St. Marks Place owner battles Maverick over $6.1M UCC auction

Lawrence “Lorcan” Otway, owner of the 14,400-square foot, three-building property at 78-80 St. Marks Place in the East Village,
seeks to block note holder Maverick Real Estate Partners from holding a UCC auction of his interest in the property, which his family has owned for decades. The buildings contain seven residential apartments, a restaurant, a theater and a gangster museum.

This suit is part of a trend this year of borrowers suing to block UCC auctions. The other suits included Yoel Goldman, who filed suit in January, EB-5 investors who sued to block a sale at 3 West 29th Street, and CW Realty, which sought to block a UCC auction at 187 Kent Avenue.

Hirshmark Capital provided a $6.1 million loan in November 2019, which matured a year later, on December 1, 2020. At the time of the loan, the Otways had annual revenues of approximately $800,000, according to the complaint. Then the Covid-19 pandemic forced theaters and restaurants to close. Hirshmark sold the debt to Maverick on December 1, 2020. Maverick sent a notice in September 2021 to Otway that they would hold a UCC auction, set for November 18, 2021, to sell Otway’s interest in the building. The building, according to the complaint, was constructed in the 1820’s over a Dutch hunting cabin from the 1630s. The cabin’s foundations are visible in the basement, the complaint says. Otway claims, “The Notice is unreasonable in that it does not provide Plaintiffs sufficient time in which to cure any default…” and that Otway has potential refinancing options, including from a California-based lender called Whisper Capital which, the complaint says, valued the building at $15 million.

Lawsuit LINK

Direct link to Acris document. link