Lev Leviev

Yesterday afternoon, the Daily Transom received an emailed invite for a cocktail party taking place on Thurs., Dec. 5 to "celebrate the holidays" with Harvey Weinstein's online community A Small World (a.k.a. Facebook for millionaires) and the luxury diamond brand Leviev at the brand's Madison Avenue boutique.The email's subject line was, "Socials Buck the Recession with Champagne & Diamonds,"

Young socials like Dalia Oberlander, Jennifer Creel, Gillian Hearst-Shaw, and actress Kiera Chaplin, will be modeling some of the jewelry while socialites Amanda Hearst, Annelise Peterson, and Annie Churchill play hostess.

   read more »

Israeli banks are growing increasingly fearful that Lev Leviev's Africa-Israel--owner of the old New York Times building and other New York City trophies--will be unable to repay the more the $4 billion (or 14 billion shekels) he's taken in short- and long-term loans, according to an article in today's Haaretz:

"Lev Leviev's Africa Israel Investments owes Israel's banks more than NIS 14 billion in long-term and short-term liabilities, and the bankers are evidently growing nervous about the huge amount. Within days the two biggest lenders, Hapoalim and Leumi, are expected to receive rights to yet more shares in the Africa Israel parent company to secure the debts."

 read more »

Africa Israel Investments LTD has said that it will sell a nearly 50 percent stake in its Manhattan towers to an investment fund based in the Far East, according to Bloomberg.com:

"Africa is selling 49.9 percent of its holding in the Clock Tower and 49 percent of the Times Building properties in midtown Manhattan, as well as its entire stake in the 23 Wall Street/15 Broad Street property downtown, the Yehud, Israel-based company said today in a statement.

The buyer, identified as an investment fund from the Far East, will pay $200 million for the properties.

 read more »

We got some skinny on the District, the new luxury (what isn't?) condo in the financial district from Israeli gazillionaire Lev Leviev and nightlife impressario Amy Sacco. The District, set to open at 60 Ann Street in the spring, will offer buyers studios, one- and two-bedrooms starting in the $500s and penthouses starting from a relatively low $1.1 million.

More than that, however, the condo will offer Ms. Sacco as "lifestyle director." In that capacity, the Bungalow 8 owner will provide "the myriad luxury services and facilities which have made her other business ventures such successes amongst the urban cognoscenti."

Also, there's the commutes, which include a:

• 1 cappuccino & croissant walk to work on Wall Street
• $7 taxi to Prada in SoHo
• $8 taxi to Spotted Pig in West Village
• 12 minute ride to The Waverly Inn in Meatpacking District

Lev Leviev will soon have some competition up on Madison Avenue.

Mauboussin, the high-end Parisian jeweler, has signed on for 8,400 square feet at 714 Madision Avenue, according to Newmark Knight Frank’s Amira Yunis. The building was formerly occupied by upscale women’s clothing store Shanghai Tang.

Founded in 1827, Mauboussin is one of the oldest jewelers in Paris. It will certainly have its work cut out it for itself at 714 Madison, where the rent comes in at just over $2 million for the year.  read more »

Lev Leviev and Shaya Boymelgreen have set the terms to their break-up. The two were a seemingly ubiquitous part of the city's recent real estate building boom, but not any more. Still, like most breakups, theirs will linger until it's permanent.

A press release comes from Israel with lots of juicy details, and it's Lev Leviev who's the big-time winner.

Lev Leviev will gain full development control on the group's most valued projects at 23 Wall Street and 88 Leonard Street; and also the commercial part of the 15 Broad Street project, Gowanus Village; and the commercial and parking parts of the W Squared project. Shaya Boymelgreen will assume full control of Atlantic Court, 10 Chelsea, Beachfront Community and the commercial parts of 84 Front Street and 85 Adams Street.

The hot press release from Israel is found after the jump.

 read more »

The Clocktower at 1 Madison Avenue officially belongs to Lev Leviev.

The building went to contract for $200 million in May to Leviev's Africa Israel, which purchased it from SL Green, Aby Rosen's RFR Holding and Ian Schrager.  read more »

"Lev Leviev is an incredible visionary," Thierry Chaunu, president of Leviev Diamonds, told The Observer. "I mean, he built an empire in 30 years!"

Mr. Chaunu is in New York to tout Mr. Leviev's new retail diamond store opening at 700 Madison Avenue on Oct. 15. The store will cater to the "young hedge fund professional who just got his bonus," according to Mr. Chaunu.

Although he is in town on diamond business, Mr. Chaunu could not speak enough about his boss.

"Mr. Leviev is an extremely focused individual who loves to take risks," Mr. Chaunu explained. "But at the same time he is an extremely devout man. He is a humble man who likes to spend time with his family and friends." Mr. Leviev has nine children.

While Mr. Leviev made his fortune in diamonds, he now has his fingers in a number of different industries. He owns gas stations, swimwear lines, hotels in Israel and television stations in Moscow, according to Mr. Chaunu. He is even the largest owner of 7-Eleven franchises in the United States.

And, of course, Mr. Leviev's Afirca Israel has made some substantial real estate buys in New York in recent months, most notably old The New York Times building at 229 West 43rd Street and the Clock Tower on Madison Avenue.

Although not on the real estate side of Mr. Leviev's ventures, Mr. Chaunu sees the upside of the New York buys.

"As high as the price seems now for The New York Times building, it will be much higher in five years," Mr. Chaunu said.

Very astute, sir.

The New York Post is reporting that Africa Israel, the company that is in contract to buy the old New York Times building on West 43rd Street for $525 million, has "tendered the accepted bid" to buy One Madison Avenue, the legendary old Met Life building with its iconic clock tower looming over Madison Square Park.

If it is contract, it would be the second trophy won in three weeks by the developer Lev Leviev, who heads up Africa Israel.

It was less than three weeks ago that principals at SL Green confirmed to its investors that One Madsion was even for sale. The building was going on the market and would have a formal bidding process, one that generally takes months.

But just like he did with the Times building, Mr. Leviev has evidently named his number and come down with it in one fell swoop before the process even went to first round bids.

Ian Schrager, who is one of SL Green's investment partners in the building, told The Observer first last month that the building might be up for sale.

That was fast. Less than three weeks after it came on the market, the soon-to-be old headquarters of The New York Times will be sold for $525 million – triple what the New York Times Company sold it for three years ago.

 

Africa Israel, a company owned by the Uzbeki-born Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev, is in contract to purchase 229 West 43rd Street from Tishman Speyer, according to reports from GlobeSt.com and The Wall Street Journal.  read more »

Good-bye to all that: The Apthorp, one of the most coveted and romanticized rental buildings in New York City, will be converted into condos, according to The Wall Street Journal. Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev bought a 50 percent stake in the 163-unit building at 2207 Broadway in a $426 million deal that closed on Wednesday night.

With the Apthorp's ground-floor retail factored into the deal, the purchase price is about $2.4 million per apartment, making it the most expensive price ever for an American residential building.

The Apthorp, with rents as high as $20,000 a month, has been home to Conan O'Brien, Al Pacino, and Nora Ephron, who last year wrote a long love letter to the Upper West Side building in The New Yorker. Ms. Ephron, like many Apthorp tenants, had been protected from market-rate rents through regulation. Many apartments remain rent-stabilized, meaning the new owners will have to either buy out tenants or otherwise boot them for the condo conversion.

- Tom Acitelli

• The polish immigrant who confessed to triggering the city's biggest fire since 9/11--the blaze that consumed historic Brooklyn waterfront warehouses--may be an innocent man. "It would have been impossible for him to have started that fire," swears his boss, upstate in scenic Pond Eddy. "Because he was here, working for me." (New York Daily News)
• Real estate tycoon Shaya Boymelgreen and longtime business partner Lev Leviev have gone their separate ways. Boymelgreen is leaving one Israeli millionaire (Leviev) for another (Nochi Dankner), and will turn his attention from Brooklyn developments--condos in Park Slope, Beacon Tower in Dumbo-- toward the riches of India. (Globes, via Curbed)
• On September 10, we'll all open our Times and find something that may be "extraordinarily hot"--brand new Key, a biannual high-end real estate rag. Crain's graciously calls it "yet another special interest supplement." (But we knew about it first). (Crain's)
• "Multiple sources" say big red Rothko, a Lower East Side indie rock mecca, has closed its doors forever. RIP. (Brooklyn Vegan)
• The Port Authority chairman gives "his most explicit warning to date," and things over at the Freedom Tower aren't looking so sunny. "I think there's every reason to be optimistic," Deputy Mayor Doctoroff chirps. We disagree. Meanwhile, Senator Schumer constructively adds: "We have a plan to move forward. What we don't have is explicit certainty..." (The New York Times)
- Max Abelson
• 0 comments

Although the Plaza’s new ceiling is certainly newsworthy, what's more exciting is that the state attorney general’s office just approved the conversion plan, which had been expected about two months ago. The 6,300-square-foot triplex is being offered at $32.5 million.

After famously battling De Beers, how tough could Manhattan’s condo world be for billionaire Lev Leviev? Now, alongside Shaya Boymelgreen, the developers go beyond Downtown by Starck with the conversion of http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/11/realestate/11deal.html ">20 Pine Street.

Speaking of downtown luxury condos, Bruce Willis is heading for a penthouse at Cipriani’s 55 Wall Street for $10 million, according to the New York Post. And contrary to The Times star witness, there seems to be more evidence that Lenny Kravitz is not dropping $50 million on the Duke Semans mansion.

Staying nearby her Strokes beau, Drew Barrymore buys a Bleecker Street duplex for about $2.5 million, according to New York magazine.  read more »

And even though the G Train “smelled like a sewer,” an intrepid grad student moves to Greenpoint anyway. See you at the Pencil Factory, dude!

-Michael Calderone