Aby Rosen is not packing his bags at SoHo’s 11 Howard. Not this week, anyway. His firm, RFR Holding, refused to vacate the boutique hotel after a three-day civil trial in Manhattan, setting up a high-stakes clash that could ripple through the neighborhood’s hospitality scene. Landlord Commerz Real says an RFR entity stopped paying rent in March 2024 and is pushing for possession, while RFR argues it is pursuing a separate repurchase claim in state Supreme Court. With on-site restaurants and more than a hundred workers hanging in the balance, the judge urged both sides to settle instead of grinding through a long eviction fight.
What Happened in Court
The possession dispute played out over three days in New York City Civil Court, where Commerz’s lawyers argued that RFR kept running the hotel even after receiving lease termination notices, according to The Real Deal. Anthony Coles of DLA Piper, representing Commerz, told the judge, “It’s really time to put an end to their possession. Enough is enough,” the outlet reported.
Outside the courthouse, RFR’s legal team countered that the company has an active appeal of a January ruling in state Supreme Court and therefore has not moved out, framing the standoff as part of a broader legal chess match rather than a simple holdover.
Sale-Leaseback That Created the Tangle
The current mess traces back to a 2016 sale-leaseback. Commerz Real acquired the newly renovated property while RFR stayed on as operator under a long-term lease that included repurchase options, a structure described in Commerz’s 2016 press release. Public documents and industry reporting show that RFR bought the former Holiday Inn in 2014, transformed it into the boutique 11 Howard, and then sold the asset in April 2016 for roughly $170 million. See Commerz Real and the public appraisal for transaction details.
Numbers at the Center of the Fight
A former Commerz asset manager testified that RFR piled up roughly $42 million in unpaid rent, taxes and other fees, a figure RFR disputes, while the hotel reportedly generated about $25-30 million a year for the operator, according to prior reporting. The property has about 211 keys and a staff of roughly 108 people, details that led the judge to say she was “very concerned” about the workforce and to press both sides to resolve the matter quickly, The Real Deal noted.
What Comes Next
The judge ordered both parties to submit briefs and again pushed them to look for an out-of-court deal. Commerz has said it will pursue damages in a separate proceeding to be decided later. Industry reporting has noted that Commerz intends to terminate its lease with RFR over the alleged unpaid debt, which would put control of the hotel squarely in the landlord’s hands if the court signs off.
RFR’s pending appeal of the January decision means the dispute could wind through multiple legal forums before there is a final outcome, leaving hotel employees and on-site restaurants to watch closely as the tug-of-war over possession and damages continues; see earlier coverage in the Commercial Observer.
