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Will Whittle be around next year?
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Anonymous
Paywall. Cannot read. Why is this publication the only one that is covering this story? I see that WaPo used to trot CW out as a visionary educator in its TED-talk style events and panel discussions. Are they paying him some favor by not covering this? |
Anonymous
WaPo barely has a metro section at all anymore. It's the primary reason I cancelled my subscription |
Anonymous
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Here is the article from WBJ: The Northwest D.C. building that houses the Whittle School is no longer under the threat of immediate foreclosure, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
Axonic Capital, the lender for 4000 Connecticut Ave. NW, started the foreclosure process in January. The 650,000-square-foot building, formerly the headquarters of Intelsat, is owned by the 601W Cos. and Berkley Properties, both of New York, and the site is occupied by the Whittle School, a private K-12 boarding school. The land is owned by the federal government. The balance owed on the debt totals nearly $162.4 million, according to a public foreclosure notice filed Feb. 2 with the D.C. Recorder of Deeds. The foreclosure auction was originally scheduled for March 24 at the D.C. office of Baltimore-based Alex Cooper Auctioneers, according to the notice, but the auction never appeared on Alex Cooper's foreclosure sale schedule. The details that led to the auction and its recent cancellation are unclear, but a source familiar with the matter, who declined to comment on the record, said the situation that prompted the sale was resolved internally between the parties involved. No new documents have been filed with the Recorder of Deeds since Feb. 2. Chris Whittle, chairman and CEO of Whittle School & Studios, declined to comment. In February, he told the Washington Business Journal that the school had planned to bid for the building so that its operations can continue. His company faces financial challenges of its own. It has been accused of not paying roughly $35 million to contractors and construction companies for work and services they performed on the D.C. site and the education company's other campuses in Shenzhen, China, and Brooklyn, New York. Those allegations have been detailed in mechanic's liens and lawsuits, and Whittle said in November that new funding to cover the owed money is on the way through planned capital raises. RECOMMENDED COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE Developer looks to build on 5-acre parcel near Shipyards CAREER & WORKPLACE Meet Albuquerque Business First's 2022 40 Under 40 honorees RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE ‘Slab farming’: One builder’s quest to construct affordable homes in DFW’s soaring market The 601W Cos. acquired 4000 Connecticut for $85 million in 2012, with Berkley becoming a minority partner in 2018. Michael Silberberg, who is named in the foreclosure notice, is founder and CEO of Berkley Properties, as well as a managing member of The 601W Cos., whose website said it's currently "under maintenance." Silberberg did not respond to requests for comment. The 601W Cos. also could not be immediately reached. A representative for Axonic Capital, a New York-based commercial real estate lender, did not respond to requests for comment. Sequoia IDF Asset Holdings, listed in the foreclosure notice as a co-holder of the note, declined to comment. We've reached out for comment to Franz Rassman, an attorney at D.C.'s Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, who was listed on the notice as the contact to stop the foreclosure sale, and will update this story when we hear back. Whittle School & Studios has subleased the building since 2018, according to deed records. Whittle renovated the property into a 1 million-square-foot educational complex, which opened in September 2019 even before the $187 million project had finished. In 2018, 601W and Berkley obtained a $170 million loan from Ladder Capital Finance LLC, an affiliate of New York-based mortgage lender Ladder Capital Corp (NYSE: LADR), according to deed records. Ladder Capital is not named in the foreclosure notice. The debt appears to have shifted to Axonic in May 2020, according to deed filings. |
Anonymous
They have several education reporters but they’re all too busy trying to take down public schools. |
Anonymous
| The WBJ article is not up to date. Yesterday Lease and Trust assignment docs were filed with the city Grantor: Axonic Credit Opportunities Master Fund . Grantee: WSREF 4000CT Lender LP --you can go to the DC Recorder of Deeds and read the docs. |
Anonymous
In a given week there are usually a story or two about my county and most are puff pieces. |
Anonymous
| The only revealing thing in the WBJ article is CW refusing to comment. That man normally doesn't miss an opportunity to share his evergreen optimism for funds being on the way |
Anonymous
For those of us ignorant on matters pertaining to commercial real estate, what does this assignment mean? |
Anonymous
| MOre importantly - who would be foolish enough to put that kind of money down. I sure hope those families have made other arrangements for next fall. I cannot believe it is even still around. It is just sad.... |
Anonymous
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Anonymous
Most definitely- the only families predicted to stay are people with kids in 11th grade and elementary school kids. I can assure you I will be taking my son out, it’s been one hell of a ride and I’m just done. I do give props to the school for the individualized education because it does work for some-the teachers are good and so are the kids. But I guess this week we can hear straight from the belly of the beast with the in person townhall. I am still stuck on the wording of the email posted here from a few weeks ago it’s disrespectful administrators dont respect families decisions to leave and use terminology that indicate families only applied to schools just as a place holder and don’t see themselves going there(after a long admissions process that was late due to all of the problems being sent out during Christmas break and teachers had to decide to send in the kids recommendations or apply for their own jobs… just shameful.) If any Whittle parents are on here and have paid the deposit and are confused about moving forward, I say go for it. It’s best to be somewhere financially stable without many rumors on what’s really going on in the school. |
Anonymous
| Former Head of Whittle (Bisgaard) came to Maret to interview for the Head position. Any feedback from parents who had him while at Whittle? |
Anonymous
Nothing but good words. He was an amazing guy, always found a way to connect with the kids and parents and his wife is very kind. Some things that have happened at the school wouldn’t have happened during his time for sure. |
Anonymous
Second parent here, he was a really great head and had that kind demeanor about him. The ways he demonstrated himself through actions definitely showed that he was better than any heads we have to date. |
Anonymous
Everything went downhill after Dennis Bisgaard and Ara Brown left Whittle. Also, so many teachers left the school, and it has been like a revolving door. The current administrators at Whittle are incompetent and have no clue about what they are doing. I feel bad for the students and teachers. |