Mack-Cali, Fisher Brothers Acquire Luxury Multifamily Project

By Jeffrey Steele, Contributing Writer

Edison, N.J.—Mack-Cali Realty Corporation and Fisher Brothers have formed a joint venture to acquire a 377-unit multifamily development project in Washington, D.C. The development, under construction at 701 2^nd Street NE, features approximately 25,000 square feet of retail space and a 309-space underground parking garage. The project is expected complete in mid-2015, and leasing will commence in early 2015.

Mack-Cali is acquiring a 50 percent interest in the project for a purchase price of about $46.5 million. The venture has 20-year in-place debt of $100.7 million, with attractive terms. Members of the team with key roles in the project include the architectural firms Hickok-Cole Architects, Rockwell Group, COOKFOX and Handel Architects.

“This project promises to be the highest-end residential project in this area,” says Mitchell E. Hersh, Mack-Cali president and chief executive officer. “We are thrilled to partner with Fisher Brothers in our first venture, as they share the same vision for creating luxury multifamily communities as the Mack-Cali/Roseland team.”

Residents of the building will benefit from a location on trendy H Street, which will put them within a short distance of a number of dining and entertainment establishments. They will be about one block from Union Station and the Red Line’s Union Station Metro Stop, and will also be able to take advantage of the new H Street streetcar.

That streetcar, the first of several the District plans to add, will give residents a quick and convenient means of reaching 14 blocks of shops and eateries.

Among the luxury finishes incorporated in units are hardwood flooring throughout, two-toned custom European cabinetry, stone countertops, stainless steel appliances and custom vanities and sinks with ceramic tile and modern fixtures.

The building’s upscale amenity package will include a fitness center with yoga and spin studios, clubroom with gaming, demonstration kitchen, terrariums and technology centers.

Outside, luxury touches include a trio of rooftop decks, a 100-foot pool and hot tub, grilling stations and cabanas, a rooftop garden with eco-pond and resident gardening plots, a dog run, two landscaped gardens in courtyards and an outdoor projection screening area.

Says Fisher Brothers partner Winston Fisher: “Fisher Brothers is proud to partner with Mack-Cali on this exciting new project, which will add first-class residential and retail space to the D.C. market, and is an articulation of our strategic growth in our nation’s capital.”

The Mack-Cali/Fisher Brothers joint venture includes specific provisions, among them a “right of first offer” on all development deals in the D.C. metro area that involve either party, with specific qualifications on any properties in Arlington County, Va. The venture will also form a property and asset management platform responsible for the branding, marketing, leasing and management of the subject property and all the joint venture’s future assets. Mack-Cali’s Roseland subsidiary will manage the daily operations of those assets, including the leasing and management of 701 2nd Street.