JV Secures $260M Refi for Philadelphia Mixed-Use Project

East Market. Image courtesy of JLL

A joint venture between National Real Estate Advisors, JOSS Realty Partners, SSH and Young Capital has secured a $260 million refinancing loan for East Market, a multi-phased, mixed-use project in Philadelphia. Pacific Life Insurance Co. provided the financing, while JLL Capital Markets represented the joint venture.

East Market, spanning from Market to Chestnut and 11th to 12th streets, occupies an entire city block and features retail, dining, office, living and hospitality spaces. The project has two multi-housing buildings encompassing 562 units, as well as 120,000 square feet of retail, an office redevelopment and 177 underground parking spaces. Upon completion, the property will encompass more than 1 million square feet, with a total investment exceeding $1 billion.

A big development in the heart of the city

The housing component, comprising The Ludlow and The Girard at 1101 and 1199 Ludlow St., respectively, was completed in 2018 and 2019. The Ludlow features 322 units in a mix of studios, one- and two-bedroom floorplans ranging from 466 to 963 square feet, according to Yardi Matrix data. The Girard offers 240 units in a mix of one- and two-bedroom floorplans ranging from 545 to 1,238 square feet, according to the same data provider. Community amenities for both properties include a fitness center, business center, clubhouse, playground, media room and pool. The Girard is LEED Silver certified.

The project also includes the adaptive reuse of a warehouse building dating back to 1916. The structure at 1100 Ludlow Street was converted into 160,000 square feet of rentable office space, with 25,257-square-foot floorplates, according to CommercialEdge data. Tenants include companies such as WeWork, Design Center Philadelphia, Kravet and Bright Light Design Center.

The East Market project also calls for the redevelopment of a historic office building into a boutique hotel, as well as a 19-story medical building for Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Health. The high-rise is slated to centralize several clinical services into a Specialty Care Pavilion.

Located in the central Market East neighborhood of Philadelphia, the development provides easy access to several SEPTA Regional Rail lines and multiple transportation options within the city. The Philadelphia International Airport is situated some 10 miles southwest. Several retail, employment, dining and entertainment options are available within a 1-mile radius.

Senior Managing Director Chad Orcutt and Associate Blaine Fleming led the JLL Capital Markets Debt Advisory team representing the borrower.

Last month, another joint venture secured $500 million for a massive Philadelphia project. Developed by Hilco Redevelopment and its partners, The Bellwether District is a 15 million-square-foot mixed-use industrial park in the southern part of the city. The campus is slated to include life science space, a research lab, as well as e-commerce and logistics space.