KRE Group, a full-service real estate investment and management company with more than five decades of experience, and National Real Estate Advisors, LLC (National), an investment manager specializing in build-to-core, today announced that they have closed on $210 million in permanent financing for the first completed tower at Journal Squared, the mixed-use development complex rising in Jersey City’s historic Journal Square neighborhood.
The permanent loan came from American International Group (AIG) and is the second loan the lender has provided KRE and National for a Jersey City property. The first loan was for Grove Pointe, a 458-unit luxury rental building that KRE and National developed next to the Grove Street PATH Station. Meridian Capital Group served as the broker for the latest transaction.
“We’re extremely pleased with Journal Squared’s progress to date,” said Jonathan Kushner, President of KRE Group. “The first tower was fully leased within 10 months of launching. The entire development is bringing much needed housing to the Journal Square neighborhood and we are excited to be part of the area’s continued redevelopment.”
Jeff Kanne, President and CEO of National, said: “Journal Squared has been an unquestionable success. In keeping with National’s strategy to invest in and develop outstanding, vanguard projects, Journal Squared has proven it can outcompete other properties based on its high-quality attributes and amenities.”
Designed by Hollwich Kushner and Handel Architects, Journal Squared will include three buildings and bring a total of 1,840 rental residences to the area. Clad in aluminum panels, the first completed tower rises to 563 feet, making it the neighborhood’s tallest building to date and the third tallest building in Jersey City. The 53-story building’s 538 apartments, ranging in size from studios to three bedrooms, boast hardwood floors, stainless steel appliances, central air and in-home washer and dryers.
The building also offers a remarkable amenity and service package. The 20,000 square feet of amenities begin in the double-height lobby, which includes a lounge and 24-hour concierge. Moving up to the 8th floor, “Club JSQ” is designed for work and play with a full floor of modern conveniences, including a library with complimentary Wi-Fi and a lounge that opens onto a sun terrace with an outdoor swimming pool. There’s also a fitness center, yoga studio, billiards room and children’s playroom. In addition, Journal Squared boasts the neighborhood’s first residential “Sky Lounge,” a 53rd-floor observatory with dramatic panoramas of the Manhattan skyline.
KRE and National broke ground on Journal Squared’s second tower in Spring of 2018, which will top out at 70 stories, making it the tallest of the three towers.
Journal Squared is energizing the area’s street life by adding 36,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, including the popular café Whealth, as well as a new pedestrian plaza known as Magnolia Landing, which leads to the adjacent transit hub. Since its grand opening last summer, Magnolia Landing has served as a venue for farmers markets, seasonal activities and community events.
With its easy access to transportation, Journal Square is quickly becoming one of Jersey City’s most in-demand neighborhoods. A covered pathway leads residents from the building directly to the Journal Square Transportation Center, one of New Jersey’s major transportation hubs. The facility has access to NJ Transit, and is also a major stop on the PATH rail system, with service to Lower and Midtown Manhattan, Hoboken, Newark and Jersey City.
About KRE Group
Founded in 1979 by Murray Kushner and Eugene Schenkman, Kushner Real Estate Group is a New Jersey-based real estate development and management company with holdings throughout New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. The company has developed, owns, and manages more than six million square feet of commercial, industrial, and retail property, as well as 9,000 existing apartments with an additional 7,000 apartments in various stages of approvals and construction. With a proven track record of large-scale mixed-use development and a long history of financial relationships with lenders and institutional equity partners, KRE Group is one of the region’s leading real estate developers.
About National Real Estate Advisors
National Real Estate Advisors is an investment manager specializing in build-to-core—developing and owning large-scale, urban commercial and multifamily projects for its institutional client accounts. National constructs investment portfolios of stabilized modern property assets—apartment, office, mixed-use, industrial, data center and hotel—with design features, technological enhancements, and amenities that can drive high tenant demand and create value for investors. The firm is a subsidiary of the National Electrical Benefit Fund.
