AB Capstone signs $24M refi with Stabilis for retail in Jamaica Estates

Meir Babaev’s AB Capstone through the entity 179 Center LLC as borrower signed a loan with lender Stabilis Capital Management through the entity Stabilis Lending, LLC valued at $24 million for three properties including the mixed-use building (K9) at 186-16 Union Turnpike, the retail building (K1) at 179-24 Union Turnpike, and the retail building (K1) at 187-12 Union Turnpike in Jamaica Estates, Queens.

AB Capstone has been under lender pressure at other locations, with at least four pre-foreclosure actions filed in 2023 and 2024.
The deal closed on January 31, 2025 and was recorded on March 4, 2025. The three properties have 34,550 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $694 per the PincusCo analysis. (The price per square foot analysis is the transaction price divided by square feet as reported in public records and assumes no air rights have been sold.)
The signatory for AB Capstone was Meir Babaev . The signatory for Stabilis Capital Management was Joseph Podesta.

Prior sales and revenue

Out of the three properties, two with a total of 34,550 square feet of built space generated revenue of $1 million per year.

The neighborhood

In Jamaica Estates, The majority, or 58 percent of the 2.7 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 14 percent of the space. In sales, Jamaica Estates has the 29th highest sale turnover among other neighborhoods in Queens with $41.8 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Jamaica Estates has had very little major development activity relative to other neighborhoods.It had 49,345 square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 2 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

There are no active new building construction projects on this tax block.

The majority, or 88 percent of the 55,800 square feet of built space are retail buildings, with mixed-use buildings next occupying 12 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that AB Capstone owned at least six commercial properties with 10 residential units in New York City with 299,923 square feet and a city-determined market value of $43.7 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 49 percent of the 299,923 square feet of built space are specialty properties, with retail properties next occupying 23 percent of the space. The bulk, or 51 percent of the built space, is in Queens, with Bronx next at 49 percent of the space.

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