Avery Hall Investments scooped up a Crown Heights development site where Yoel Goldman once planned to build a flashy hotel.
A spokesperson for Avery Hall declined to say how much it shelled out for 1550 Bedford Avenue, which Goldman put into bankruptcy early this year. Goldman sought approval in May for a stalking-horse bid of $10.1 million, according to bankruptcy court documents, though he had valued the site at $14 million.
Maxi Capital provided financing for the deal, said Avery Hall principal Brian Ezra, adding the firm is weighing “multiple uses” for the property.
The sale marks the latest in the unraveling of Goldman’s Brooklyn empire, which ballooned to a billion dollars before collapsing under mountains of debt, liens and lawsuits. His company, All Year Holdings, was dismantled piece by piece after bankruptcy officers seized control of it in 2022 and sold off the assets.
The Bedford Avenue site was not owned by All Year, but was one of Goldman’s personal holdings. He picked it up in 2014 for $7 million and poured the foundation for a 100-key hotel designed by ODA, according to the bankruptcy filing. But when the pandemic hit, funding dried up, interest payments stopped and mechanic’s liens piled up to more than $1.4 million.
Goldman owed Downtown Capital Partners some $45 million on the project after default interest ballooned on the original $10 million loan, according to court documents. Rather than foreclose, lender Gary Katz let Goldman place the property into bankruptcy, ensuring unsecured creditors get at least something back.
The property was expected to go for $13 million to $15 million, Katz said at the time. But it attracted no bidders besides Avery Hall, according to court filings.
Meanwhile, All Year’s restructuring team is chasing down Goldman’s alleged “handshake deals” with Brooklyn pals, including his neighbor and yeshiva buddy Yoel Silberstein. Goldman, facing a barrage of questions, has repeatedly pleaded the Fifth.
Katz and a lawyer for Goldman did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Read more
Yoel Goldman puts planned Crown Heights hotel site into bankruptcy
Lawyers question Yoel Goldman’s “secret” deal with Brooklyn investor
“I suppose a lot of people have a full stomach from what he did:” Inside Yoel Goldman’s very bad year