XML 44 R21.htm IDEA: XBRL DOCUMENT v3.10.0.1
Commitments and Contingencies
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2018
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
Insurance
We maintain general liability insurance with limits of $300,000,000 per occurrence and per property, and all-risk property and rental value insurance coverage with limits of $1.7 billion per occurrence, including coverage for acts of terrorism, with sub-limits for certain perils such as floods and earthquakes on each of our properties.
 
Fifty Ninth Street Insurance Company, LLC (“FNSIC”), our wholly owned consolidated subsidiary, acts as a direct insurer for coverage for acts of terrorism, including nuclear, biological, chemical and radiological (“NBCR”) acts, as defined by the Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act, which expires in December 2020.  Coverage for acts of terrorism (including NBCR acts) is up to $1.7 billion per occurrence and in the aggregate.  Coverage for acts of terrorism (excluding NBCR acts) is fully reinsured by third party insurance companies and the Federal government with no exposure to FNSIC.  For NBCR acts, FNSIC is responsible for a $323,000 deductible and 19% of the balance of a covered loss, and the Federal government is responsible for the remaining 81% of a covered loss.  We are ultimately responsible for any loss incurred by FNSIC.
 
We continue to monitor the state of the insurance market and the scope and costs of coverage for acts of terrorism or other events.  However, we cannot anticipate what coverage will be available on commercially reasonable terms in the future.  We are responsible for uninsured losses and for deductibles and losses in excess of our insurance coverage, which could be material.
 
Our mortgage loans are non-recourse to us and contain customary covenants requiring us to maintain insurance.  Although we believe that we have adequate insurance coverage for purposes of these agreements, we may not be able to obtain an equivalent amount of coverage at reasonable costs in the future.  Further, if lenders insist on greater coverage than we are able to obtain, it could adversely affect our ability to finance or refinance our properties.

Paramus
In 2001, we leased 30.3 acres of land located in Paramus, New Jersey to IKEA Property, Inc. The lease has a purchase option in 2021 for $75,000,000. The property is encumbered by a $68,000,000 interest-only mortgage loan with a fixed rate of 4.72%, which matures in October 2021. The annual triple-net rent is the sum of $700,000 plus the amount of interest on the mortgage loan. If the purchase option is exercised, we will receive net cash proceeds of approximately $7,000,000 and recognize a gain on sale of land of approximately $60,000,000. If the purchase option is not exercised, the triple-net rent for the last 20 years would include debt service sufficient to fully amortize $68,000,000 over the remaining 20-year lease term.
Rego Park I Litigation

In June 2014, Sears Roebuck and Co. (“Sears”) filed a lawsuit in the Supreme Court of the State of New York against Vornado and us (and certain of our subsidiaries) with regard to space that Sears leased at our Rego Park I property alleging that the defendants are liable for harm that Sears has suffered as a result of (a) water intrusions into the premises, (b) two fires in February 2014 that caused damages to those premises, and (c) alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act in the premises’ parking garage. Sears asserted various causes of actions for damages and sought to compel compliance with landlord’s obligations to repair the premises and to provide security, and to compel us to abate a nuisance that Sears claims was a cause of the water intrusions into its premises. In addition to injunctive relief, Sears sought, among other things, damages of not less than $4 million and future damages it estimated would not be less than $25 million. In March 2016, Sears withdrew its claim for future damages leaving a remaining claim for property damages, which we estimate to be approximately $650,000 based on information provided by Sears. We intend to defend the remaining claim vigorously. The amount or range of reasonably possible losses, if any, is not expected to be greater than $650,000. On October 15, 2018, Sears filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy relief resulting in an automatic stay of this case.

On April 4, 2017, Sears closed its 195,000 square foot store at the property ($10,300,000 of annual revenue). On October 15, 2018, Sears filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy relief and rejected its lease. Consequently, we wrote off the remaining balance of the Sears receivable arising from the straight-lining of rent of $2,973,000 during the year ended December 31, 2018. In addition, we accelerated depreciation and amortization of the remaining balance of $312,000 of deferred leasing costs during the year ended December 31, 2018.


ALEXANDER’S, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (CONTINUED)

12.    COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES - continued
Tenant Matter

On January 10, 2019, Kohl’s announced that it plans to close and sublease its 133,000 square foot store at our Rego Park II shopping center; Kohl’s remains obligated to us under its lease which expires in January 2031.

Letters of Credit
Approximately $1,030,000 of standby letters of credit were issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2018.
 
Other
We received approximately $165,000, $396,000 and $825,000 from bankruptcy recoveries during the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017 and 2016, respectively, which is included as “interest and other income, net” in our consolidated statements of income.
 
There are various other legal actions against us in the ordinary course of business. In our opinion, the outcome of such matters in the aggregate will not have a material effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.