Clal Expands Multifamily Portfolio with Stamford, CT Deal

STAMFORD, CT—Clal Insurance has acquired 75 Tresser (Blvd.), a luxury 344-unit rental apartment mid-rise building in downtown Stamford for $121 million.

Clal, a publicly traded insurance company, pension fund manager, and one of Israel's largest financial institutions with more than $40 billion in assets under management, purchased 75 Tresser through a joint venture with Waterton Associates L.L.C., of Chicago.

Waterton will retain a 51% stake in the project, while New York City-based Clal will own the remaining 49%. Waterton will manage the building following the initial leasing period, company officials say. According to the Wall Street Journal, the Clal-Waterton venture acquired the property from a joint venture of Greenfield Partners LLC and Post Road Residential Inc.

75 Tresser is a four-story building that contains 90% market-rate and 10% affordable rental units. In addition, the building includes 5,500-square-feet of retail space with a two-story parking lot. The building also features high-end amenities including a 9,000-square-foot resident's lounge, a 5,000-square-foot fitness center, pool, two courtyards, a private screening room, meeting/dining rooms, a catering kitchen and business center. The initial lease up is already underway with leasing handled by Bozzuto Management.

The acquisition of 75 Tresser marks Clal's fourth purchase since December 2012 when it purchased a 49% stake in One South Wacker, a 40-story commercial tower in Chicago with 1.2 million-square-feet of office space. In February 2014, Clal and Waterton closed on Infinity Apartments, a 100-unit, one- and two-bedroom apartment community at 340-342 Old River Road in Edgewater, NJ. Most recently, Clal acquired Harper Court, a newly constructed mixed-used office and retail complex in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood with a 20-year master lease to the University of Chicago.

“Clal is on track to expand our portfolio of quality multifamily properties in prime commuter markets,” said Tamir Kazaz, CEO of Clal US, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Clal Insurance. “We are particularly dedicated to growing a multifamily portfolio in the Tri-State area, where we see immense value.”

Jeffrey Dunne, Gene Pride and Patrick Carino of CBRE's Institutional Properties represented Greenfield Partners and Post Road Residential in the sale of 75 Tresser.

"Post Road Residential and their institutional partner have developed an iconic Stamford landmark that is transforming the standard for apartment living in this community," CBRE's Dunne says.  "The expansive resident amenity space, cutting edge design and irreplaceable location have created a buzz in town that is rare."