The unending story of Stuyvesant Town continues! Once again tenants in Stuy Town and Peter Cooper Village are trying to buy the 80-acre property so as to convert its 11,232 apartments to condominiums or a cooperative under a plan in which residents could buy their apartments or remain as rent-regulated tenants. If it happens it "would be the largest conversion in the country." Seriously! more ›

Way back in the rosy-colored days of 2009, tenants of Stuy Town and Peter Cooper village rejoiced after a the Court of Appeals ruled that their landlords illegally raised rents on 4,400 formerly rent-stabilized apartments while simultaneously collecting city tax breaks. But how would the poor landlords get out from under the steel-toed boot of "the law" so they could once again nobly raise rent, for capitalism? Easy! Just "empty [your] piggy bank" into a legislator's piggy bank and voila! A law is born! more ›

The man suspected of mugging six women and threatening them with an ice pick in the Bronx and Manhattan was arraigned yesterday, and his cousin offered an explanation about John Martinez's alleged actions. Kenny Colon said Martinez was "stressing about how to afford everything for the holidays... He was thinking about beinggood to his family and Christmas ... not about hurting anybody." Well, in one instance, he was upset that one victim didn't give him enough money, "This is not enough. Take me to your apartment or I will stab your son." No one was hurt in any of the muggings. more ›

The man suspected of robbing six women—while wielding an ice pick of knife—in the Bronx and Manhattan allegedly threatened a child. At John Martinez's arraignment, prosecutors described the robbery at East 14th in a Stuyvesant Town building, saying he approached a woman and her young son in an elevator. Martinez, who has a history of robbery arrests, allegedly said, "Give me your money, jewelry and credit cards," but when she gave him money, he wasn't happy, "This is not enough. Take me to your apartment or I will stab your son." (The boy and his mother were not harmed.) A tipster alerted police to Martinez's whereabouts—he was found near his mother's home in NJ, which was a violation of his probation. more ›

The man suspected of being the "Ice Pick Bandit," striking six times at Co-Op City, Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, was held for violating his probation. According to WPIX, John Martinez, 39, was caught after a "tipster said Martinez was reponsible for the muggings, and when one of the victims picked his photo." Acting on the tip, the NYPD found him near his mother's home in Cliffside Park, NJ. Martinez, who served 8 years for robbery, allegedly threatened women with an ice pick or knife and forced them to hand over money and other belongings. The NYPD is awaiting for Martinez to be extradited; his parole conditions state that he must remain in NY. more ›

It's reported that the man suspected of six muggings at Co-op City in the Bronx and at Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town in Manhattan has been arrested in NJ. The Post reports, "A hulking ex-con was picked up by cops in Bergen County, NJ, over the weekend -- and sources said he's being eyed as the ice-pick predator." In the six crimes, a man wielding an ice pick (or knife) has approached women entering their apartment buildings, threatened them, and taken their money, jewelry, and cellphones. The man in custody, who was apprehended after a tip, allegedly has previous arrests. more ›

A day after the police released images of an ice pick- and knife-wielding man who robbed four women in the Bronx and Manhattan, the suspect apparently struck two more times yesterday. Police believe that the same man is behind the muggings of two women in Stuyvesant Town. City Councilman Daniel Garodnick, who lives in the complex, told the Post, "This guy is really sick. Residents should be extremely vigilant when entering their buildings." more ›

From a $5.4 billion trophy purchase to foreclosed property: The 80-acre Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village complex is now in control of lenders, who, the NY Times reports, are "now expected to begin negotiations with tenants over what could be the country’s largest conversion of rental buildings to a condominium or cooperative. That could start battles among the 25,000 tenants over whether the apartments should remain affordable or be allowed to trade openly on the real estate market." more ›

As the Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village complex heads into foreclosure auction later this month, both the NY Times and Wall Street Journal look at how the development, in spite of its problems under Tishman Speyer, remains attractive. People are expecting a war over the property, and one investor group thinks it'll make a lot of money by turning the rental apartments into co-ops. William Ackman, whose Pershing Square Capital Management and Winthrop Realty Trust is one of the parties in the investor group, tells the WSJ, "The value of the property as a co-op is much higher than the value of the property as a rental." If only Tishman knew that four years ago! more ›

As Stuyvesant Town gets ready for foreclosure, a judge has ruled that current owner Tishman Speyer and past owner MetLife must pay back tenants retroactive rent rollbacks. The Rent Stabilization association's counsel was unhappy that the definition of "retroactive" wasn't determined, because "Do the rollbacks go back one year? Four years? Ten years?" more ›

Nearly four years after being sold for $5.4 billion, Stuyvesant Town headed into a foreclosure sale—CityRoom reports that Judge Alvin Hellerstein "issued the long awaited foreclosure order against the owner of the complexes, a partnership of Tishman Speyer Properties and BlackRock Realty, which defaulted on a $3 billion mortgage early this year... the partnership now owes $3.67 billion, according to court records." Tenants are interested in buying the property, as are some investors; one investor, Wilbur Ross, said, "We will bid only if and when we can do so in concert with the tenants. Any proposal that materially disrupts the tenancy and lifestyle there would be inappropriate and impractical. This is not just a place card in a Monopoly game." more ›

Residents of Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village will get another half year of rolled back rents. The rents were originally lowered last December after a court ruling that found owner Tishman Speyer raised rents illegally. Now the Post reports that the tenants and owner Tishman Speyer "announced yesterday they'll extend the agreement for another six months because they have yet to come up with the final rent tally." This comes as residents of the huge complex are still exploring ways to buy the property. more ›

Some more details are coming out about the three alarm fire that raged through a strip of shops in the East Village yesterday. At around 10:15 a.m. a fire started in Pete's-a-Place on East 14th Street and Avenue A , which quickly spread to four other stores—a hair salon, a tax services business and a vacant store were all damaged by the time the fire was finally out at 1 p.m. more ›

[UPDATE BELOW] Just around 11 a.m. a three alarm fire broke out at 502 East 14th Street, right across from Stuy Town. As of 11:25 a witness told us the fire was "still going and flames are visible." And another witness pointed out that it seems to have engulfed Stuyvesant Convenience, Pete's-A-Place and Jackson Hewitt. We'll update when we have more details... more ›

Now that Bloomberg won't help Stuy Town residents buy the foreclosed complex, hedge fund Appaloosa Management is taking a stab. The Times reports that the New Jersey based fund, led by David Tepper, filed a legal challenge yesterday against CW Capital Management, the company currently overseeing the Stuy Town and Peter Cooper Village complexes on behalf of the lenders. Appaloosa says CW has acted “irrationally and imprudently." more ›

Mayor Bloomberg says he won't dig into the city's wallet to help tenants of Stuyvesant Town take ownership of the foreclosed complex, saying he'd rather the deal go elsewhere. "That's not what we're here to do. We want to make sure that whomever does take it over has a profitable deal," he said. But the Daily News reports that residents think he's judging them unfairly. According to City Councilman Daniel Garodnick, who lives in Stuy Town, "the mayor should not underestimate what the city can do." more ›

Officials have confirmed that human error was to blame for a mis-dispatched ambulance whose would-be passenger died while waiting for its arrival Thursday. At 9:04 a.m. Mariela Lazaro called 911 and said her son’s nose was bleeding, but she was too upset to give her exact cross streets. While searching for the address in the database a 911 worker hit the wrong key and located Avenue C in Brooklyn, though Lazaro was actually calling from Avenue C in Manhattan’s Stuyvesant Town. An emergency crew rushed to the outer boroughs address, but quickly realized something was wrong. Less than twenty minutes after the original call another crew found its way to the correct home, but by then it was too late, the boy was dead. more ›

Four years after buying the middle-class housing complex in what was deemed the most expensive deal in real-estate history, the owners of Stuyvesant Town/Peter Cooper Village are giving it over to their investors. Tishman Speyer and BlackRock Realty bought the 11,227 apartment development in 2006 for $5.4 billion, but since then its value has decreased to a third of that, estimates the Wall Street Journal. Facing bankruptcy, the real-estate giants see no option but to hand the keys to their investors. more ›

After one of the largest ever defaults on an individual property last week, the future of Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village is looking more confusing than ever. Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village debt holders have demanded payment from Tishman Speyer Properties LP within 10 days, with foreclosure looming on the horizon, says Bloomberg.com. While a restructuring is certainly in order for the housing complexes, Tishman Speyer, tenants, and elected officials all have different ideas about what that means. more ›

A collective cry of "uh-oh" is echoing through Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village. That's because owners Tishman Speyer will miss a $16 million loan payment on the East River complexes today, which would put them in "technical default" on their mortgages. The whole confusing financial mess reaches back to last year; then in October, Tishman Speyer was ruled to have improperly charged market rates on previously rent-stabilized apartments while getting tax subsidies, and over Christmas the government refused to sponsor a bail-out. more ›

It's a New Year's miracle! After being unable to rent vacant apartments, Tishman Speyer will be making 100 apartments available on January 4th, at rent-stabilized prices. Apartments will be made available to "current rent stabilized residents of the community, with the remaining apartments being offered to all others on the waiting list," according to Curbed. This comes with Tishman's agreement to roll back rents for six months starting in the new year. The Court of Appeals ruled in October that Tishman Speyer, the development in charge of the Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village complexes, illegally raised rents of former rent-stabilized apartments while still receiving tax breaks from the city. more ›

The Post reports that Tishman Speyer "failed to get a $1.5 billion Christmas bailout they had hoped to collect from Uncle Sam...to cover a cash shortfall" on Stuyvesant Town-Peter Cooper Village. In October, the state's highest court ruled that Tishman improperly charged market rates on previously rent-stabilized apartments while getting tax subsidies. The Post adds, "As of last month, the owners had just $6.75 million left in reserves for StuyTown, according to credit rating agency RealPoint. That isn't enough even to cover December's costs, which include more than 6 percent interest on a $3 billion loan." The complex has 11,000 apartments. more ›

The tenants at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village are rejoicing after development owner Tishman Speyer agreed to roll back rents for six months starting in the new year. In October, the Court of Appeals ruled that Tishman illegally raised rents of 4,400 former rent-stabilized apartments while still receiving tax breaks from the city. more ›

When the state's highest court ruled in October that the new owners of Stuyvesant Town should not have raised rents beyond certain set levels while also receiving tax breaks from the city for major renovations, other landlords started to sweat. Tishman Speyer, which bought the sprawling housing complex in 2006 but must now pay back millions of dollars in rent rebates, is not the only property owner in the city to raise rents on formerly rent-stabilized units, while also getting a J-51 tax break. Smelling fresh meat sensing injustice, the lawyers have sprung into action! more ›

Yesterday one ebullient Stuyvesant Town tenant said he expected his market-rate apartment to revert back to rent-regulated rent levels "immediately," now that the state's highest court has ruled that property owner Tishman Speyer improperly raised rents while also receiving tax breaks from the city. But tenants are almost definitely in store for more legal foot-dragging from Tishman Speyer, which could be liable for some $200 million in damages. After fighting off the tenants' lawsuit for years, Tishman Speyer isn't just going to roll over, especially since the company is at high risk of default on some $4.4 billion in loans. Every million counts! more ›

In a decision that could have major repercussions for landlords of rent-controlled buildings citywide, the state’s highest court has ruled this morning that owners of the sprawling Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village complexes in Manhattan improperly charged market-rate rents on thousands of apartments. In what is probably the final deathblow for Tishman Speyer's ownership of Stuy Town, the Court of Appeals ruled that the owners should not have raised rents beyond certain set levels while also receiving tax breaks from the city for major renovations. more ›

When we last checked in on the state of the sprawling Manhattan apartment complex known as Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town, it was at high risk of default on some $4.4 billion in loans. That was the beginning of September, and the prognosis is still negative. At the end of the month, it had $33.7 million left of the $400 million in interest reserves set up to service its debt, sources tell the Wall Street Journal. This means that at its current burn rate of about $16 million per month, the reserve could be depleted before the end of the year. more ›

Stuy Town and Peter Cooper Village tenants suing property owner Tishman Speyer had another big day yesterday, when the state's highest court heard arguments in a trial that could set a costly precedent for landlords at rent-regulated buildings citywide. The tenants' lawyers said Tishman's conversion of rent-regulated apartments into market-rate units was illegal because the developer received tax abatement, something the state legislature forbids. But Tishman's lawyers argued that the law doesn't apply to them because the apartments became rent-stabilized 18 years before the developers got the tax breaks. A semantic debate about the word "become" ensued, with Judge Robert S. Smith finally asking, "You might say that I became a grandfather for the third time last month. Isn’t that normal English, even though I was already a grandfather?" (His point, seemingly, was that the law's use of the word "became" shouldn't be so strictly interpreted by Tishman.) But the bigger question yesterday hinged on what impact a verdict for the tenants would have—they're seeking some $200 million in damages from Tishman, whose lawyers warned that landlords could have to repay “tens, if not hundreds, of millions of dollars” to tenants who were overcharged, should the Appeals court uphold the lower court's ruling. more ›

Today's Times exposé on the financial woes gripping the owners of StuyTown and Peter Cooper Village is filled with insider analysis that makes our eyes glaze over, such as, "At Stuyvesant Town, there is a $3 billion first mortgage, or commercial mortgage-backed security, and a $1.4 billion second loan, known as “mezzanine debt” held by SL Green, the government of Singapore and others." But the bottom line is easy enough to grasp; as one analyst puts it, "I’d say their equity has been wiped out, given the decline in apartment values." more ›

A sodden young man in Stuy Town recently took the adage about not shitting where you eat quite literally, and decided to do his business in one of the stairwells. The incident, described vividly by a commenter on StuyTown Lux Living, highlights the roiling tension between longtime rent-stabilized tenants and rowdy arrivistes who've moved in since landlord Tishman-Speyer pushed out some of the old-timers and raised rents. more ›