Clockwise from bottom left: 62-60 99th Street in Rego Park, 850-870 Third Avenue in Sunset Park and Square Mile Capital’s Craig Solomon with renderings of 550 Clinton Avenue in Brooklyn (Credit: Google Maps; Getty Images; Morris Adjmi Architects)
The largest outer borough loans last month were for projects ranging from a massive mixed-use development in Clinton Hill to a new film studio from Robert De Niro and friends in Astoria.
The loan for the Clinton Hill project was February’s largest of the top 10 at $129.3 million, while the loan for De Niro’s project was the smallest at $56.5 million. Square Mile Capital provided the Clinton Hill loan to Hope Street Capital, and Ares Commercial Real Estate Management provided the Astoria loan to Wildflower Studios.
Overall, the top loans for February included four Brooklyn projects, three Queens projects and two Bronx projects. One of the loans was for properties in both Brooklyn and Queens.
The full list of top 10 outer borough loans for February is as follows:
1. Fair and Square Mile Capital — $129.3 million
Square Mile Capital provided Hope Street Capital with a $129.3 million loan to construct the company’s 29-story tower at 550 Clinton Avenue in Clinton Hill. The project will span 280,000 square feet overall and include 284 residential units, an outdoor pool and 60,000 square feet of retail space. The Landmarks Preservation Committee approved the project in 2018, and Hope Street agreed to make repairs to the adjacent Church of St. Luke & St. Matthew as part of the process.
2. Waterloo Sunset Park — $117.6 million
Salmar Properties received a $117.6 million refinancing and development loan from Blackstone Group for its Sunset Park project at 850-870 Third Avenue. The money replaces a $30 million loan that Goldman Sachs gave Salmar when it purchased the property in 2011 for $9.4 million. Salmar initially planned to turn the 1.1 million-square-foot vacant warehouse into an industrial center, agreeing to set aside 85 percent of the space for manufacturing tenants in exchange for millions of dollars in tax breaks. However, the firm recently reached a new deal with the city that will let it lease almost 270,000 square feet of the building to commercial office tenants in exchange for paying the city $25,000 in administrative fees.
3. Drizzy Drake — $105 million
Signature Bank loaned Madison Realty Capital $105 million for the Drake, a 419-unit residential building at 62-60 99th Street in Rego Park. The loan allows Madison and its partner Arel Capital to retire a 2019 loan for $115 million from Benefit Street Partners, according to Commercial Real Estate Direct. Madison and Arel bought the property in 2016 for about $135 million.
4. How Bazaar — $85.7 million
JPMorgan Chase lent an entity linked to Food Bazaar Supermarket $85.7 million for 17 parcels of land in Brooklyn and Queens. The loan includes a $21.6 million gap mortgage and covers fee and leasehold interests, according to PincusCo.
5. Like a G4 — $84.25 million
G4 Capital Partners loaned the Hager family’s Cornell Realty Management $84.25 million for its mixed-use project at 200 Kent Avenue. Cornell bought the property in 2016 for $33 million and has spent years working on a 110,000-square-foot building that will have Trader Joe’s as an anchor tenant. The loan is for 18 months with a six-month extension. It refinances existing debt on the property and includes a small facility for construction.
6. Morgan to Morgan — $77 million
Morgan Stanley provided $77 million in financing to the Morgan Group for 10 multifamily properties in the Bronx. The buildings are located in neighborhoods including Concourse Village, Fordham and Mt. Hope. Morgan Stanley will receive a 3.78 percent interest rate on the 10-year interest-only loan, according to the Commercial Observer.
7. To Infinity Real Estate and Beyond — $65.5 million
Infinity Real Estate and Nightingale Properties sold a Brooklyn shopping center to Urban Edge Properties for $165 million, and Urban Edge received a $65.5 million loan from Wells Fargo for the deal. The property consists of the 230,000-square-foot Kingswood Center at 1630 East 15th Street, anchored by a T.J. Maxx, and the 110,000-square-foot Kingswood Crossing at 1715 East 13th Street, anchored by a Target. https://therealdeal.com/2020/02/13/south-brooklyn-shopping-portfolio-trades-for-165m/
8. BankLoan for BankNote — $62 million
Citizens Bank loaned Madison Marquette $62 million for the BankNote building at 1201 Lafayette Avenue in the Bronx’s Hunts Point neighborhood. Madison Marquette owns the building with Perella Weinberg Partners, according to PincusCo.
9. I Love College Point — $57.5 million
Benefit Street Partners loaned Choy Ling Lam $57.5 million for his multifamily property at 14-42 110th Street in College Point The 134-unit property spans 132,000 square feet, and the refinancing includes a $19.9 million gap mortgage, according to PincusCo.
10. Wildflowers — $56.5 million
Robert De Niro’s Wildflower Studios landed $56.5 million in financing from Ares Commercial Real Estate Management for its roughly $71.6 million purchase of a Queens waterfront parcel, where it plans to build a film production facility. The parcel at 36-01 19th Avenue in Astoria spans 5.25 acres, and the studio purchased it from the famed piano-maker Steinway.