Cove Property Group Announces the Closing of $724 Million Refinancing for Hudson Commons at 441 Ninth Avenue

NEW YORK, Nov. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Cove Property Group announced today the closing of a $724.2 million financing for Hudson Commons, Cove's 25-story, 698,000 square foot trophy office redevelopment at 441 Ninth Avenue in the Hudson Yards submarket of Manhattan, from affiliates of Blackstone Mortgage Trust (NYSE: BXMT).

"From day one, we held true to our business plan of preserving a remarkable industrial building, while adding to it an integrated, efficient tower and thereby creating a best-in-class work environment that fosters collaboration, innovation and growth, all at the gateway to Manhattan's newest center of business," said Kevin Hoo, Founder and Managing Partner at Cove. "Cove and Baupost are extremely proud of the finished product, which we recently launched to market, and we look to welcome new tenants into the remaining tower floors. We are pleased that Blackstone appreciates the execution of our vision, and we are excited to be partners with them in this next chapter of Hudson Commons."

Steve Plavin, President and CEO of Blackstone Mortgage Trust, said, "We are thrilled to provide senior mortgage financing on Hudson Commons, an outstanding property in Manhattan's best performing submarket. This transaction exemplifies BXMT's differentiated ability to finance large scale, high quality real estate with strong sponsorship in core locations."

Cove, in partnership with The Baupost Group, purchased the property from Emblem Health in December 2016. Over the past two years, the partners pursued an ambitious and creative adaptive reuse of the original eight-story former warehouse, combining it with a new, yet contextual, 17-story overbuild.

Imagined from the inside-out with an acute focus on the evolving needs of modern tenants, Hudson Commons is currently 65% leased. Peloton anchors the property with its 336,000 square foot headquarters and is joined by Lyft in 100,000 square feet and Brevet in 16,000 square feet. Only 213,000 square feet of office space remains across the newly constructed boutique tower floors, ranging from 16,000 to 23,000 square feet. This includes the penthouse, which boasts a 28-foot slab height, panoramic views of the city and a private rooftop garden.

Katie Keenan, Executive Vice President, Investments at Blackstone Mortgage Trust added, "With its sweeping views, hospitality-quality amenities and modern design features, Hudson Commons brings a unique appeal for creative and boutique office users. Cove and Baupost achieved top-notch execution on a complicated project, and we are excited to be financing this wonderful property."

Designed by world-renowned architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox, Hudson Commons features efficient side-core floor plates with light and air on all sides, minimum 14' slab heights, outdoor space on nearly every floor of the new tower and state-of-the-art amenities and technology. Tenants can access a dedicated building concierge, manage amenity conference room reservations, submit service requests and control visitor access management, all from a new app-based platform. The Wired Score Platinum property also features executive parking, premium bike storage, showers and a hospitality-driven 8,000 square foot conferencing center and tenant lounge. Hudson Commons is tracking to earn LEED Platinum designation.

An Eastdil Secured, LLC team led by Grant Frankel, Managing Director; Phil McKnight, Managing Director; and Ethan Pond, Director, represented Cove in securing the financing from affiliates of Blackstone Mortgage Trust.

About Cove Property Group

Cove is a New York City-based owner, operator and developer of innovative institutional grade commercial real estate. Founded by Kevin Hoo, Thomas Farrell and Amit Patel, Cove's principals have a combined 50 years of ownership, asset management and respected development expertise.  Cove focuses on investment and redevelopment, as well as ground-up development, of key asset types including commercial office, retail, residential and industrial. For more information, please visit www.covepg.com.

About The Baupost Group 

The Baupost Group is a Boston-based investment manager with a long-term, value-oriented approach. Since 1982, the firm has been thoughtfully stewarding and compounding capital on behalf of families, foundations and endowments, as well as employees who collectively are the firm's largest client. Baupost manages roughly $28 billion with a broad and flexible charter, investing in a wide range of asset classes, including significant holdings in publicly traded debt and equity securities, private debt, real estate, and private equity. CEO and Portfolio Manager Seth Klarman has overseen Baupost's investments from the company's inception. 

About Eastdil Secured

Eastdil Secured is the original, premier private real estate investment banking company with the mission to create value for our clients through creative, actionable ideas and flawless execution, and to be the most relevant and trusted advisor in the commercial real estate capital markets. Eastdil Secured has built its expertise into a knowledge franchise that is recognized as the dominant force in commercial real estate and investment banking by institutional investors around the world. Its unrivaled combination of capital markets expertise and in-depth understanding of real estate fundamentals allows the firm to deliver best-in-class advice, ideas and execution for its clients.

SOURCE Cove Property Group

Related Links

http://covepg.com