[chris08876]

Not the best managers...

===================

Empire State Building's managers face new investor suit

The Empire State Building's managers were accused in a new lawsuit filed in federal court in Manhattan of defrauding investors when the New York skyscraper was taken public.

Similar suits in state court in Manhattan were dismissed in July after a judge said the investors had agreed not to sue the managers, Peter Malkin and his son Anthony, after settling with them in a related case. Investors in those cases said the Malkins wrongfully turned down higher offers for the building by itself to drive up the value of 17 other Malkin-owned buildings by making the Empire State Building the centerpiece of a real estate investment trust.

Investors allege in the case filed Thursday that the Malkins schemed to "usurp power, revenue and ultimately the building itself," from its owners by issuing false and misleading statements to gain investors' consent to the consolidation of the properties. The trust of the Malkin owned-buildings is called Empire State Realty Trust Inc., according to the complaint.

"Although the Empire State Building owners bore the expense of the transaction, defendants reaped enormous windfalls, including securities projected to be worth over $730 million," according to the complaint. Investors say that as a result of the actions by the Malkins, the proceeds of the public offering were reduced by at least $234 million.

===================================
http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article...-investor-suit