NEW YORK | 29th & 5th (8 West 30th Street) | 686 FT | 43 FLOORS

[chris08876]

HFZ lays off staff as legal and financial problems mount
Developer contending with lawsuits and foreclosure actions tied to several condo projects

HFZ Capital Group has laid off a number of employees as the developer’s financial and legal troubles mount.

Two sources familiar with the matter said the layoffs and furloughs mainly affected people working in the construction side of the business and also those at the company’s main office at 600 Madison Avenue.

“Unfortunately, due to the prolonged nature of the pandemic and its expected timeline, HFZ has to furlough some of its employees, with the goal being to bring them back,” a spokesperson for HFZ said in an email. “Other employees were laid off.”

The developer has been under pressure as it deals with a slew of lawsuits from lenders and subcontractors over delinquent loans and unpaid bills tied to several of the firm’s Manhattan condos.

The layoffs, which come before the holiday period and as New Yorkers brace for another wave of Covid-19, will affect an estimated 20 to 30 jobs, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. That number could not be independently corroborated by The Real Deal.

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TRD

[JMKeynes]

[chris08876]

Credit: Michael Young via NYY

[RobEss]

^

Crime scene

[chris08876]

Site from above.


Credit: The Dronalist

[JMKeynes]

A Christmas miracle may be forthcoming!

https://therealdeal.com/2020/12/23/l...zs-nomad-site/

[chris08876]

Credit: Emoglez

[NYer34]

Vandals.

Barbarians.

[chris08876]

Pic by me. Taken today.

There were very busy today. Site is in full swing.



29th & 5th - 03-20-2021 - 1 by Christopher Estevez, on Flickr

[NYguy]

https://therealdeal.com/2021/04/23/h...elopment-site/


Apr. 23, 2021
By Rich Bockmann

After an 11th-hour effort to stave off foreclosure, HFZ Capital Group and the Marble Collegiate Church have lost control of their NoMad joint venture.

Mezzanine lender Vanbarton Group took control of the development site at Fifth Avenue and West 29th Street, where the church has stood since 1854, in a UCC foreclosure auction Friday afternoon, according to Matthew Mannion of Mannion Auctions, which conducted the auction.

The tug-of-war over ownership of the site, where HFZ planned to develop a 34-story office tower, came to an end after HFZ made a last-ditch effort to retain control. The developer on Thursday applied for a temporary restraining order to delay the auction and, earlier Friday, threatened to throw the project into bankruptcy to gum up the works.

A judge felt the borrowers were in disarray and denied the restraining order, a source familiar with the case said.

In addition to HFZ and Marble Collegiate Church’s efforts to halt the auction, a trio of EB-5 investors also pursued a temporary restraining order in an attempt to avert foreclosure proceedings. Attorneys for the Marble Collegiate Church argued against the EB-5 investors’ application for a TRO.

[JMKeynes]

I knew that HFZ would lose this site and that we'd be spared from having this monstrosity!!!!

[JMKeynes]

https://therealdeal.com/2022/01/11/v...wer-architect/


This is an example of the quality that the new developer builds.

[JMKeynes]

I want to check if Vanbarton has filed anything with the DOB. Does anyone know the address their using to file for this project?

[chris08876]

Originally Posted by JMKeynes

I want to check if Vanbarton has filed anything with the DOB. Does anyone know the address their using to file for this project?

Should be: 5 WEST 29 STREET MANHATTAN

BIN: 1090489


05/11/2020 123874940 01 A2 R PERMIT-ENTIRE 05/27/2022 0090694 PE CERMAK NOT APPLICABLE
TEMPORARY ACCESS RAMP
Work on Floor(s): 001

04/20/2020 121204133 07 NB J P/E DISAPPROVED 07/23/2020 SCHENK AMENDED 01/24/2020
POST APPROVAL AMENDMENT FOR 01 CONSTRUCT NEW 43 STORY OFFICE BUILDING AS S
Work on Floor(s): SC2,SC1,ROF 001 thru 042

04/17/2020 121204133 06 NB D A/P ENTIRE 04/20/2020 0066709 PE GERAZOUN AMENDED 01/24/2020
POST APPROVAL AMENDMENT FOR 03
Work on Floor(s): SUB,CEL,MEZ,PEN,ROF 001 thru 042

[Crawford]

I hope we get a landmark supertall here, given all the air rights.

Wouldn't be shocked if they switch to residential, either.

[JMKeynes]

Originally Posted by Crawford

I hope we get a landmark supertall here, given all the air rights.

Wouldn't be shocked if they switch to residential, either.

I agree. Vanbarton indicate that they would commence work in the fourth quarter of 2022. Since that’s forthcoming, I wanted to see if anything new was filed.

[JMKeynes]

This sheds light on the delays.

https://therealdeal.com/2022/06/30/c...ship-with-hfz/

[chris08876]

KPF To Redesign Stalled Office Skyscraper At 3 West 29th Street In NoMad, Manhattan

The final building on YIMBY’s Turkey Week rundown of stalled projects is 3 West 29th Street, a 34-story commercial skyscraper in NoMad. Originally designed by Bjarke Ingels Group and developed by HFZ Capital Group, the structure was planned to rise 551 feet tall and yield 600,000 square feet of office space, but work has failed to progress beyond the early stages of excavation. Pavarini McGovern is the general contractor for the property, which is located between Fifth and Sixth Avenues.

Excavation was getting underway at the time of our last update in 2020, but work stalled shortly thereafter. Since then, an undisclosed developer took over from HFZ and brought Kohn Pedersen Fox on to redesign the tower. No new renderings have been released. The following images are of BIG’s original concept for the project, which was initially dubbed “29th & 5th.”

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NYY

[chris08876]

Work Remains Stalled On KPF-Designed Skyscraper At 3 West 29th Street In NoMad, Manhattan

At number five on our Turkey Week rundown of stalled and on-hold projects is 3 West 29th Street, a planned 34-story skyscraper in NoMad. Originally designed by Bjarke Ingels Group and developed by HFZ Capital Group, the 551-foot-tall structure, dubbed “29th & 5th,” was expected to yield 600,000 square feet of office space, but work shut down after HFZ defaulted on the project. Vanbarton Group purchased the development in the ensuing foreclosure sale and retained Kohn Pedersen Fox to redesign the building, but progress has yet to materialize. The through-block property is located between Fifth and Sixth Avenues adjacent to Marble Collegiate Church, and extends north to West 30th Street.

Recent photos show the partially excavated site devoid of activity, with the deepest points points on the southern half of the lot submerged in stagnant water. The tops of several concrete pilings and steel beams can be seen protruding from the surface of the pools, while temporary wooden walls hold back some of the larger cylindrical steel pilings along the western corner of the lot. Leftover orange and white plastic construction barriers, a lone excavator, and a construction dumpster all sit idle behind the sidewalk fencing.

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NYY

[RobEss]

I still can't believe NYC allows developers to demolish beautiful, perfectly functional old buildings on the promise of some glassy vaporware, only for that site to then sit as a barren gravel lot for the next 10 years...