, and their most recent U.S. Securities and Exchange filing showed a $36 million loss in the second quarter. Kien Huat Realty, which owns most of the casino, said it would team up with Genting Malaysia to buy out stockholders at $9.74 per share —  $1.54 more than its current trading price. [NYT]

The “King of FiDi” is picking up another building for an office-to-resi conversion. Nathan Berman’s Metro Loft Management is in contract to buy AIG’s 31-story headquarters at 175 Water Street for $270 million.The developer plans to convert half of the space into residential when AIG’s lease expires in 2021. [TRD]

It looks like the Trump Tower’s address won’t be renamed to Barack H. Obama Avenue, after all. An online petition with 290,000 people wasn’t enough to convince City Council speaker Corey Johnson, who said he was “not confident this is the best way.”[NYT]

The architect behind the Oculus is having legal troubles. Santiago Calatrava was fined by a Venice court for going $5 million over budget on a bridge. The Constitution Bridge on the city’s Grand Canal had flimsy steps and mismatched tubes, according to the court. Meanwhile, at the Oculus in New York, the structure’s retractable skylight has been leaking. [BBC]

There isn’t an industry-wide standard to prevent wire fraud, but these startups are trying. Wire fraud schemes cost the real estate industry $150 million last year, according to an FBI report. Companies like CertifID use various forms of encryption, identity verification and portals to avoid methods of communication that are vulnerable to fraud. [WSJ]

Keller Williams is being accused of stealing tech. TPI Cloud Hosting alleged in a lawsuit that the brokerage skipped paying the bill for their services, and made off with their company prototype. In addition to $1.8 million in payment, the lawsuit seeks damages and describes Keller Williams’ strategy as “steal or copy what you have.” [Inman]

Sheldon Solow wants to push out more tenants on Billionaires’ Row. The landlord is trying to empty out 35 West 57th Street by kicking out a Kosher restaurant. Solow, worth $5.2 billion according to Forbes, may have plans for the building, which sits adjacent to a lot owned by LeFrak and Vornado Realty Trust. [NYP]

Marx Development Group just landed three loans to make its development dreams come true. The financing, provided by Mack Real Estate Credit Strategies, includes a $201.5 million loan for a tech-forward 29-story hotel near Hudson Yards that will open next month, $100 million for a nearby 42-story hotel and a $67 million loan for two 37-story residential towers. [CO]

Landlords are finding creative ways to get around the limits on application fees. The overhaul of the state’s rent laws capped them at $20. Now, the tactics have inspired two lawmakers to draft legislation to fine those who don’t toe the line. [The City]

Blackstone is refinancing an 11-building portfolio with a $364 million loan. Morgan Stanley and junior mezzanine lender Mirae Asset Daewoo are providing the debt for the buildings, which are valued at $542 million, giving the debt a loan-to-value ratio of 67.2 percent. [CO]

60 East 12th Street and Slate Property Group’s Martin Nussbaum and David Schwartz (Credit: Google Maps)

Slate Property Group picked up a market-rate rental near Union Square. David Schwartz’s company and Boston-based Alcion Group paid $106.5 million for the 13-story building, which has an average rent of $3,884 according to StreetEasy. It is not under any form of rent regulation. The seller, Heller Realty, picked up the property for $35 million in 2016. [TRD]

President Trump is interested in buying Greenland. The permafrost-covered 836,000-square-mile autonomous Danish island is not currently listed. He’s not the first president to try to buy Greenland: Harry Truman tried to buy the territory for $100 million in 1946, but the Danes said no. [TRD]

Maverick Real Estate Partners couldn’t foreclose on a Chelsea apartment building earlier this year. Now, it’s taking another shot. Although the case was dismissed, landlord Andreas Steiner alleges that lender Maverick is tacking on 24 percent punitive interest — which amounts to $1.4 million as of May 30.
[TRD]

Compiled by Georgia Kromrei

FROM THE CITY’S RECORDS:

New permit filings:
Colin Cohen pre-filed an application for an 8-story, 52-unit, 71,870 mixed-use building at 955 Nostrand Avenue in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. [DOB]

Commercial sales:
Simon Baron sold a building at 166 West 75th Street on the Upper West Side for about $51.5 million. [ACRIS]

Compiled by Mary Diduch