Eastside, Westside: Lender puts $76M behind Shekhter projects in Santa Monica, warehouse in Vernon

Los Angeles area developers have tapped a New York financier for $76 million in commercial real estate loans on separate projects in Santa Monica and Vernon.

New York-based Lightstone Capital has provided mortgage loans to Neil Shekhter’s WS Communities in Santa Monica, and a group of private investors in a Vernon warehouse, the Los Angeles Business Journal reported.

WS Communities borrowed $49 million for a mixed-use project planned for 201 Colorado Ave. in Santa Monica, with 159 units in two buildings, in addition to multi-family projects at 1421 and 1427 Barry Ave. in Sawtelle.

NMS Residential, founded by Neil Shekhter, will manage the properties. WS Communities, founded by sons Alexander and Adam Shekhter, along with Scott Walter, its CEO, will build them.

“For WSC, we were able to provide a creative solution, which gave them a single loan that allowed them to execute two separate business plans – one for each unique asset,” said Eugene Rozovsky, senior managing director of Lightstone Capital.

Justin Piasecki and Richard Sutton of New York-based Lev, and Rahim Thobani of RST Capital Partners in Porter Ranch, arranged the financing.

Lightstone also provided a $27 million first mortgage to the unnamed investors of a 105,000-square-foot warehouse on Alameda Street, in Vernon. The property is 100-percent leased by three tenants, according to Lightstone.

“The key to this project was our ability to close it within their very tight deadline,” John Zubak, Lightstone Capital’s vice president of West Coast originations, who led the transaction for the company, said in a statement.

Edward Choi of Amherst Real Estate Capital, based in Brentwood, arranged the financing.

[Los Angeles Business Journal] – Dana Bartholomew

Read more

Los Angeles

Tishman Speyer scores loan on Santa Monica portfolio

Los Angeles

DTLA apartment complex gets $90M refi