JLL Arranges $567M for New York Office, Mixed-Use Assets

JLL, Chicago, secured $567 million for two New York assets, Midtown Manhattan’s 5 Bryant Park office tower and Redbridge, a mixed-use residential and retail property in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Savanna, New York, acquired 5 Bryant Park for $640 million from a Blackstone Group affiliate. JLL Executive Managing Director Peter Nicoletti and Managing Director Anthony Ledesma represented Blackstone in the transaction and Managing Director Kellogg Gaines and Executive Vice President Aaron Niedermayer placed $463 million in acquisition financing.

Located on Sixth Avenue between West 40th and West 41st streets, 5 Bryant Park sits directly on the park near the New York Public Library. The 34-story, 683,000-square-foot tower includes 38,000 square feet of retail space and has undergone $107 million in renovations since 2007. The building is currently 97 percent leased.

“With in-place rents well below market, Savanna is poised to create significant value at 5 Bryant Park by rolling expiring leases to market,” Niedermayer said. He said the new loan will enable Savanna to unlock value through aggressive pricing, term, structure and prepayment flexibility.

JLL Capital Markets has completed several recent financings for Savanna. It closed $100 million in financing to construct 106 West 56th Street and arranged a $176 million financing package to develop  Vandewater at 543 West 122nd Street in Morningside Heights.

“The asset provided an ideal mix of contractual cash flow plus medium-term capital appreciation in one of the most resilient submarkets in New York,” Ledesma said, noting the marketing process emphasized strong recent leasing velocity, attractive risk-adjusted returns and the opportunity to enhance future value through capital improvements.

JLL also arranged a $104 million loan to refinance Redbridge in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Managing Director Jonathan Schwartz and Vice Chairman Aaron Appel worked for RedSky Capital LLC, JZ Capital Partners Ltd. and Waterbridge Capital LLC to place the loan with JP Morgan Chase & Co.

Redbridge has 85,000 square feet of residential and retail space at 237-241 Bedford Avenue, 160-164 North 4th Street and 159-173 North 3rd Street. RedSky Capital acquired the portfolio in 2012.

Retail tenants at Redbridge include Sephora and UVA Wines. The portfolio also includes more than 20,000 square feet of retail space at 247 Bedford Avenue.