Camber Property Buys Bankrupt Hell’s Kitchen Building for $40M

UPDATED, June 11, 6:11 p.m.: Workforce housing developer Camber Property Group acquired a Hell’s Kitchen apartment building out of bankruptcy for $40.3 million.

The acquisition brought an end to the five-year reorganization process involving the 96-unit building at 440 West 41st Street, according to public records.

In early 2016, the entity that owns the building fell behind on payments for a $28 million mortgage issued by Stabilis Capital Management. David Goldwasser of GC Realty Advisors, who specializes in debt workouts, was hired and filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 in March 2016, according to the filing. Goldwasser declined to comment.

At the same time, the owner also was facing more than $2 million in fines for illegally operating the building as a short-term rental facility, according to public records. But as part of the bankruptcy process, the city reduced the penalty payments to $375,000 under the condition that the property be brought up to code and cease all illegal hotel operations. The Mayor’s Office of Special Enforcement, which handled the case, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Co-founded by L+M alumni Rick Gropper and Andrew Moelis, Camber Property Group has developed and rehabilitated dozens of mixed-income and workforce housing projects in the city. The company declined to comment on the Hell’s Kitchen acquisition.

Correction: A previous version of this article said that Ben Zion Suky led the owner entity that filed for bankruptcy. That was incorrect. He sold the property in 2015, and the loan default came under a different ownership.