Thor Takes The Wing to Court for $270K in Missed Rent
By Nicholas Rizzi July 10, 2020 2:16 pm
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Thor Equities has taken women’s coworking operation The Wing to court after it claims the company missed nearly $270,000 in rent for its location at 25 West 39th Street, court records show.
Joseph Sitt’s Thor filed a lawsuit in Manhattan Supreme Court on Wednesday accusing The Wing of not paying rent, electricity and real estate taxes for its nearly 12,000-square-foot space since April, during the coronavirus pandemic that forced the company to temporarily shutter its locations, according to the suit.
The landlord also hit The Wing with $10,370.28 in late fees for the missed payment, court documents show.
Spokespeople for Thor and The Wing did not respond to requests for comment.
The Wing signed a 10-year lease for 12,252 square feet on the 11th floor of Thor’s 16-story office building between Fifth Avenue and Avenues of the Americas last year for its fourth location, as Commercial Observer previously reported. Asking rent was $65 per square foot.
However, The Wing — which has pulled in more than $100 million since its inception in 2016 — has been reeling since the coronavirus pandemic forced most workers to ditch offices and stay home.
In April, The Wing laid off the majority of its hourly workers and half of its corporate workforce because of the pandemic and let go of another 56 workers this month, as CO previously reported.
The company also came under fire over the conditions of its staff at its locations — with some complaining of low pay, long hours and poor treatment — and mistreatment of people of color, the New York Times reported.
In June, co-founder Audrey Gelman resigned as CEO and was replaced by an “Office of the CEO” that includes co-founder Lauren Kassan, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Communications Celestine Maddy and Senior Vice President of Operations Ashley Peterson.
Despite Gelman stepping down from her post, some members have still demanded more change from the company over its mistreatment of black staffers and members.
A group of 41 former and current members sent a letter last week calling for Gelman to leave the board of directors, for Kassan to resign as CEO, and for a complete change in The Wing’s company culture, Fortune reported.
The Wing’s suit is the latest in a string that landlords have filed against commercial and retail tenants for not paying rent during the pandemic.
Last month, the owner of a NoMad building sued flexible workspace provider Knotel for skipping $169,040 in rent at 25 West 26th Street.
