Madison Realty Capital Lends $71M for Connecticut Apartments Development

A joint venture between AMS Acquisitions and Avenue Realty Capital has secured $71 million of construction financing to build a multifamily development at a former office property in Fairfield County, Conn., Commercial Observer has learned.

Madison Realty Capital provided the loan for the sponsorship’s planned 208-unit apartment building at 131 Danbury Road in Wilton, Conn.

“The project represents a compelling opportunity to bring high-quality rental housing to a well-located, transit-accessible site in a supply-constrained market,” Josh Zegen, managing principal and co-founder of Madison Realty, said in a statement. 

The former office property on Danbury Road is being redeveloped into a  205,000-square-foot building that will consist of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments, The Hour reported. Amenities will include a clubhouse, a fitness center, a pool, coworking space, a music room, private offices, outdoor kitchens and grilling stations.

The projects should finish construction by early 2027 and benefit from the demand for rental housing in the supply-constrained Fairfield County, said Michael Mitnick, principal of AMS Acquisitions. He added that the development is close to two Metro-North train stations for residents to commute 50 miles to Manhattan and to a production facility for Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASML, which has invested $200 million into an expansion at its Wilton location.

“This really does fit perfectly into our strategy of going into suburban neighborhoods that are really nice places to live, but have a shortage of apartments to rent,” Mitnick told CO. “A lot of neighborhoods like this have had a shortage of multifamily for decades, so we are building into a need that is already there.”

Udi Kore, co-founder of Avenue Realty, said in a statement that the project “addresses a clear need for high-quality rental housing in a supply-constrained, high barrier to entry market with strong underlying fundamentals.”

Arrow Real Estate Advisors arranged the transaction with a team led by  Morris Betesh, Alex Bailkin and Matt O’Hanlon. 

“Fairfield County is a market with great demographics but a constrained supply of for-rent housing due to high barriers to entry for development,” Betesh, founder and managing partner of Arrow Real Estate Advisors, said in a statement. 

Andrew Coen can be reached at acoen@commercialobserver.com.