After almost 18 months of negotiations, tenants of Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village have reached a $69 million settlement in their rent overcharge action against the current and past owners of the apartment complexes, bringing their total recovery including previous agreements up to $147 million. The settlement received preliminary approval from Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Richard Lowe III (See Profile) on Nov. 29, according to a press release from Wolf Haldenstein Adler Freeman & Herz and Bernstein Liebhard, the firms representing the plaintiffs. A hearing on final approval is set for April 13.
Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Co., which owned the complex until 2006, will contribute $10.5 million, and its current owners, a pair of holding companies controlled by Tishman Speyer Properties LP, will contribute $58.25 million. The rest of the recovery comes from a 2009 interim agreement with Tishman Speyer. The tenants will likely save $10 million to $20 million in future rent as a result of settlement as well, according to the press release.
