3/20/2023 0 Comments The life supertall leaks creaks![]() The 125-unit building is nearly sold out, but since reports of defects emerged in February, resales have been slow, according to Donna Olshan, president of Olshan Realty. ![]() ![]() While attempting to patch a leak on a sublevel of the building in June, a contractor mistakenly drilled into electrical wiring, causing an explosion “which threw the contractor backwards, several feet through the air”, knocked out the power for some residents, and shut down the air-conditioning system. The suit says the decision to go public was a result of the developers’ inadequate “band-aid approach” to resolving many of the issues. Another resident said the trash chute "sounds like a bomb" when garbage is tossed. The suit claims that even Richard Ressler, a founder of CIM Group and a unit owner, once said the sound and vibration issues were "intolerable", and made it difficult to sleep during inclement weather. Noise complaints related to the quality of construction were frequent. About 35 units and common areas were damaged by water, causing millions in damages, and one flood disabled two residential elevators for weeks. There have been a number of floods and leaks, both on high floors and in the subbasement, which the board attributes to poor plumbing installation. Residents have been trapped “on several occasions” for hours in stalled elevators, at least in part because of the building sway that occurs in towers of such immense height, the suit says.įault claims: residents have complained about multiple floods, faulty elevators, ‘intolerable’ noise caused by building sway, and an electrical explosion. It cites defects in a number of interrelated systems in the building, many of which present “life safety” issues. “Far from the ultraluxury spaces that they were promised, however, Unit Owners were sold a building plagued by breakdowns and failures that have endangered and inconvenienced residents,” the complaint says. Buyers have included the Saudi retail magnate Fawaz Alhokair, who purchased an $88 million apartment on the 96th floor a member of the Beckmann family that owns the Jose Cuervo Tequila brand and the one-time pairing of Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez, who bought a 370sq m (4,000sq ft) apartment for $15.3 million in 2018, and sold it about a year later. "This is a work in progress in ascertaining what's wrong."īuilt in 2015 with a projected sellout value of $3.1 billion, the pencil-like tower marked a pinnacle in luxury condominium development in the city – much of it geared toward part-time residents and investors who hid their identities behind shell companies. "It's almost like peeling an onion," he says, referring to defects that may yet be uncovered. The damages could rise, according to Jonathan Adelsberg, a partner at the law firm Herrick Feinstein, which is representing the condo board, which residents took over from the sponsor in 2020. The damages include the estimated cost to repair about 1,500 construction and design defects in common elements of the building that were identified by an engineering firm hired by the condo board it does not include potential punitive damages, or separate lawsuits that individual residents might file.īuyers have included a Saudi retail magnate, who purchased an $88m apartment on the 96th floor, a member of the family that owns Jose Cuervo tequila, and the one-time pairing of Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez "This case presents one of the worst examples of sponsor malfeasance in the development of a luxury condominium in the history of New York City, " the complaint filed with New York supreme court claims, referring to the building's developers, CIM Group and Macklowe Properties. The 425m skyscraper, designed by the firm of the star architect Rafael Viñoly, first came under scrutiny in February, when the New York Times revealed many of the claims made in the new suit. The condo board at 432 Park Avenue, the supertall Manhattan tower that is one of the most expensive addresses in the world, is suing the developers for $125 million in damages, citing multiple floods, faulty elevators, “intolerable” noise caused by building sway, and an electrical explosion in June – the second in three years – that knocked out power to residents, according to a lawsuit filed on Thursday.
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