Affordable Queens Community Lands Loan
The financing will go towards the completion and lease-up of a 26-story tower.
Watermark Capital Group has obtained a $70 million construction loan to finish work on its multifamily development in Long Island City, Queens, N.Y. Slate Property Group and White Oak Real Estate Capital arranged the funds for the property, which is scheduled to be completed in spring 2026.
The loan will also be applied to the lease-up of the 26-story, 184-unit community. Skyline Capital arranged the 20-month, floating-rate loan, which is being deployed mid-construction.
Located at 41-08 Crescent St., the property has been vested into the Affordable NY 421a program. Some 70 percent of the project’s units are designated as affordable.
“The 41-08 Crescent property benefits from a strong ground lease, enabling the development to absorb the current cost of capital for a viable project,” Daniel Ridloff, director, Slate Property Group told Multi-Housing News. “To achieve a level of comfort with the construction costs, most subcontractors were bought out at closing. Finally, foundations for the project were complete at the time of closing, eliminating the highest-risk portion of construction.”
The 192,000-square-foot development includes studios, one-, two- and three-bedroom units. Select homes feature private outdoor terraces. The project includes a 41-spot parking area, amenity spaces and 9,000 square feet of retail space.
Watermark Capital Group will self-perform construction through an affiliated entity, WMCM.
Future residents will be located in proximity to the East River waterfront. Green spaces such as the Queensbridge Park, as well as dining and retail options, are within walking distance of the community. The 7, N and W subway lines are nearby, offering transportation access throughout the Queens area and into Manhattan.
City of Yes initiative to help NY developers
Housing development permitting in New York is notoriously difficult. However, the Dec. 5 passage of the New York City-specific City of Yes initiative addressing zoning reform designed to make it easier to build affordable housing and repurpose unused space into homes has the potential to increase density.
Daniel Pupke, director of development, Reuveni Development Marketing, told MHN that he is confident that after the passing of the City of Yes, which partially sought to alleviate some of the challenges associated with office-to-residential conversions, additional guidance will be issued, precedent will be set and the development timeline can move forward more efficiently.
“The partnering of public and private interests in residential development is a challenging yet rewarding process,” according to Harris Lukashok, head of origination at Great Neck, NY-based Bayport Funding.
He told MHN that he eagerly awaits the results for the City of Yes initiative. “Specifically, we look forward to supporting workforce housing development within Town Center Zoning and Transit Oriented Development sites subject to the eventual final zoning changes,” Lukashok said.
NYC facing an affordable housing crisis
Like most other major cities in the country, New York City is experiencing a housing shortage and a housing affordability crisis. Michael J. Romer, Esq., co-managing partner, Romer Debbas, told MHN that the solution isn’t that simple: available land is scarce and there are numerous development hurdles.
“For years, New York State and New York City have struggled to balance creating additional housing, including affordable housing, and incentivizing developers,” he said. “The most successful program to thread that needle had been the 421-a tax abatement, requiring 20 percent of units be affordable in exchange for developer tax relief, but the program expired in 2022, stalling development.”
However, there is a reason for optimism. “Over the summer, New York State extended the construction completion deadline for 421-a projects until 2031, which the State believes will create an additional 71,000 units,” he said. “Additionally, the New York City Council passed its most comprehensive zoning reform in years last week via which the city hopes that 82,000 housing units.”
In March, Slate Property Group and Grobman Gross Properties received a $97 million loan to refinance The Yellowstone, a 166-unit mixed-use luxury community in Queens. The community is 11 stories tall and includes studio, one- and two-bedroom floorplans. It features 50 affordable units.
