Severing collaborations with China amid security concerns could undermine American progress in critical areas, some scientists are warning.

Trucking company Yellow Corp., which filed for bankruptcy earlier this month, employed more than 400 Washington workers who will lose their jobs as the company liquidates.

The currency crisis might not follow the classic emerging-market template: Rather than a sharp depreciation stemmed by painful interest-rate rises, we are more likely to see a slow but inexorable decline.

Commodity merchants are pumping billions of cubic meters of natural gas into Ukrainian reservoirs, hoping the war doesn’t disrupt potential profits.

Working out or just working? More gyms are encouraging remote-working members to stay all day and do both.

The firm exited its loan investment after rival lenders offered better terms to finance Yellow’s liquidation.

Epstein was advising Google co-founder Sergey Brin in 2007 on setting up a tax-saving trust for his children, according to new court documents.

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield is close to a deal to refinance a $925 million loan on its Westfield Century City mall in Los Angeles, The Real Deal has learned. 

Morgan Stanley will fund the two-year, floating-rate loan, which will be pooled into a commercial mortgage-backed securities offering, according to a release from Fitch Ratings and data from Trepp. The deal is expected to close Aug. 29. 

The Westfield mall, a 1.4-million-square-foot shopping center at 10250 Santa Monica Boulevard, is one of the anchors of Century City, which has become an office and retail hub for the Westside. On a weekend, the open-air mall teems with people. Taiwanese hotspot Din Tai Fung, the younger millennial-loved Aritzia and Zara, Italian grocery chain Eataly, Tesla and Apple all occupy spaces at the mall. 

Unibail did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Three department stores anchor the property — Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s and Nordstrom — and together reeled in about $200 million in sales from March 2022 through March of this year, according to Fitch. 

The deal values the mall at about $1.35 billion, or about $964 per square foot, given the deal’s loan-to-value ratio of 68.5 percent. 

Unibail will use the funds to return $909.5 million in equity back to the company and pay closing costs of $18.5 million, according to Fitch. 

The interest rate on the deal is unclear. A recent floating-rate CMBS deal for two hotels in Dallas was priced at the secured overnight financing rate plus 3.15 percent.

However, the Westfield mall refi is one of the largest CMBS deals to close this year, for any asset class — and the largest tied to a property in Los Angeles. In July, Rick Caruso scored a $450 million CMBS loan with a fixed rate of 7.1 percent to refinance his Americana at Brand mall in Glendale. 

Westfield, the Australian company acquired by Unibail-Rodamco in 2018, has owned the property since 2002. In 2017, the firm finished a $1 billion renovation of the mall. 

“The property is considered one of the top malls on the West Coast,” Fitch said in its report. 

For the last two years, Unibail has planned to sell its malls in the U.S. And it’s willing to stop making debt payments on them, too. 

In June, the firm and Brookfield Properties ceased making payments on a $558 million loan tied to the Westfield San Francisco Centre mall, after Nordstrom announced it would exit the property. The companies plan to hand the keys to the lender.

The post Westfield Century City close to securing $925M refinance appeared first on The Real Deal.

CIM Group is advancing in its battle with Harry Macklowe.

The firm initiated a Uniform Commercial Code foreclosure against Macklowe’s interests in three condos at the swanky 432 Park Avenue. 

The two sides have been engaged in heated litigation as Macklowe alleges Los Angeles-based CIM swindled him out of $110 million in distributions he claims he was owed for developing the ultra-luxury condo tower. Meanwhile, CIM alleges Macklowe is living lavishly while defaulting on $46 million in loans it provided on three units in the building.

CIM Group tapped Northgate Real Estate Group’s president Greg Corbin and Felix Ades to market the interests in the units, which make up the entire 78th floor and also include an accessory unit on the 28th floor. 

The auction is set for October 11, according to marketing materials. Matthew Mannion of Mannion Auctions is the auctioneer.

Macklowe and CIM did not return a request for comment.

The foreclosure is a sign that CIM Group is moving aggressively to cure Macklowe’s alleged default. If CIM succeeds, it would also be a symbolic blow to  Macklowe. The developer’s name and comeback story is closely related to the 1,400-foot-tall ultra luxury tower that is a key piece of Billionaire’s Row and one of the tallest buildings in the world. 

Macklowe bought the site for 432 Park Avenue, then the Drake Hotel  for $413 million in 2006. But he soon ran into trouble with property debt during the financial crisis and in 2010 CIM Group swooped in and paid off his debts in the property. Macklowe then sold his interests to CIM Group, which agreed to pay the developer a promote, or a fee, on future sales.

As part of the deal, Macklowe was entitled to 20 percent of the profits once CIM received its initial investment as well as a 15 percent return. After CIM got a 20 percent return, Macklowe’s compensation increased to 50 percent of the profits.

But things didn’t go as planned. In May of 2022, Macklowe acquired three units in the buildings. He claims he planned to pay for the units using proceeds owed to him by CIM, but maintains he did not receive any payments. Instead, CIM lent him more than $46 million to acquire the units.

CIM alleges Macklowe defaulted on those loans. 

Macklowe then sent CIM a notice of arbitration alleging that a 2011 amended agreement required them to settle out of court. But CIM claimed that agreement does not apply to Macklowe’s loans.  The lawsuit remains pending.

The post CIM Group moves to foreclose on Macklowe’s 432 Park Avenue units appeared first on The Real Deal.

Wildhorn Capital wants to cash in on East Austin’s rapid growth, as it pursues a multifamily expansion near East Riverside Drive.

The Austin-based firm is working with city officials to rezone 530 units, spanning two apartment complexes, at 2207 Wickersham Lane and 2239 Cromwell Circle, the Austin Business Journal reported. 

If the city approves Wildhorn’s request to raise the site’s building height limit from 40 to 120 feet, the developer could build 2,100 units. The Austin Planning Commission recommended the zoning change in a 9-1 vote last week, sending it to city council for final approval.

The properties, totalling 23 acres, were most recently valued at roughly $71 million by Travis Central Appraisal District. Wildhorn’s development could be considered transit-oriented due to its proximity to bus stops and the city’s planned light rail network. 

Wildhorn would reserve more than 90 units as affordable housing, available to renters making 60 percent of the region’s median family income level, which is about $66,000.

“The existing homes are near the end of their useful lives barring serious investment, without the zoning they would likely clear the site and double the amount of housing by-right with zero affordability,” Greg Anderson, of the Planning Commission, told the outlet. 

The project has received some pushback from local residents. Malcolm Yates, chair of the East Riverside Oltorf Combined Neighborhood Plan Contact Team, said the property shouldn’t be eligible for rezoning, since much of the land is outside the recommended quarter-mile perimeter surrounding the Pleasant Valley Transit Hub. Others have concerns about displacement, as the area continues to be overtaken by large-scale developments.

PlaceMKR, for instance, is planning a $450 million mixed-use development at the intersection of East Riverside and Highway 71. River City Capital is also working on a $40 million expansion of a multifamily property at 6400 East Riverside Drive. 

—Quinn Donoghue

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The post Wildhorn wants upzoning for 2,100 apartments  appeared first on The Real Deal.