Douglas Elliman’s Portfolio Escrow Claws Back in Court

Here we go again.

When William Grasska, the founder of Douglas Elliman’s Portfolio Escrow and his former firm last year settled their dueling lawsuits against one another, it was all quiet in California — up until this past week.

Last year’s lawsuits brought out the mudslinging, dragging the Altman Brothers Team into Grasska’s complaint (the agents were not defendants), while Portfolio raised the idea that its founder had been involved in a kickback scheme with an unidentified reality TV star later reported to be the Oppenheim Group’s Jason Oppenheim (also not a defendant).

Similar allegations involving the high-profile dealmakers reared their heads once again in a pair of lawsuits, one filed Monday and the other on Friday, as the legal drama marches on.

On CEQA …

With the passage of the latest exemptions to the California Environmental Quality Act, it’s now a guessing game to see which developers and markets stand to benefit the most.

Many are looking at the coastal areas where development typically sees plenty of challenges as a possible recipient of a ramp in projects. Time will tell.

As Affirmed Housing President Jimmy Silverwood tells it, the latest CEQA changes are “exciting,” but developers have spent years trying to figure out how to make projects work. Affordable housing developers like Affirmed have many tools in the toolbox to bolster their projects with certainty that they can be pushed through the approval process without headwinds that add time and money onto a project.

Malibu movement

Malibu’s resi market seems to have been on vacation of late.

Dealmaking is off from what the coastal city saw last summer in blockbuster deals that included what is now the state’s priciest ever listing with the reported $210 million sale of a Malibu estate sold by Oakley founder Jim Jannard.

Still, this week’s $49.8 million trade of 29130 Cliffside Drive is certainly nothing to sneeze at and is one of the larger closings in L.A. County of late in what’s become a relatively quiet period for eyebrow-raising deals, particularly in Malibu.

Elsewhere in L.A. County listing news, Cary Grant’s former Beverly Hills estate has made its way onto the market, with a $77.5 million asking price. The home at 9966 Beverly Grove Drive is being sold by Barbara Jaynes, the former wife of Grant, and her current husband, David Jaynes, following an extensive, multiyear rebuild.

Pelican Crest rising

Newport Coast’s high end continues to chug along.

Fresh off Orange County’s priciest deal this year in May with the $42 million closing of 1 Pelican Crest Drive in Newport Coast, another big listing has hit the market in 22 Pelican Crest Drive.

The property, which the listing describes as a “pie-shaped” lot, is asking nearly $30 million.

The more recent market movement in Newport Coast’s ritzy Pelican Crest neighborhood, which sits close to the Pelican Hills Golf Club and Resort at Pelican Hill, appears to be aided in part by dental executive Amir Neshat’s reworking of his OC real estate portfolio.

Neshat, who founded dental benefits administrator Liberty Dental Plan, was the seller behind the county’s record deal and is the seller once again with this most recent listing.

Another score for condo conversions

Miami developer Crescent Heights would like to turn its Century City high-rise into condominiums.

There are two takeaways here.

One is the continued buzz around Century City. It’s been characterized as the new downtown, even within the pages of The Real Deal’s most recent monthly magazine, as law firms and other office tenants flock to ink leases there.

The other point is that the 40-story tower, called Ten Thousand, could be viewed as another notch in the belt of L.A.’s condo market, suggesting that sales talk around high-rise living isn’t just empty marketing speak.

The developer filed plans with the city to convert the 283-unit apartment property at 10000 Santa Monica Boulevard. It said in its application it does not intend to perform any construction work or create new lots.

Ten Thousand is the latest condo conversion project in the L.A. area for Crescent Heights after it said last year it intended to transform the medical offices at 6200 West Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Grove into a 200-unit condo community.

Shopoff nabs win, while Irvine Co. hits snag

Expect to see more housing go up in Fountain Valley.

Shopoff Realty scored a win in the Orange County city, where it’s now armed with the approvals to build residential on some 18 acres that will be developed into Euclid + Heil.

Lennar and National CORE are partners on the project, located at 16300 Euclid Street.

When completed, Fountain Valley will see 304 market-rate apartments and 83 affordable units, in addition to triplexes and townhomes.

Elsewhere in OC, the Irvine Co.’s plans to turn the Oak Creek Golf Club in Irvine into a 3,100-unit housing development that would also include a new school and parks may be heading down an interesting path.

The City Council is mulling the possibility of placing the project on the ballot for voters to make the call on approval. In some ways, the call was already made back in 1988 when voters agreed to keep the golf course as open space.