Collins Enterprises Teams Up with Berkshire Property Advisors on Hudson Park

March 9, 2012 - PRLog -- Contact: Geoff Thompson
Thompson & Bender
(914) 762-1900
geoff@thompson-bender.com

YONKERS, NY (February 2012) – Collins Enterprises, LLC today announced it has teamed up with a new equity partner, Berkshire Property Advisers, for its Hudson Park luxury rental property located along the Yonkers downtown waterfront. Begun more than a decade ago, Hudson Park, which is 95% leased, is a symbol of the area’s renaissance.

The new relationship sets the stage for Collins’ plans to proceed with the third phase of Hudson Park which will consist of 200 additional apartments. The first two phases include 560 apartments that offer panoramic views of the Hudson River, the Manhattan skyline and the Palisades.

Berkshire and Collins recapitalized a $147 million transaction which includes a $63 million loan provided by Wells Fargo Bank and Freddie Mac. Collins remains the managing member, responsible for all operations at the three building property. The new venture represents the most recent acquisition of a New York metro property by Berkshire, which has approximately $4 billion of assets under management.

The first phase called Hudson Park South, completed in 2003, cost $62 million and features 266 luxury one- and two-bedroom rental apartments and 15,500 square feet of retail, restaurants and professional office space. The second phase called Hudson Park North was completed in 2008 cost $104 million and took advantage of NY State Brownfield Tax Credit Program. It was constructed on two parcels just north of the first phase and comprises two towers (one, 14-stories, and the second 12-stories), connected with a four-story building and 340 space parking garage. It features 294 one- and two-bedroom apartments. The third phase will be built on approximately a quarter of an acre parcel that abuts the garage at Hudson Park North.

The development of Hudson Park demonstrated the viability of a new multi-family complex at the Yonkers waterfront and helped spark interest of other developers for constructing new apartments, retail, restaurants and businesses to locate in the area. With the influx of many new residents, the downtown has been enlivened with new activity and vitality.  The City is now completing the $30 million daylighting of the Saw Mill River which is a two-acre park in downtown and adjacent to Hudson Park and the Metro North express station.

The Yonkers Metro-North Station, which underwent a major renovation and preserved the historic character of the structure, is one of the busiest stations in the commuter line. The 28-minute ride to Grand Central Station makes it easy and convenient for commuters and is one of the attractions of living in the downtown and is especially a draw for Hudson Park tenants, many of whom work in Manhattan.

Dwight Collins, co-founding principal of Collins Enterprises, stated: “Hudson Park is an excellent example of what a carefully planned redevelopment project can do in transforming an aging urban waterfront into an attractive destination for the 21st century.”
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Berkshire Property Advisors, L.L.C. was established in 2002 and is a part of The Berkshire Group of affiliated entities (collectively, “Berkshire”), founded in 1969, which is a vertically-integrated, national organization primarily focused on multifamily real estate.  Over its 42-year history, Berkshire has been one of the most active multifamily owners and lenders in the U.S.  Berkshire is led by a team of six senior officers with an average tenure of 21 years with the company and an average of 35 years of overall real estate experience.

Based in Stamford, Connecticut, Collins Enterprises is a third-generation, private real estate company which owns and operates a $500 mm portfolio of multifamily and commercial office buildings from Virginia to New York City. Collins Enterprises is nationally recognized for building unique redevelopment projects in strategic locations such as urban waterfronts, reemerging downtowns, and Brownfield sites.