When the Astor Place Starbucks closed in 2024 after nearly 30 years, it left a hole in a busy East Village commercial strip — and in the pocket of the Gindi family.
The value of the commercial condo at 21 Astor Place has dropped 72 percent in a decade, from $42 million to $11.7 million, according to Morningstar Credit. The owner, an entity connected to Isaac and Edward Gindi, is currently battling foreclosure.
A company now associated with the Gindis bought the commercial condo for $13 million in 2004, according to city records. Ownership interests appear to have transferred several times, but in 2015, Isaac and Edward sponsored a $26.65 million refinancing loan for the location.
Trouble began a few years later in 2021, when FedEx vacated more than 60 percent of its space in the commercial condo, which extends around the south side of the building on Astor Place. Revenue fell by about 40 percent from 2020 to 2021, according to information from Morningstar.
DoorDash moved in swiftly to occupy the 6,000-square-foot space, lured by 90 days of free rent. That kept the property full, but rents were still lower than their peak, according to the loan servicer.
Starbucks had signed a 20-year lease for just over 4,000 square feet at the condo, across the street from the “Cube” sculpture, in 2004. The site quickly became a case study for the area’s changing demographics.
“East Village grit is giving way to Midtown-style blandness,” The Real Deal wrote in 2007, when Starbucks renewed another lease down the street.
But the coffee chain closed the Astor Place location last year.
“It was a gentrifier that the neighborhood grew to accept pretty quickly,” Curbed eulogized after the announcement. “It found its audience in a million NYU-freshman-year study dates.”
The withdrawal of Starbucks triggered a requirement for the borrower to deposit $1.5 million in the lender’s account, something it failed to do, the lender alleges in a July foreclosure suit. The Gindis, who served as limited guarantors on the loan, allegedly failed to submit documentation about their net worth and liquidity.
“The vacancy at 21 Astor stems from high taxes, complex landmark regulations and lengthy municipal approvals,” Terrance and Darren Oved, the Gindis’ counsel of Oved & Oved LLP, said in a statement. “Our client is actively addressing these challenges and remains confident in securing a suitable tenant for the space and the community.”
The court appointed a temporary receiver to the property on Friday.
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