Meyer Equities is suing Harry Macklowe over claims the mogul is meddling with the company’s $28 million offer to buy the Children’s Aid Society’s Midtown headquarters near Grand Central Terminal.
An affiliate of Meyer, led by the father-and-son team of Marty and Eric Meyer, made an offer in November to buy the nonprofit’s headquarters at 150 East 45th Street for $28 million, knowing full well that the owner of the neighboring property had a right-of-first-refusal agreement allowing them to match the offer within 30 days, according to a lawsuit filed Friday in New York State Supreme Court.
Macklowe had signed the ROFR agreement back in 1981 when he owned 2 Grand Central Tower next door at 147 East 44th Street. But he sold that seven-story, 32,500-square-foot property to Boston Properties in 2008, which in turn sold it to Rockwood Capital in 2011 for $401 million. Meyer claims that the ROFR agreement belongs to whoever owns the property, not the person who signed it.
Regardless, Meyer said Macklowe exercised the option and is now negotiating with the Children’s Aid Society to purchase the property.
Representatives for Macklowe, the Children’s Aid Society and Rockwood couldn’t be immediately reached for comment.
“CAS is negotiating with Macklowe, on the mistaken understanding that Macklowe was the ROFR holder under the ROFR agreement at the time CAS received the offer,” Meyer’s attorney wrote.
Meyer Is Asking The Court to rule that Rockwood is the holder of the ROFR agreement, and that the window to match their offer has closed.
In August, the Meyers left Colliers International after years handling office leasing deals at the brokerage. They then formed Meyer Equities to invest and manage their family’s existing portfolio of 1 million square feet in Manhattan office buildings.