David Dubin, developer and CEO of the Chicago-based Dubin Residential, has been ordered to pay more than $15 million to his lender after defaulting on loans tied to two planned projects on the South Side.
Court records show that two federal judges ruled in favor of PNC Bank N.A., which sued Dubin last year to collect on personal guarantees he provided to secure the two loans on the properties in Bridgeport and McKinley Park.
Dubin borrowed the money in 2006 and 2007 with the intention of building 496 condominiums and townhouses on the parcels. After the condo crash ended these plans, he failed to pay off the loans when they came due in November 2010.
David Dubin Attempted To Settle
PNC has been granted permission to pursue Dublin’s assets as it also continues to pursue foreclosure suits against the properties in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Dubin’s lawyer criticized the bank for rejecting a proposed settlement, calling the situation “a poster child of a workout gone wrong.”
ChicagoRealEstateDaily.com reports that Dubin’s lawyer, Ariel Weissberg of Chicago-based Weissberg & Associates Ltd., said Dubin offered to pay the bank $8 million and another “substantial amount of cash” to settle his debts.
“The properties will fetch maybe a million to a million-and-a-half if (PNC is) lucky,” Weissberg said. “There was a lot of lost opportunity to both sides.”
Dubin’s Failed Property Plans
In Bridgeport, Dubin had planned to convert a former Spiegel Inc. administration building at the corner of Morgan and 35th Streets into approximately 160 loft-style condos and commercial space. He also planned on creating 366 condos and townhouses on a vacant parcel on 3600 S. Western Ave in McKinley Park.
Jeff Benach, co-principal of Chicago developer Lexington Homes LLC, supported Dubin’s plans, saying that he thought they would have been good developments for the areas.
“Dave’s a good guy and he’s always been a good developer. I’m sure he’ll be back,” he said. “He got caught like most of us got caught.”
ChicagoRealEstateDaily.com reports that Dubin still wants to continue developing real estate. Other recent projects include the Shoemaker Lofts in Avondale and the sold-out Wabash Club in the South Loop.