The Waite Hill estate belonging to Frank Sinito and his wife Malisse was searched today by federal investigators according to the Waite Hill Police Department, relating to an ongoing matter involving the Department of Housing Urban Development (Bing). CLICK IMAGES TO ENLARGE THEM.
Ongoing HUD investigation led to search
The private home of the owner of some of Cleveland’s most well-known buildings and restaurants was searched today by federal investigators and assisted by local police in an ongoing matter involving the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Frank Sinito and his wife Malisse reside at a mansion at 6736 Eagle Road in Waite Hill, in suburban Lake County.
It is not known if any items were seized and removed during the search. No arrests were reported. In addition to HUD inspectors, agents of the U.S. Department of Agriculture were also on scene. A search is not evidence of any wrongdoing.
“We are currently assisting federal authorities at an active scene within Waite Hill,” confirmed Waite Hill Police Chief Carl Dondorfer in an e-mail to NEOtrans. He referred further inquiries about the matter to Chris Fontanesi, senior counsel at HUD’s Office of Inspector General.
NEOtrans left an unreturned voicemail with Fontanesi. An e-mail seeking more information was sent to him and opened but otherwise there was no reply. We also reached out to Jessica Salas Novak, public affairs specialist for the United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) for the Northern District of Ohio.
“The USAO is unable to confirm or deny the existence of investigations,” Novak said. She added a note asking if NEOtrans would like to be added to their distribution list to receive future press releases.
An aerial view of the 65-acre Waite Hill estate of Frank and Malisse Sinito next to the Chagrin River. The largest and newest house on the property is at lower left — a geothermal-heated mansion made of stone with five bedrooms, nine bathrooms and six fireplaces. It is valued at nearly $3 million for tax purposes. Two historic houses on the estate are close to Eagle Road running from the top-right corner to the bottom (Bing).
NEOtrans sent e-mails to Frank Sinito and to Renee Weiss, general counsel of Millennia Housing Management, Ltd., seeking comment or a forwarding our e-mail to the appropriate counsel for a reply. There was no response prior to publication of this article.
Frank Sinito is president of Millennia Companies and his wife Malisse Sinito is secretary-treasurer of Millennia as well as president of an affiliate, Savour Hospitality Group. Millennia and its affiliates own, directly or indirectly controls and/or manages more than 200 multifamily housing properties across the country. Savour Hospitality owns the Marble Room Steaks & Raw Bar and Il Venetian in Downtown Cleveland, plus Lockkeepers Inn in Valley View.
Their companies are headquartered downtown at Key Tower, Ohio’s tallest skyscraper that is owned by a Millennia affiliate. Other notable downtown buildings owned by Millennia affiliates are The Centennial, a stalled redevelopment of a 1.3-million-square-foot former office building at 925 Euclid Ave. There is also The Garfield apartments, 1965 E. 6th St., in which a Millennia affiliate was identified in July for tax credit “double dipping,” according to the US Tax Court in Washington DC.
But it was 19 federally subsidized multifamily properties, and possibly more, that put Millennia in HUD’s sights. HUD has accused Sinito and his Millennia Management companies of “improper conduct” regarding Millennia-owned, controlled or affiliated multifamily properties that were insured and/or subsidized by HUD and therefore subject to regulatory agreements and their requirements set forth under federal law.
“You have violated these requirements both with respect to unauthorized transfers and underfunded security deposit accounts,” said Mark Borum, director of HUD’s Departmental Enforcement Center, in a Dec. 14, 2023 letter to Sinito. “Nearly $4.9 million is missing or was improperly taken from 19 HUD-insured or HUD-subsidized properties.”
A 1908-built house, purchased in 2008 by Frank Sinito-owned Waite Hill Farms LLC and remodeled the following year, fronts the 65-acre Sinito estate in Lake County. Out of sight in the distance, but in this directional view, is the Sinitos’ main house. This was the scene of an executed federal search warrant today (Google).
HUD suspected that their discovery of improper conduct at Millennia’s 19 properties nationwide was incomplete and there may be more discovery required to determine if more funds were or are missing from more properties.
“The 19 identified properties represent a sample review of the Millennia portfolio,” Borum added. “HUD has reason to suspect that the problems identified in this notice exist in other properties. HUD is in the process of attempting to identify all HUD-insured and/or subsidized properties with missing funds.”
Conditions at some Millennia-managed multifamily properties apparently led to HUD taking an active interest in them. In 2022, a gas leak and explosion at Millennia’s Shorter College Garden Apartments in North Little Rock, AR killed three people. Residents of other Millennia properties in Utica, NY; Memphis, TN; Atlanta, GA and Cleveland were the subject of resident and city complaints and/or legal actions. Millennia has resolved some of these; others are still pending.
As a result of HUD’s actions begun in December 2023, Sinito and his Millennia Management companies were debarred by HUD from “future participation in transactions with HUD and throughout the executive branch of the federal government for a five-year period from the date of this letter.”
Sinito requested more time to respond which was granted in March. He could request a hearing or seek a settlement with HUD prior to a new deadline that was extended by one week. “Since you did neither, you have waived your right to contest, and your and Millennia’s debarments have become final agency action,” Borum replied on March 13, 2024.
Key Tower in Downtown Cleveland is the tallest building in Ohio. It is the headquarters of Millennia Companies and owned by an affiliate of Millennia (KJP).
“These actions are separate and independent of any other enforcement actions that HUD has taken or may take in the future. Nothing herein waives HUD’s or any other agency’s right to investigate or take any action that they deem appropriate,” Borum added in the same letter.
Millennia Management’s improper conduct was attributed by HUD to Frank Sintio because “he participated in and had knowledge of or reason to know of the improper conduct.” Conversely, HUD said Sinito’s improper conduct is attributed to Millennia Management because “the entities participated in the improper conduct and had knowledge of or had reason to know of the improper conduct.”
“Your misconduct is so serious and compelling as to affect your present responsibility,” Borum directed at Frank Sinito. “Your misconduct affects the integrity of HUD’s multifamily programs because it jeopardizes the financial viability of the projects. The mismanagement of your properties risks the housing stability, and housing quality, of those tenant families.”
It isn’t known which buildings on the Sinitos’ Waite Hill estate were searched today. The Sinito estate on Eagle Road (also referred to as Eagle Mills Road on some maps) measures 65 acres and contains three separate homes, according to Lake County property and real estate records.
The largest and newest is a 14,132-square-foot stone colonial mansion built in 2011 above the Chagrin River, at the end of a 2,700-foot-long, curving driveway and a man-made 7-acre pond. There are also two historical homes plus barns and garages on the estate that were renovated by the Sinitos over the past 15 years, public records show.
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