WASHINGTON, DC - Prudential Mortgage Capital Company secured $115.8 million in permanent financing through Freddie Mac for Art Place at Fort Totten, a 520-unit mixed-income and mixed-use development in Northeast Washington, D.C., the company announced today. The borrower is an affiliate of The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation. Prudential Mortgage Capital Company is the commercial mortgage lending business of Prudential Financial, Inc.
Prudential Financial’s $400 million impact investment portfolio was also a participant in the financing of this transaction, providing $25 million. The impact portfolio directs investments to companies, projects and funds that create positive social change and help individuals and communities achieve economic success.
When completed, Art Place at Fort Totten will include 520 rental units, and 103,502 square-feet of commercial space. It is the first phase of a three-phase development that will be located adjacent to the Fort Totten Metro Station. The completed project will include a fitness center, restaurant, children’s museum and a community center for the arts.
Of the 520 residential units, 121 will be designated affordable, with long-term income and rent restrictions. The remaining units will be market-rate. The Fort Totten neighborhood is diverse, ranging from quiet residential neighborhoods and local shopping streets to new high-rise development and industrial uses. Art Place is located almost adjacent to the Fort Totten Metrorail stop which is served by the Red, Green and Yellow subway lines providing easy access to employment centers throughout the region. The complex is expected to be the epicenter of a newly revitalized neighborhood, joining adjacent sites that have either recently been developed, or are currently being developed.
“The scale and design of this property coupled with the longstanding commitment of the borrower to serving Washington, D.C., will make this a dynamic development for the Fort Totten community,” said Alex Viorst, a principal with Prudential Mortgage Capital Company’s affordable housing business. “When this property is completed, it will bring high quality market rate and affordable housing to the community, along with new commercial and retail opportunities for neighborhood residents.”
Added Lata Reddy, vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility at Prudential and president of The Prudential Foundation, “We are pleased to partner with Prudential Mortgage Capital Company on this important investment. For many households, transportation and housing are the two largest expenditures, and this project will lessen both burdens on its residents. Prudential is focused on helping working families provide for their basic needs, so projects like Art Place are a perfect fit.”
“The Foundation is committed to building a strong community for Washington area residents,” said Calvin Cafritz, Chairman of the Board of The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation. “Art Place will be an important catalyst to the Ft. Totten neighborhood creating a new vibrancy with the addition of residential apartments, shopping, restaurants and a new fitness center while providing 121 apartments as affordable with long-term income and rent restrictions.”