Shimon Lefkowitz signs $48.8M refi loan with Dwight Capital in Kensington
Shimon Lefkowitz through the entity Palm Gardens Care Center LLC as borrower signed a refi loan with lender Dwight Capital valued at $48.8 million for the specialty building (I6) at 615 Avenue C in Kensington, Brooklyn.
The deal closed on March 13, 2025 and was recorded on March 25, 2025. The prior lender was Webster Bank which held debt that had an original loan amount of $42.8 million.The property has 89,000 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The loan price per built square foot is $547 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 Shimon Lefkowitz was Shimon Lefkowitz. The signatory for Dwight Capital was Carmen Aguilar .
The property
The specialty building in Kensington has 89,000 square feet of built space according to a PincusCo analysis of city data. The parcel has frontage of 140 feet and is 186 feet deep with a total lot size of 22,667 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 $15.9 million. The most recent loan totaled $42.8 million and was provided by Sterling National Bank on July 29, 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 two DOB violations, $625 in ECB penalties, and $975 in OATH penalties in the last year.
Development
For the tax lot building, it received its initial certificate of occupancy on July 14, 2016. On the lot, there is one active new building construction project, B01009638, for a 539 square-foot 62 building. The project was submitted by Avi Scherman with plans filed April 3, 2024 and it has not been permitted yet.
The neighborhood
In Kensington, The bulk, or 44 percent of the 10.2 million square feet of commercial built space are elevator buildings, with walkup buildings next occupying 24 percent of the space. In sales, Kensington has had very little sales volume relative to other neighborhoods with $83.9 million in sales volume in the last two years. For development, Kensington has had very little major development activity relative to other neighborhoods.It had 287,896 square feet of commercial and multi-family construction under development in the last two years, which represents 3 percent of the neighborhood’s built space.
The block
On this tax block, PincusCo has identified the owners of one of the seven commercial properties representing 89,000 square feet of the 334,231 square feet. The identified owner is Palm Gardens Nursing & Rehabilitation.
On the tax block, there was one new building construction project filed totaling 539 square feet. It is a 539 square-foot 62 building submitted by Avi Scherman with plans filed April 3, 2024 and it has not been permitted yet.
The majority, or 72 percent of the 334,231 square feet of built space are elevator buildings, with specialty buildings next occupying 27 percent of the space.
The borrower
The PincusCo database currently indicates that Shimon Lefkowitz owned at least two commercial properties in New York City with 93,235 square feet and a city-determined market value of $16.5 million. (Market value is typically about 50% of actual value.) The portfolio has $27.5 million in debt, borrowed from ConnectOne Bank and Webster Bank. Within the portfolio, all identified are specialty properties. They are all located in Brooklyn.
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