Bank Hapoalim Sells 140 Fulton Street to Rivington Company for $26M

Bank Hapoalim has sold a development site in Manhattan’s Financial District that it took over from borrowers as a settlement in July.

One of Israel’s largest financial institutions, Bank Hapoalim sold the property at 140 Fulton Street to residential development firm the Rivington Company for $26 million after taking control of the site from Hidrock Properties over the summer, according to property records.

Rivington Company’s Travis Stabler signed the deed for the buyer. It’s unclear what the plans are for the vacant lot, but permits were filed for a 41-story hotel in 2019 following Hidrock’s $19.8 million acquisition of the property the year prior.

Hidrock took out about $36.9 million in financing from Bank Hapoalim around the time of the purchase, according to property records, but the hotel was never erected. The company did make some progress, demolishing a slim, six-story building that stood at the site between Nassau Street and Broadway.

Stabler and Bank Hapoalim did not respond to requests for comment.

Rivington is known for creative approaches to multifamily development in New York City. The company filed plans to convert the former St. Joseph’s Church at 53 Catherine Street into 38 housing units in May. 

The month prior, Rivington bought 185 Marcy Avenue in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, for $28.7 million, with plans to turn the top three floors of the six-story building into residences.

For decades prior, the building at 140 Fulton with ground-floor retail had been owned by Century 21 parent company ASG Equities, which has been offloading its properties in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, following the closure of the original department store in that neighborhood.

Mark Hallum can be reached at mhallum@commercialobserver.com.