Blackstone Provides $199M Refi for 1.2M-SF Ridge Hill Retail Center in Yonkers

A joint venture among Jamestown, Taconic Partners, Nuveen Real Estate and an unnamed public pension plan has secured $198.5 million to refinance Ridge Hill, an open-air retail center that spans 1.2 million square feet in Yonkers, N.Y., Commercial Observer can first report. 

Blackstone Real Estate Debt Strategies provided the loan, which will retire existing debt and fund upcoming leasing, while the JLL Capital Markets team of Aaron Niedermayer, Kellogg Gaines and Evan Pariser arranged the financing. 

Niedermayer spoke to the property’s high-quality, brand-name tenants and prime location in southern Westchester County as reasons for Ridge Hill’s “established reputation” as a top open-air retail destination in the New York metropolitan region. 

“The refinancing with Blackstone underscores the sponsor’s vision and enduring appeal of Ridge Hill,” said Niedermayer in a statement. 

Located at 1 Ridge Hill Boulevard, a mere 20 miles north of Midtown Manhattan in Yonkers — New York state’s third-largest city — Ridge Hill opened in 2011 and includes several prominent national retailers holding enormous footprints. These tenants include Apple, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Whole Foods Market, T.J. Maxx and Lowe’s, as well as Legoland Discovery Center, a 12-screen movie theater, an indoor skydiving center, an LA Fitness gym and numerous restaurants. 

The shopping center also features a recently completed 17,000-square-foot family-friendly activity zone and a 25,000-square-foot “Town Square” community hub that presents various retailers and restaurants along pedestrian-friendly crosswalks and uncovered sidewalks. 

The joint venture led by Jamestown acquired Ridge Hill in 2022 and has completed 679,000 square feet in new leasing activity since then. 

Representatives for Blackstone, Jamestown, Taconic Partners and Nuveen Real Estate did not immediately return requests for comment. 

Brian Pascus can be reached at bpascus@commercialobserver.com.