Content area
Full Text
Creditors are closing in on Alexander DiLorenzo 3d, the enigmatic owner of one of the city's largest real estate portfolios and the landlord of the site of the tragic Happy Land Social Club fire.
Court records reveal that Mr. DiLorenzo has defaulted on mortgage payments at several of his properties and at least one promissory note. He also has failed to pay a large legal bill.
This has led to a series of foreclosures against him that former employees and business associates say is symptomatic of a cash crunch threatening Mr. DiLorenzo's real estate empire, valued at more than $500 million. If the crunch continues, he might be forced to seek the protection of federal bankruptcy law, they say.
Mr. DiLorenzo's financial problems are not unique. Like many other area real estate tycoons, his cash flow is being squeezed by the most severe drop in property values since the mid-1970s.
But Mr. DiLorenzo's problems are compounded by the criminal charges and lawsuits against him stemming from the fire. His ability to sell and refinance property also has been hamstrung by legal battles with brother, Marc, and sister, Lisa.
Mr. DiLorenzo must also deal with the distraction of having the executive responsible for running his real estate companies, Robert L. Steele, indicted on federal securities fraud charges. Mr. Steele, who heads Huberth & Peters and Pearce, Mayer & Greer Realty Corp. for Mr. DiLorenzo, is a partner on several investments with Mr. DiLorenzo and was recently charged by federal authorities in...