The city of Des Moines now officially owns an 11-story parking garage that's part of embattled project The Fifth, which was in foreclosure after the developers failed to pay a construction loan.
A $42 million purchase agreement was finalized last week, according to documents filed with the Polk County Recorder's Office. With this action, the foreclosure petition against the developers, brothers Justin and Sean Mandelbaum and their company, Mandelbaum Properties, has been dropped — though legal wrangling over other, undeveloped land on the site continues.
The 751-stall garage, located on Fifth Avenue between Court Avenue and Walnut Street, was the first of three buildings, including a 40-story skyscraper and a three-story movie theater, planned for the landmark development.