Manhattan Tower Lands $479M Construction Financing

By Keith Loria, Contributing Editor

Rendering of Hudson Commons at 441 Ninth Ave. in Manhattan

A joint venture between Cove Property Group and an institutional partner has received $479 million in construction financing to redevelop Hudson Commons, a 25-story, 701,364-square-foot trophy office building in the Hudson Yards/Penn Plaza submarket of Manhattan.

HFF arranged the financing through investment funds managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, including Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance Inc.

“The timeline to complete the building—due to the existing structure already in place and no need for excavation and significant foundation work—is very quick, allowing lenders to get their money to work quicker than a deal that has a 3-to-4-year timeline to complete,” Michael Gigliotti, HFF’s senior director, told Commercial Property Executive.

Located at 441 Ninth Ave., between 34th and 35th Streets in the greater Hudson Yards submarket, Hudson Commons will boast a 17-story structure on top of an existing eight-story building, with 14 private terraces and balconies and onsite basement parking for up to 140 vehicles. 

Terrace at Hudson Commons at 441 Ninth Ave. in Manhattan

The proceeds from the loan will be utilized to reposition and redevelop the asset into an iconic Class A office tower with full block frontage along Ninth Avenue. The plans were designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox, and will incorporate highly efficient and varied floor plan layouts with high ceilings, as well as unique and sustainable elements such as terraces and green roofs. 

The floor plates will range from 16,000 to 50,000 rentable square feet, combined with 14-foot ceiling heights throughout. Additionally, an abundance of outdoor space and amenities will allow tenants to focus on attracting and retaining the world’s best talent. 

Strong transportation options

According to Gigliotto, the development is an alternative to the massive multi-million-square-foot towers going up in Hudson Yards. 

“A tenant as small as 16,000 square feet that has the desire to be in the Hudson Yards area can go to this building and have a full floor presence,” he said. “The building can also cater to larger tenants, and a 700,000-square-foot corporate user can take an entire building as opposed to being 30 percent of one of the larger Hudson Yards office properties.” 

The development is convenient to multiple mass transit options, as opposed to just the 7 train in Hudson Yards. The property benefits from being equidistant between Penn Station and the new 7 train extension servicing Hudson Yards, while providing easy access to the Port Authority and Lincoln Tunnel. 

Joining Gigliotti on the HFF debt placement team were Geoff Goldstein, senior director, and Michael Tepedino, executive managing director.

Last month, Cove Property Group teamed with Bentall Kennedy on the redevelopment and repositioning of 101 Greenwich, a 480,000-square-foot office building in Manhattan. 

Images courtesy of Kohn Pedersen Fox