‘Twists’ in the wind
High Line towers project languishes in debt
In the latest twist on “The Twists” — a stalled pair of Bjarke Ingels-designed luxury condo towers over the High Line park — a foreclosure auction later this month might not come anywhere near resolving the complicated saga, sources told The Post.
The towers’ unfinished appearance has puzzled High Line strollers since construction came to a halt in late 2019. They’re officially named The XI after their 11th Avenue location between West 17th and 18th streets.
The lender on the quirkily angled buildings, the Children’s Investment Fund, a UK hedge fund, scheduled an Oct. 28 auction date on the debt of embattled HFZ Capital Group developer Ziel Feldman’s $2 billion project.
They 26- and 36-story towers of reinforced concrete were to include 236 luxury condo apartments, the first Six Senses Hotel in the US, an extravagant spa and 90,000 square feet of high-end retail.
But despite the looming foreclosure auction — which is not a court action, but a public offering — sources said the impenetrable tangle of claims involving The XI might take much longer to resolve.
Companies that worked on the project are seething over the veil of intrigue. One subcontractor told The Post, “We have no idea when or if the project will proceed. Nobody will talk to us.”
Although the property might appeal to developers and investors in a rebounding condo market, “This situation is not for the faint of heart,” a financial source said.
“It has more moving parts than an octopus. It’s like a giant squid with a million tentacles of claims and complications.
“Resolving the debt has to come first before any construction can resume,” the source added.
A New York judge ruled in July that Feldman’s HFZ owes the British fund $136 million after Feldman failed to make monthly interest payments since April 2020. An HFZ spokesman said at the time it would appeal the ruling.
HFZ co-principal Helene Feldman didn’t respond to e-mail requests for comment.