Fund Acquires Harlem MF to Green It

NEW YORK CITY-A green investment fund established by Jonathan Rose Cos. has acquired a 10-building Harlem housing project for $26.5 million from West 135th Street Associates. A spokeswoman for Jonathan Rose tells GlobeSt.com it’s the first New York City acquisition for the Rose Smart Growth Investment Fund I, L.P., which is described as the nation’s first real estate investment fund to focus on the acquiring and greening of existing buildings. The fund has already made acquisitions in Baltimore, Seattle and New Mexico.

Nathan Taft, director of acquisitions for Jonathan Rose, says in a release that the company plans to preserve the project’s affordability in the long term while rehabilitating it with a green capital investment program. The program will focus on unit renovations and base building improvements aimed at improving energy efficiency and indoor air quality.

The Section 8 contract for the West 135th Street Apartments, located at 107-145 W. 135th St., was due to expire in 2010, but the Rose fund worked with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development to obtain an interim renewal upon acquiring the property. In the works is a 20-year Section 8 contract for the project, which contains 198 apartment units and approximately 4,500 square feet of ground floor retail.