Phillip Gesue, chief development officer for Strategic Capital

NEW YORK CITY—Strategic Capital, the investment arm of China Construction America, has entered the New York City residential market by making a $140-million equity investment in Cape Advisors and Forum Absolute Capital Partners' mixed-use project in Hudson Square.

The development project site is located at 110 Charlton St. and 537 Greenwich St. and when complete will be a 280,000-square-foot tower with 170 residential units, ground floor retail and parking. The partnership has tapped Parisian-based Loci Anima and Adamson Associates for the luxury loft design.

The project will be built by Strategic Capital affiliate Plaza Construction. The company expects construction on the project will begin in early June and the development will take approximately 27 months to complete. Sales for the luxury condominiums are slated for spring 2018. China Construction America is the American subsidiary of China State Construction and Engineering Co. Strategic Capital will co-develop the property with Cape Advisors. Residential brokerage firm Corcoran Sunshine has been hired as the exclusive sales agent for the condominium units at the development.

“CCA is pleased to be involved in this joint venture through our subsidiaries, Strategic Capital and Plaza Construction. We look forward to continuing their successful track records with this important Manhattan project,” says Ning Yuan, CEO of CCA.

Strategic Capital has a national portfolio in excess of $1 billion. Its investment at the Charlton Street site consists of both equity and mezzanine components.

Phillip Gesue, chief development officer for Strategic Capital, tells Globest.com the total project cost has not been finalized but will likely “be north of $350 million.” Eastdil Secured brokered the joint venture between Strategic Capital and Cape Advisors. Shearman & Sterling represented Strategic Capital in the transaction while Haynes and Boone represented Forum Absolute Capital Partners and Cape Advisors.

Gesue says that Strategic Capital has been looking for investments in New York City for some time. The firm is currently building two projects in the New York metro area. Construction has just gone vertical on its $85-million Hudson Park River Club rental apartment project on the Yonkers waterfront. Last year, Strategic Capital broke ground on a 37-story condo tower at 75 Park Lane South and a smaller adjoining Shore House building in the Newport section of Jersey City, NJ.

“We have been looking for condominium development opportunities for several years,” Gesue says. He adds that Linsen Zhang, president of Strategic Capital, had looked at a host of possible investment opportunities before finding the Charlton Street development property. Gesue relates that the site “was the right sized project, it was the right location and it had really all the elements we look for in a luxury for-sale housing project.”

Gesue says the development site is in a “terrific location” near the ambitious Pier 40/St. John's Terminal redevelopment and is at the confluence of SoHo, the West Village and Tribeca.

He adds that the firm is targeting Manhattan and the other boroughs for future office and residential investment but at the present time has no new deals to announce. The company does not have any office holdings in New York City. In addition to its projects under development in Yonkers and Jersey City, Strategic Capital also owns 445 South St., a 320,000-square-foot corporate campus in Morris Township in New Jersey.

Strategic Capital has a national portfolio in excess of $1 billion. Its investment at the Charlton Street site consists of both equity and mezzanine components.

Gesue says the development site is in a “terrific location” near the ambitious Pier 40/St. John's Terminal redevelopment and is at the confluence of SoHo, the West Village and Tribeca.

Instant Insights /

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