Eastern Consolidated is suing Joel Schreiber’s Waterbridge Capital, claiming its agents are owed commission over the purchase of an assemblage of properties at 103 North 3rd Street in Williamsburg. The lawsuit adds yet another twist to the already lengthy saga of the Radegast Beer Hall site.
The brokerage claims two of its agents, Nicole Rabinowitsch and Gabriel Saffioti, represented Waterbridge in the $93.2 million purchase of the site but never received a commission. Eastern wants $932,500 in damages.
Waterbridge went into contract to buy the site, which boasts 110,000 buildable square feet and currently houses popular drinking spot Radegast as well as other buildings, from the estate of Olga Sosa in early 2014 for $100 million. The firm initially tried to flip it to Chaim Miller, but the deal fell through.
According to the suit, Waterbridge was able to lower the price to $93 million by the time it closed on the property on April 30 this year.
The suit alleges Rabinowitsch and Saffioti first connected Waterbridge and David Marantz, who sources say represents the estate of his late wife Olga Sosa, in August 2013. The brokers claim Waterbridge initially agreed to pay them a commission of one percent of the purchase price upon completion of a deal.
In January 2014, Schreiber told them he “had been re-introduced to the deal by someone other than” Eastern and had signed a contract to buy the site.
That other party appears to be Dagan LaCorte of L&L Partners Wealth Management, a nephew of David Marantz, who claims to represent the seller and disputes Eastern’s account. “Eastern did not introduce Waterbridge to the seller,” he told The Real Deal. “Waterbridge was introduced to the seller by a mutual friend of mine and Joel Schreiber in November 2013.” LaCorte, until 2013 the mayor of Suffern, New York, claims Rabinowitsch and Saffiot had no role in the transaction.
By Eastern’s account, Rabinowitsch and Saffioti subsequently reached “an express oral agreement” with Schreiber that they would receive a commission, which he subsequently broke.
Waterbridge could not be reached for comment on short notice. Eastern Consolidated declined to comment.