Tulfra Real Estate recently broke ground on a planned 795-unit self-storage facility at 300 Thomas McGovern Drive in Jersey City. From left: John Lipiros of Fulton Bank; Mitchell Berkey of CSG Law; Jon Mikula of JLL; Jersey City Councilwoman Denise Ridley; Salvatore Frassetto of Tulfra; Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop and Tulfra’s Sonny Jumani, Lucas Grunberger, Elya Golubitsky and Marcus Lee were among those on hand. — Courtesy: Tulfra
(Editor’s note: This story was updated Tuesday, Jan. 7, with additional information from JLL, which sourced the financing on behalf of Tulfra Real Estate.)
By Joshua Burd
Tulfra Real Estate has secured construction financing for a planned 795-unit self-storage facility in Jersey City, the first of three phases for a project near Liberty State Park.
According to the developer, Fulton Bank is providing the loan for an undisclosed amount in connection with the six-story, 103,500-square-foot facility at 300 Thomas McGovern Drive. Site work and construction are now underway for what will be known as Liberty Storage Center, which will be managed by Public Storage, as Tulfra looks to capitalize on a location that’s accessible from downtown Jersey City, Manhattan and Brooklyn.
JLL’s Michael Klein and Jon Mikula sourced the debt on behalf of the Rochelle Park-based developer and its affiliate, TFJ Jersey City LLC. Fulton’s Jeff Wallace and John Lipiros spearheaded the transaction on the lender’s behalf, while CSG Law’s Mitchell Berkey and Joseph Zawila provided legal counsel to the borrower.
JLL senior managing directors Jon Mikula and Michael Klein and Vice President Ryan Carroll sourced the debt on behalf of the Rochelle Park-based developer and its affiliate, TFJ Jersey City LLC. Fulton’s Jeff Wallace and John Lipiros spearheaded the transaction on the lender’s behalf, while CSG Law’s Mitchell Berkey and Joseph Zawila provided legal counsel to the borrower.
“Self-storage continues to be one of the most resilient asset classes and has seen a surge in demand over the last few years,” Mikula said. “As a result, lender interest was strong, particularly given Liberty Storage Center will benefit from the undersupply of self-storage in the growing Jersey City market and the strong demographics surrounding the property.”
When completed, the fully climate-controlled facility will be the first of three phases totaling 260,000 square feet, Tulfra said, noting that it has worked closely with city and state agencies for five years to secure the permits to redevelop the former concrete plant property. It will be among the latest self-storage projects for a team that has developed 1 million square feet in the asset class in a dozen locations throughout northern New Jersey.
In announcing the deal, JLL noted that Jersey City has benefited from a nearly 30 percent increase in residents since the 2010 census and has a predominantly renter-oriented population, providing steady demand for self-storage space. Units at the new Tulfra building will be an average of 77.3 square feet, while the ground floor will have 30 covered parking spaces.
