Beyond the Gold Coast: Newark is Poised for a Big Revival
Looking Beyond the Gold Coast: Newark is Poised For A Big Revival.
Many say it is the next Brooklyn, others say it’s so much more. Either way it’s clear to us at Progress Capital Advisors that the Newark resurgence is in full swing. With over $100,000,000 secured in financing for Newark assets in 2017, it’s time to look away from Jersey’s Gold Coast and invest in the future of New Jersey’s largest city.
When it opened a grand four-story space at 609 Broad Street in 1911, Hahne and Co.’s motto was “The Store with the Friendly Spirit”. The new department store was heralded as the largest and fanciest retail venue in the world, in what was then one of the glitziest and wealthiest cities in the country. By 1984, both the glamorous spirit of the store and the glitziness of Newark had long since diminished after the city was left in ruins from rioting throughout 1967. Hahne and Company closed and the iconic building shut its doors for the last time in a sign many saw as the end of hope for Newark’s once flourishing downtown.
Over the next 30 years, Newark would sit languishing through many failed attempts at urban renewal. At the same time, exponential growth occurred in construction, multifamily, retail and industrial commercial real estate throughout neighboring Hudson County – re-positioning towns like Jersey City, Hoboken and Weehawken into culturally diverse urban hubs. At the start of 2014, Progress began seeing a trend as our clients started to look away from Hudson County and explore cities where this current population trend toward urban hubs was going to trickle down next. With its access to mass transit, tax incentives, existing and historic architecture, newly elected officials and varying urban redevelopment projects, Newark seemed the obvious choice. From what we can see now, it still is.
2016 into 2017 saw the completion of several major developments throughout the city. These include ‘Teachers Village’ – a massive mixed-use residential / retail concept, the acquisition and approval for a new development at the former Bears Stadium site, the relocation of the Newark Board of Education to 765 Broad Street (financed by Progress) and breaking ground for Newark’s tallest residential building to be erected since the 60’s: the 22-story ‘One Theater Square.’
Newark Police Department crime statistics at the end of 2016 showed the lowest crime measures in the city since riots decimated Newark in 1967. The announcement seemed to cement the idea that 2017 would be a year of critical change for Jersey’s most neglected city.
AND IT HAS BEEN! On March 1, 2017 the previously shuttered Hahne & Co. doors opened once again. After the building underwent massive restoration, shoppers were welcomed to the grand opening of a Whole Foods Market at street level, with 160 residential apartment units added to the building.
Throughout the end of 2016 and through Q3 of 2017, Progress Capital Advisors has arranged over $100,000,000 in financing for acquisitions, construction and re-positioning of commercial property assets throughout the city. While much of this growth is focused on the downtown historic district, we are seeing our valued clients begin looking towards neighboring parts of the city to invest in multifamily assets beyond Newark’s ‘Four Corners’ as downtown is oft described.
Ready to begin investing in Newark?
Contact us today. Progress Capital Advisors can help you decide on exactly the right investment, discuss the potential for future repositioning and help you secure exactly the right amount and type of financing you need to best leverage your assets with your long term financial goals. Check out some of our recently closed Newark deals to learn more about its comeback and how Progress Capital Advisors is financing its future.
