RedSky JV Mixed-Use Portfolio Receives $104 Million in Refinancing
The Williamsburg residential and retail space Redbridge was recently financed with a JP Morgan Chase & Co. loan.
NEW YORK CITY—Can Williamsburg get any trendier? Developers are still banking on the Brooklyn neighborhood. Literally. RedSky Capital, JZ Capital Partners and Waterbridge Capital recently refinanced Redbridge, which comprises 85,000 square feet of residential and retail space in central Williamsburg.
Skybridge acquired the Redbridge properties located at 237-241 Bedford Ave., 159-173 N. 3rd St. and 160-164 N. 4th St. in 2012, according to JLL. The portfolio also includes more than 20,000 square feet of retail space at 247 Bedford Ave., which houses one of the two Brooklyn Apple stores and the Corcoran Group. Some of the other retail tenants at Redbridge include Sephora, Alo Yoga, Flywheel, by Chloe, Dig Inn, Sweetgreen and UVA Wines.
JLL’s managing director Jonathan Schwartz, vice chairman Aaron Appel, associate Douglas Baillie and analyst Sean Bastian led their capital markets team in arranging the JP Morgan Chase & Co. refinancing.
“RedSky Capital has established itself as a leading investor in Brooklyn,” says Schwartz. “Its Redbridge portfolio is located on one of the most prosperous retail corridors in Brooklyn. This was a tremendous lending opportunity that was competitively bid.”
RedSky Capital SVP Eyal Greenberg says the loan with JP Morgan Chase reflects the high quality of the Redbridge portfolio and tenancy.
A May 4, 2018 Cornell Real Estate Review article by Paul Heydweiller, Mark Hughes and Philip Tapia of Cornell University analyzes the Redbridge development. It points to the project’s role in transforming the Williamsburg neighborhood from one of “quiet, industrial, working-class roots” to a “trendy, young, residential base.” It particularly commends RedSky for bringing the first Apple store to Brooklyn.
The Cornell case study highlights three Redbridge properties: 237-247 Bedford Ave., 159-179 N. 3rd St. and 156-170 N. 4th St. It states they were purchased for $64 million, incurred $83.7 million in redevelopment costs and have a current valuation of $301.3 million.
The article cites NYU 2015 data, stating the Williamsburg/Greenpoint neighborhood has increased in value by 78.7% from 1990 to 2010. It also reports retail rents along Bedford Avenue between Metropolitan Avenue and N. 8th Street have risen 477% between 2006 and 2016, according to 2016 CPEX Real Estate consultancy findings.
RedSky Capital was co-founded in 2006 by Ben Bernstein and Ben Stokes. Its website states that in 2012, RedSky formed a joint venture, RedSky/JZ, with JZ Capital Partners providing access to over $1 billion of permanent equity capital. It indicates the RedSky Brooklyn portfolio exceeds $1 billion. The company’s stated strategy includes investing in developing markets, with long-term goals of increasing value and returns by optimizing use of existing space and reducing expenses.