Liberty One Group pays $9.5M to Acacia Network for shelter in Longwood

Liberty One Group through the entity 980 Prospect Owner, LLC paid $9.5 million to Acacia Network through the entity 980 Prospect, LLC for the hotel building (HR), a homeless shelter, at 980 Prospect Avenue in Longwood, Bronx. The expected use is cash flowing.
The deal closed on October 31, 2024 and was recorded on November 13, 2024. The property has 23,674 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The sale price per built square foot is $401 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 seller bought the property on October 17, 2016, for $5.7 million. The signatory for Acacia Network was Lymaris Albors. The signatory for Liberty One Group was David Levitan. Liberty One Group is a large owner of homeless shelters. The contract date was June 10, 2024. Acacia is a nonprofit delivering homeless and other services. “the leading Hispanic-led nonprofit in New York State and one of the largest in the nation, serving over 150,000 individuals every year through integrated programs in the areas of health, housing, economic development, social services, and cultural revitalization.”

Prior sales and revenue

Prior to this transaction, PincusCo has records that the buyer Liberty One Group purchased five properties in four transactions for a total of $47.9 million and has no record it sold any properties over the past 24 months.
The seller Acacia Network purchased one property in one transaction for a total of $2 million and had not sold any properties over the same time period. The former owner according to the Department of Housing Preservation and Development is Ariel Bizardi, head officer. The business entity is 980 Prospect Llc.

The property

The hotel building in Longwood has 23,674 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 74 feet and is 75 feet deep with a total lot size of 5,592 square feet. The zoning is R7-1 which allows for up to 3.44 times floor area ratio (FAR) for residential. The city-designated market value for the property in 2022 is $6.7 million. The most recent loan totaled $5.5 million and was provided by Investors Bank on August 27, 2021.

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 $2,500 in ECB penalties, four housing violations, and $2,850 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 Longwood, The bulk, or 44 percent of the 22.3 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 27 percent of the space. In sales, Longwood has had very little sales volume relative to other neighborhoods with $76 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Longwood has 1.3 times the average amount of major developments relative to other neighborhoods and is the 4th highest in Bronx. It had 1.4 million square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 6 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.

The block

On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of 11 of the 27 commercial properties representing 353,535 square feet of the 647,557 square feet. The largest owner is Acacia Network, followed by Atlantic Development Group and then Banana Kelly Community Improvement Association.
On the tax block, there were two new building construction projects totaling 15,404 square feet. The largest is a 18-unit, 12,098 square-foot residential (R-2) building submitted by Joseph Safdie with plans filed May 14, 2021 and permitted August 5, 2022. The second largest is a two-unit, 3,306 square-foot residential (R-3) building submitted by Oscar Llamuca with plans filed March 20, 2020 and it has not been permitted yet.

The majority, or 61 percent of the 647,557 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 26 percent of the space.

The seller

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Acacia Network owned at least three commercial properties in New York City with 63,977 square feet and a city-determined market value of $8.9 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $23.5 million in debt, borrowed from NYS Dormitory Authority and Investors Bank. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 92 percent of the 63,977 square feet of built space are hotel properties, with retail properties next occupying 8 percent of the space. They are all located in Bronx.

The buyer

The PincusCo database currently indicates that Liberty One Group owned at least 13 commercial properties with 291 residential units in New York City with 356,209 square feet and a city-determined market value of $37.9 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $111.2 million in debt, with top three lenders as Signature Bank, Popular Bank, and Tristate Capital Bank respectively. Within the portfolio, the bulk, or 49 percent of the 356,209 square feet of built space are walkup properties, with industrial properties next occupying 30 percent of the space. The bulk, or 50 percent of the built space, is in Brooklyn, with Manhattan next at 24 percent of the space.

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