Developer Louis Greco has reached a $100,000 settlement with the New York Attorney General’s office for not disclosing in filings that he was a principal sponsor at 11 different condominium developments, an issue Greco characterized as a misunderstanding.
Attorney General Letitia James announced the settlement with Greco and his wife Linda Greco on Tuesday. He failed to identify himself as a principal of condos at 90 William Street, 80 Leonard Street and 516 West 47th Street in Manhattan, along with 100 Congress Street, 75 Columbia Street, 153 Lincoln Place, 1 Grand Army Plaza, 56 Court Street, 53 Boerum Place, 322 Hicks Street and 60 Court Street in Brooklyn, according to her office.
“New Yorkers have a right to know who is developing their potential home,” James said in a statement. “Purchasing a home is one of the biggest commitments that a consumer can make, and they should not have to do it blindly.”
Offering plans for condominiums are required to identify the names of their sponsors and principals under New York law, but only Greco’s wife was listed as a principal at the 11 aforementioned projects. James’ office didn’t disclose why Greco wasn’t on the sponsorship paperwork.
Greco said his name not being on all of the documents was just a misunderstanding of the law, and he was not actively trying to hide his involvement in the condo projects. His name appears in multiple news articles about the developments, and he described the settlement with James’ office as “amicable.”
“It was more about poor drafting of the documents and misinterpretation of the rules by the people involved in putting the plans together,” he said, “but if I was really trying to hide myself, I certainly wouldn’t have been out there, and I’m sure the penalty would have been a lot greater.”
Greco had worked on 1 Grand Army Plaza, designed by Richard Meier, with Procida Companies. Company executive Peter Procida donated $5,000 to James’ campaign last year, but the AG returned the money to him without explanation following questions from The Real Deal about donations James had received from the real estate industry.
Greco’s company Second Development Services recently started converting the headquarters of Brooklyn Community Services at 285 Schermerhorn Street into a mixed-use condo project that will stand 14 stories tall.