Brunner, Mandel score $90M construction loan for Bushwick rental project

Joseph Brunner and Abe Mandel’s Bruman Realty locked in a $90 million construction loan from Madison Realty Capital for a new two-building rental complex in Bushwick, sources told The Real Deal.

The developers are planning two new structures spanning 218,700 square feet and holding 232 rental apartments. The site will gain a 55-unit, 49,700-square-foot structure at 889 Bushwick Avenue and a 177-unit, 169,000-square-foot one at 340 Evergreen Avenue.

Madison provided the first mortgage last week, allowing Bruman to retire all existing debt, said Madison co-founder Josh Zegen [TRDataCustom].

“Having the ability to be a single-source loan provider has been a big competitive advantage in the market today as we are not dependent on various layers in the capital stack to commit in order to execute a transaction,” Zegen said.

The owners paid $15 million for the development site in 2014. As part of the deal, they agreed to extensively renovate the existing 152,650-square-foot community facility at 871 Bushwick Avenue on the site. The facility is triple-net-leased to Christian nonprofit Metro World Child. That renovation was completed earlier this year, Zegen said.

The SHB Group’s Steven Hersko brokered the financing.

A representative for Bruman could not be reached for comment.

Although fellow Brooklyn landlord Moshe Braver filed plans  for a project there last year, sources said he is serving as the owner’s representative and does not own an equity stake.

Brunner and Mandel, who formed Bruman Realty in the late 1990s, own more than 100 buildings in the city. They are two of the most active real estate players in Brooklyn’s Hasidic community.