Kushner Scores $175M Loan for Jersey City Tower
The developer aims to complete the first phase by 2027.
Kushner Real Estate Group, together with Silverstein Properties, has secured $175 million in construction financing for the first phase of Artwalk Towers, a 595-unit luxury development in Jersey City, N.J. Kennedy Wilson issued the note.
Handel Architects provided design services while Melillo Bauer Carman served as the landscape engineer. The team expects completion in 2027.
Jersey City’s Planning Board approved the project in 2022. Artwalk Towers will have two buildings rising 49 and 55 stories, encompassing 1,189 units in total. In September, Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop proposed a 30-year tax abatement for the development and, in exchange Artwalk Towers would house a 100,000-square-foot art museum, Jersey Digs reported.
Phase one will consist of a 49-story tower with studio and one- to three-bedroom floorplans. Amenities will include coworking spaces, a gym, as well as a rooftop area including a swimming pool and sundeck. Additionally, a 22-foot-tall structure with more than 6,000 square feet of gallery and commercial space will be constructed. The tower will also have 237 parking spaces and bicycle storage.
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The project is at 808 Pavonia Ave., within walking distance of a PATH station, which will receive a connector to Artwalk Towers as part of the development. The upcoming community is part of the redevelopment of Journal Square, which aims to reposition the 211-acre area as Jersey City’s central business district.
Last week, Kushner completed Journal Squared, a $900 million, three-tower community with 1,800 units. The developer began construction work in 2014.
Kennedy Wilson’s construction loan originations
Kennedy Wilson has originated $2.4 billion in multifamily and student housing loans over the previous 12 months, across projects totaling 8,900 units. Last year, the investment company acquired a $4.1 billion construction loan portfolio from Pacific Western Bank.
Another project which received financing from the investor—in the form of a $96 million loan—is TideLock, an office-to-residential conversion in Alexandria, Va. set to encompass 169 multifamily units and 65 condos. Community Three and Whitaker Investment Corp. are the developers.
Jersey City multifamily deliveries ramp up
The Northern New Jersey market had upward of 29,500 units under construction as of November, according to Yardi Matrix data. Jersey City’s pipeline included more than 7,500 units underway, making up 25.4 percent of the market.
One of Jersey City’s projects is Namdar Group’s 35 Cottage Street, a 588-unit luxury asset. The developer secured $152 million in a financing package this September. Centennial Bank alongside a private lender issued the debt.
Developers brought 7,400 units online year-to-date through November in Northern New Jersey, the data provider shows. Of these, approximately 3,000 apartments debuted within Jersey City, a massive spike compared to the multifamily deliveries registered throughout the entirety of last year—more than 1,200 units.
