Eyal Ofer finally landed a decisive victory in his protracted battle with David Moinian.
The heavyweights have been duking it out for almost four years for control of the Mondrian Park Avenue hotel in NoMad.
But this week, a judge awarded a judgment in favor of Eyal Ofer, allowing the property to finally be sold.
The origins of the dispute date back to 2021. Ofer, a shipping magnate ranked by Forbes as the wealthiest Israeli, picked up the $110 million mortgage on the 190-room hotel at 444 Park Avenue South a year after the hotel temporarily shut down because of the pandemic.
The hotel’s owner David Moinian’s Moin Development and Ofer’s Global Holdings came to a settlement agreement allowing Moin to pay off the balance by the end of June 2023. But Moin allegedly defaulted on the agreement and Ofer took back the keys through a deed in lieu.
The two sides have been locked in dueling lawsuits since 2023. Moin Development alleges in one lawsuit that the Ofer’s group was a “loan to own” lender and failed to provide it with a payoff lender to pay off the loan. It claimed that the deed was not a “legally valid conveyance.”
Meanwhile, Ofer’s side argued the borrower owed $140 million and sought to appoint a receiver.
In September 2023, Ofer made moves to sell the hotel for up to $150 million and hired Adam Spies and Doug Harmon of Newmark to market the property for sale. But the litigation appears to have held up the sale.
Moin, meanwhile, has gone through numerous attorneys during the course of the lawsuits. One law firm, Meister Selig, alleged Moinian’s group owed the law firm over $86,000 in unpaid legal fees.
This week, the judge entered summary judgment in favor of Ofer, granting a referee to calculate damages.
“We are proud to have secured this outstanding result for our client and look forward to guiding them towards the finality, closure and resolution they rightfully deserve,” said Ofer’s lawyers, Terrence and Darren Oved of Oved & Oved, in a statement.
An attorney for Moin did not return a request to comment.
Moin Development acquired the former office building at 444 Park Avenue South in 2011 for $45 million. The developer partnered with Sam Nazarian’s SBE Entertainment Group on a conversion. Moinian bought Nazarian out just before the hotel opened in 2017.
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