By Cory Schouten, The IBJ
cschouten@ibj.com
The Penn Arts apartment building at 16th and Meridian streets will stay vacant a while longer.
A $3-million plan to transform the aging 82-unit apartment building into 45 fancier units has hit a snag that's become familiar to developers: No financing was available at advantageous terms, said Christopher Piazza of developer Reverie Estates LLC.
Piazza bought the building from JAB Real Estate Investment Group last January for $1.4 million.
Late yesterday, he sent an e-mail explaining the problem to several people who have worked on the project, including officials with Keystone Construction Corp. and Halstead Architects.
"Due to the lack of favorable enough terms at this time and in this market, the Penn Arts Development is now officially on hold," Piazza wrote in the e-mail. "We are keeping the property and our plans have not changed, but we are waiting on more attractive financing terms to pursue development."
Piazza said he plans to reopen financing discussions after completing the redevelopment of a 1914 apartment building in Irvington called Audubon Court. That 31-unit project is expected to cost about $1.2 million.
"I wish there was something that could be done to change this scenario, but we have exhausted all options," Piazza said.