Namdar Group’s growing multifamily portfolio in Jersey City includes 626 Newark Ave. (left) and 26 Van Reipen Ave., which will bring a combined 811 luxury apartments to the city’s Journal Square section. — Renderings courtesy: C3D Architects
By Joshua Burd
SCALE Lending has doubled down on Namdar Group’s development pipeline in Jersey City, providing another $243 million in financing for projects with a combined 811 apartments.
According to a news release, the deals include a $160 million construction loan for Namdar’s 27-story, 576-unit rental tower at 626 Newark Ave. In the second transaction, SCALE is providing an $83 million bridge loan for 26 Van Reipen Ave., which will retire $73 million in construction debt and fund the lease-up and stabilization of the new 27-story, 235-unit building.
C3D Architects designed the projects, which are both in the city’s rejuvenated Journal Square neighborhood. SCALE, the debt financing arm of Slate Property Group, noted that the newest transactions follow its $160 million bridge loan last summer for a separate Namdar multifamily project at 618 Pavonia Ave.
“The market’s appetite for multifamily in Journal Square far exceeds available supply and is the single most important demand driver that continues to attract us back to the neighborhood,” said Martin Nussbaum, co-founder and principal at Slate Property Group. “Namdar Group remains one of the most active developers with a tried-and-true track record in the neighborhood.”
Slated for completion in 2026, the mixed-use project at 626 Newark Ave. will also include 9,915 square feet of street-level retail and 17,747 square feet of office space, the news release said. AJD Construction will serve as general contractor.
SCALE added that 26 Van Reipen was completed late last year and also has 7,562 square feet of retail and 7,546 square feet of office space that are master leased to CMPND, an apartment and co-working community.
“We are thrilled to close another market-leading transaction with our longstanding client, The Namdar Group, and our trusted lending partners at SCALE,” said Drew Fletcher, president of Greystone Capital Advisors, which arranged the loans alongside Bryan Grover. “This transaction required tremendous creativity, flexible structuring and certainty of execution that only a trusted relationship partner like SCALE could have delivered.”
The lender also pointed to a separate deal this month, in Brooklyn’s Clinton Hill neighborhood, where it finalized a $46 million bridge loan for the newly completed Arris Grand apartment building.
“SCALE’s winning recipe is simple — work with trusted sponsors in desirable locations on high-quality multifamily properties,” said Daniel Ridloff, managing director of SCALE. “With many traditional lenders parked on the sidelines, we’ve seized the opportunity to utilize our strong relationships to close deals.”
Slate Property Group closes $160 million bridge loan for 432-unit Journal Square rental tower
