Portland Mixed-Use Project Moves Ahead With $460M Loan

Block 216. Image courtesy of Mosaic Real Estate Investors

Block 216, a 1.1 million-square-foot mixed-use development in downtown Portland that will feature a 35-story tower with a hotel, residential units, office and retail space, is moving forward with a $460 million four-year construction loan secured by George Smith Partners from Mosaic Real Estate Investors. With the funding in place, developer BPM Real Estate Group expects to break ground this summer and complete construction in 2023. A ceremonial groundbreaking is scheduled for Friday, July 12.

The development, which takes up a full city block, will have 140,000 square feet of Class A office space, a 251-key Ritz Carlton Hotel, 138 Ritz Carlton-branded residences and 7,800 square feet of ground-level retail that will open up to a pedestrian “festival street.”

The Ritz Carlton will be the city’s first five-star hotel. Located at the intersection of the central business and Pearl districts, the tower will be Portland’s fifth-tallest building. In addition to locally based BPM, the construction team includes Howard S. Wright, general contractor; GBD Architects for the core and shell; HKS architects for the interiors; and PLACE, landscape architect.

Malcolm Davies, principal & managing director of George Smith Partners, and George Smith Partners Senior Vice President Zachary Streit arranged the financing on behalf of BPM founder Walter Bowen. Davies said the loan was challenging because of the complexity of the project due to its size and scope.  Streit noted they reached out to more than 150 capital partners over a four-month period, holding more than 50 in-person meetings and conducting 15 site visits.

Mosaic deals

Davies said BPM selected Mosaic because the Los Angeles-based firm shared the same vision and philosophy for the project. Mosaic Real Estate Investors and its debt platform, Mosaic Real Estate Credit, was founded in 2015 by industry veterans Ethan Penner and Vicky Schiff. Mosaic has originated more than $1.5 billion in transaction volume since its inception, with approximately $800 million in originations since the beginning of this year. Most recently, Mosaic provided Santa Monica, Calif.-based developer Columbus Pacific with $165 million in senior construction debt for the development of a 233-key luxury condo hotel in Park City, Utah. Pendry Park City will also offer condominium units.

In January, Mosaic provided a three-year, $212.3 million senior construction loan arranged by George Smith Partners to the Robert Green Co. for development of the SilverRock Resort and Residences in La Quinta, Calif. The financing will fund predevelopment and construction costs of a 140-key Montage Resort, 200-key Pendry Resort, 10 luxury golf villas, a service and conference facility and golf clubhouse. A month earlier, Mosaic had provided a $50.9 million construction loan for Oceans V to convert a Los Angeles office building into a 180-key Cambria Hotel & Suites.

BPM keeps busy

In December, BPM completed work on Broadway Tower, a 19-story mixed-use tower also in downtown Portland. Howard S. Wright was the contractor and GBD Architects designed the $158 million project that includes a 180-key Radisson Red hotel on the first eight floors. Class A office space was constructed on the top 11 floors, with approximately 2,200 square feet of retail space on the ground floor. 

BPM received a $115 million loan in November from 3650 REIT to build a 12-story, 326-key Radisson Blu hotel in Anaheim, Calif. George Smith Partners also arranged that loan.