Bruklyn Builders signs $80M construction loan with S3 Capital for 131-unit project in Turtle Bay

Bruklyn Builders through the entity 303 East 44th St LLC as borrower signed a new construction loan with lender S3 Capital through the entity S3 Re 303 E 44th St Funding LLC valued at $80 million for the 131-unit development building at 303-305 East 44th Street in Turtle Bay, Manhattan.
The job number 121192663 was filed in 2015, and is now permitted, for a 97,048-square-foot, 470-foot-tall, 35-story building. The plans list 131 residential units, and are described as: “to erect a 35-story mixed-use, new building, air rights from lots 49 and 148 with the actual building on lots 5 and 105. New York State Division of Housing and Community Renewal inclusionary housing involved.”
The deal closed on September 11, 2025 and was recorded on September 26, 2025.
The signatory for Bruklyn Builders was David Halberstam .

The Commercial Observer reported on the loan previously.

Violations and lawsuits

There were no lawsuits or bankruptcies filed against the property for the past 24 months. In addition, according to city public data, the property has received $13,125 in ECB penalties and $27,135 in OATH penalties in the last year.

The neighborhood

In Turtle Bay, The bulk, or 36 percent of the 9 million square feet of commercial built space are specialty buildings, with elevator buildings next occupying 32 percent of the space. In sales, Turtle Bay has the 40th highest sale turnover among other neighborhoods in Manhattan with $68.6 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Turtle Bay has had very little major development activity relative to other neighborhoods.It had 178,885 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

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of four of the 14 commercial properties representing 803,051 square feet of the 1,337,242 square feet. The largest owner is United Nations Development Corporation, followed by Brodsky Organization and then Bruklyn Builders.

The majority, or 69 percent of the 1.3 million square feet of built space are office buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 14 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Bruklyn Builders owned at least six commercial properties with 70 residential units in New York City with 32,711 square feet and a city-determined market value of $8.1 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $156 million in debt, with top three lenders as S3 Capital, Zions Bancorporation, and LMF Commercial respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 40 percent of the 32,711 square feet of built space are walkup properties, with retail properties next occupying 22 percent of the space. The bulk, or 60 percent of the built space, is in Brooklyn, with Manhattan next at 40 percent of the space.

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