Dealmaker: NorthMarq Arranges $166M in JV Equity, Construction Financing in California

NorthMarq, Minneapolis, arranged $166 million in joint venture equity and construction financing for a waterfront apartment development in Alameda, Calif.

Managing Director John Kerslake, Vice President Briana Harney and Senior Analyst Griff Whitlock of NorthMarq’s San Francisco office secured the debt and equity for the development of The Launch, a 368-unit community.

“This is the first joint venture between Bay West Group/Pacific Development and the investor, an institutional real estate manager,” Kerslake said.

The financing package totaled $166 million, of which $62 million in JV equity and $104 million in construction financing was placed. “Closing a syndicated construction loan with three participating lenders was no small feat, but every party at the table buckled down to complete this complex transaction so groundbreaking could commence,” Harney said.  

NorthMarq’s team began working with Bay West Group/Pacific Development in 2017 when the borrowers began the entitlement process with the city. Construction for the project has started, with delivery scheduled for 2023.

The Launch is located at 1777 Clement Avenue at the northern edge of Alameda Island along the Oakland Estuary. It will include a mix of market-rate, below market-rate and live-work units.

Pacific Development Partner Sean Murphy said the property will transform the industrial edge of Alameda Island and add some “much-needed housing density” to the waterfront. The property will house four interior courtyards with pool, spa, dog runs, barbeque area, fire pits and lounge seating. It will have a street-level connection from Clement Avenue to the Bay Trail and other marina amenities through a twenty-foot-wide pedestrian corridor that connects all aspects of this site and building.