Episcopal Health signs $26.2M rehab construction loan for hospital in Far Rockaway

Episcopal Health Services as borrower signed a rehab construction loan with lender M&T Bank valued at $26.2 million for the St. John’s Episcopal Hospital building (I1) at 327 Beach 19th Street in Far Rockaway, Queens.
The deal closed on May 2, 2023 and was recorded on May 23, 2023. The property has 119,788 square feet of built space and 93,500 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 212,500 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $219 and the price per buildable square foot is $123 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 Episcopal Health Services was Gerard M. Walsh.

The property

The specialty building in Far Rockaway has 119,788 square feet of built space and 93,500 square feet of additional air rights for a total buildable of 212,500 square feet according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 414 feet and is 107 feet deep with a total lot size of 170,000 square feet. The lot is irregular. The zoning is R5 which allows for up to 1.25 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $36.5 million.

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 four DOB violations, $1,280 in ECB penalties, and $2,965 in OATH penalties in the last year.

Development

There are no active new building construction projects or major alteration projects with initial costs more than $1 million on this tax lot.

The neighborhood

In Far Rockaway, The majority, or 65 percent of the 12.8 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 18 percent of the space. In sales, Far Rockaway has had very little sales volume relative to other neighborhoods with $106.7 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Far Rockaway is the 10th most active neighborhood among other neighborhoods. It had 4 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 32 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

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

The majority, or 96 percent of the 133,715 square feet of built space are specialty buildings, with office buildings next occupying 4 percent of the space.

The borrower

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Episcopal Health Services owned at least 10 commercial properties with 10 residential units in New York City with 65,352 square feet and a city-determined market value of $14.5 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $23.5 million in debt, borrowed from M&T Bank and Nonprofit Finance Fund. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 68 percent of the 65,352 square feet of built space are specialty properties, with industrial properties next occupying 20 percent of the space. They are all located in Queens.

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