CBRE Secures $50M Refi of LIC Office

NEW YORK CITY-The owners of the Standard Motor Products Building in Long Island City have obtained a $50-million bridge loan to refinance the seven-story office property. CBRE Capital Markets' Debt & Equity Finance arranged the loan, which was provided by HSBC, on behalf of borrower 37-18 Northern Boulevard LLC. The loan carries a two-year term with two one-year extension options, a floating rate of 2% and an approximate LTV of 60%.

The 301,600-square-foot property at 37-18 Northern Blvd. is in the portfolio of Acumen Capital Partners LLC. The company bought 37-18 Northern Blvd. from the Standard Motor Products Co. in a 2008 sale-leaseback for which CBRE also arranged the financing, according to Acumen's website. Standard Motor Products continues to occupy 75,000 square feet of corporate headquarters space there, while moving its manufacturing operations overseas as part of the leaseback.

The property's sponsorship has put about $15 million in additional capital and leasing costs to convert the 25% occupied manufacturing building into a loft-style commercial office asset, according to a release. This included improvements to the exterior façade and windows, the renovation and expansion of the entrance lobby and front entrance canopy, elevator upgrades and the addition of a one-acre rooftop farm said to be the largest in the city.

Today, the property's occupancy is 85%. Along with Standard Motor Products' headquarters and the Brooklyn Grange, which operates the rooftop farm, tenants include Broadview Networks, LogistiCare Solutions, the I. Grace Co., the Jim Henson Co. and Wiesner Products.

Keith Braddish and Jason Gaccione of CBRE's New York City office, along with James Gunning and Donna Falzarano of CBRE's Saddle Brook, NJ office, arranged the financing. “The loan provides not only cash-out proceeds, but also additional leasing capital and a 'good news' earn-out facility, funded against future increases in cash flow,” Gaccione says in a the release.