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NEW YORK CITY-The Singer & Bassuk Organization has arrangeda $156-million construction loan for the Azure luxury cooperativeproject. The 245,000-sf building is being constructed at 333 East91st St. between First and Second avenues by the DeMatteisOrganizations and the Mattone Group. HSBC Bank USA, NationalAssociation provided the loan.

Richard Bassuk, president of SBO, tells GlobeSt.com that theprojects developers "approached us because of the complexity of thetransaction and their belief that we could get them the bestfinancing available in the market." The project will create 128co-op units and will also include the construction of a school onan adjacent parcel. The school component was part of the originallease deal the developers signed with the New York City EducationalConstruction Fund. The group leased the development site to thejoint venture with the stipulation that a school be built by thedevelopers on a connecting site. An old school will be demolishedto make way for the new site; although SBO was not involved in anypart of the school development.