August 2014 – Briefs/Finance

Moinian Secures Loan for 3 Hudson Blvd.

Plans for 3 Hudson Blvd., the 1.8 million-square-foot tower being built by The Moinian Group in the Hudson Yards district on Manhattan’s Far West Side, are moving forward with news that the developer has secured a land loan from AIG’s Commercial Mortgage Lending Group. Details about the loan were not released, though Moinian has said that construction is estimated to cost between $800 million and $900 million.

The LEED Platinum mixed-use skyscraper will occupy the entire block between 11^th Avenue and Hudson Boulevard Park from W. 34^th  to W. 35^th streets. Designed by Dan Kaplan of FXFOWLE, the tower will rise more than 1,000 feet. Plans call for the skyscraper to have approximately 1.5 million square feet of Class A office space and 22,000 square feet of retail space. The highest floors may have another 350,000 square feet of Class A office space or as many as 14 floors of luxury residences.

Bassuk to Refi 9 Maxx Properties with $140M

Using a special HUD program, The Bassuk Organization Inc. has completed the first phase of a refinancing program for nine multi-family properties owned by Maxx Properties. The deal resulted in $140 million in refinancing proceeds for the Harrison, N.Y.-based company. Maxx Properties was so pleased with the results that TBO, a New York real estate finance intermediary and advisory firm, is moving forward with a second phase of the refinancing program. Maxx Properties is a 77-year-old family-run owner and manager of multi-family communities in seven states: Arizona, Maryland, Nebraska, Colorado, New York, Nevada and Florida.

NJ’s Revel Casino Files for Second Bankruptcy

The long-troubled Revel Casino Hotel in Atlantic City, N.J., will evidently be sold, now that its owner, Revel AC Inc., the parent company of Revel Entertainment Group, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The bankruptcy plan, such as it is at this point, will involve “a sale of substantially all of Revel’s assets,” according to the company. The 1,300-plus-room casino-hotel will remain in operation as usual, due in part to a $125 million debtor-in-possession loan, inclusive of certain rollup amounts, arranged by one of Revel’s existing lenders.

$350M Secured for Manhattan Hotel/Condo Conversion

A vacant 19^th century skyscraper is set to get a second life as a hotel and condo residence in Lower Manhattan. A joint venture between GFI Development Co., GB Lodging and Elliott Management Corp. has secured $350 million in financing for the historic landmark building located at 5 Beekman St. The property will be conjoined with a new 46-story condominium tower. Financing will be used to convert the 165,000-square-foot building into a luxury lifestyle hotel operated by Thompson Hotels and complete construction of the adjacent condo. The financing consists of debt and equity, including a $195 million construction loan made by a syndicate led by HSBC and M&T Bank.

Greystar Closes on $800M M-F Acquisition Fund

Greystar Real Estate Partners has closed its Greystar Equity Partners VIII L.P., a discretionary commingled fund focused on the acquisition of value-add multi-family assets in the United States. This final close brings total equity commitments to $800 million, with contributions from investors ranging from domestic and international pension plans to private wealth managers. GEP VIII is Greystar’s most recent fund offering and follows Greystar Equity Partners VII L.P., a $600 million value-add fund that is fully invested with concentrations in major markets nationwide.

RXR Secures $200M for 787 KSF Lower Manhattan Office Acquisition

RXR Realty has secured $200 million in acquisition financing for 61 Broadway, a 786,975-square-foot office building in downtown Manhattan. HSBC provided the $200 million non-recourse loan, of which $185 million was funded at closing with an additional $15 million in proceeds for future capital expenditures and leasing commissions to be drawn down by RXR’s option. JLL represented the buyer both in the acquisition and financing transactions. Kelly Gaines, managing director, and Brett Rosenberg, senior vice president, led JLL in the acquisition financing transaction. The historical skyscraper in the financial district hosts a variety of tenants in the financial, legal, education, technology and healthcare sectors.

Revised Financial Agreement Looks to Advance 3 WTC

Silverstein Properties’ $2.3 billion development of the 2.5 million-square-foot 3 World Trade Center office tower takes a long-awaited step forward as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey’s board of commissioners green-lights a revision of the 2010 financial agreement between the two parties. The Port Authority’s stance on the financing of 3 WTC, or Tower 3, has changed since 2010: It now wants to increase private-sector investment, thereby decreasing the agency’s exposure. The new arrangement does just that. Silverstein will have to take on the task of raising approximately $1.3 billion worth of senior fixed-rate bonds, sans its requested and much-debated $1.2 billion loan guarantee. Additionally, the modified agreement will solidify approximately $300 million in WTC site revenue for the Port Authority, and provide the agency with $14 million in savings through its returning of two floors totaling roughly 76,400 square feet on its existing lease in Tower 4 to Silverstein.

Mesa West, RCG Longview Provide $90M to Stamford Office Park

Mesa West Capital and RCG Longview have provided a venture controlled by an affiliate of George Comfort & Sons with $90 million in debt financing for a 583,000-square-foot Class A suburban office campus in Stamford, Conn., known as High Ridge Park Corporate Center. George Comfort & Sons picked up the asset back in 2003 and subsequently completed a multimillion-dollar renovation. The financing includes $77.5 million in short-term senior debt from Mesa West and a $12.5 million mezzanine loan from RCG Longview. The deal comes on the heels of another significant transaction for Mesa West. In June, the Los Angeles-based portfolio lender provided New Jersey-based Normandy Real Estate Partners with a $119 million loan to refinance a 1.4 million-square-foot office portfolio in Westchester County, N.Y.