Stuy Town Servicer Wants ‘Fair and Just’ Outcome, Praises Garodnick
By Eliot Brown January 26, 2010 11:07 pm
reprintsCWCapital, the taciturn financial firm that controls the senior mortgage at Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, has broken its public silence.
Late last week, just before co-owners Tishman Speyer and Blackrock decided to jump ship on the property, Charles Spetka, president of CWCapital Investments, penned a letter to Councilman Dan Garodnick, who lives in Peter Cooper Village.
CWCapital, which is the special servicer on the senior mortgage and will likely control the property from here on out as it sorts through the desires of the various creditors, didn’t say much definitive, but pledged to be open throughout the process. “We are committed to continuing to develop a better understanding of the residents’ point of view, maintaining open lines of communication, and working together to find a solution which is fair and just,” Mr. Spetka wrote.
(This stands in contrast to the firm’s press strategy, which is summed up on its Web site: “Due to the confidential nature of special servicing contracts and functions we can not discuss any details related to properties within our special servicing portfolio.”)
Mr. Spetka made clear in his letter that the firm’s obligation is to “protect the first mortgage lenders’ ability to be repaid the $3 billion that was lent,” though he suggested the interests of tenants and lenders are aligned. “The current situation is difficult but we believe strongly that the underlying value of these properties is directly linked to maintaining the attributes of Peter Cooper Village and Stuyvesant Town that have consistently attracted residents to the properties and led so many residents to call them their home for generations,” he wrote.
He ended the letter by lavishing some praise on Mr. Garodnick for his leadership on the issue—never a bad move with an elected official, particularly one who was a thorn in the side of Tishman Speyer.
“We understand that you are an outstanding community leader,” he wrote. “We pledge to you that as we move forward in this process, we will make every effort to work cooperatively with you and the residents.”
