Riverdale is about to get a massive new option for aging New Yorkers who want to stay in the city, not flee to the suburbs. Ziegler has closed roughly $633 million in tax-exempt bonds to finance River's Edge, a long-planned life plan community on the RiverSpring Living campus in Riverdale. The deal clears the way for an 11-story tower with about 260 independent-living apartments and a slate of resort-style amenities on the 32-acre Hebrew Home grounds, a project that backers say finally fills a big gap in New York City's senior housing market.
In a press release via PR Newswire, Ziegler said it had closed $632,925,000 in tax-exempt bonds to cover project costs. That financing package includes construction expenses, capitalized interest for 39 months, debt-service reserves and issuance costs. Ziegler bankers Chad Himel and Keith Robertson called the closing "a tremendous honor" and said the transaction will "position the RiverSpring Living organization for the next 100 years," according to the release.
The development, branded River's Edge, is being pitched as New York City's first continuing care retirement community (CCRC). It will be developed by Chicago-based Integrated Development II on land leased from the Hebrew Home at Riverdale, as reported by ConnectCRE. At the time of financing, the team said the first phase, an approximately 441,000-square-foot, 11-story building, had already secured presales on more than 85 percent of the 260 independent-living units.
What residents will get
Marketing for River's Edge leans heavily into the lifestyle pitch. Plans call for multiple dining venues, a spa and fitness center, an indoor saltwater pool and on-campus access to RiverSpring's broader continuum of care, along with a NewYork-Presbyterian affiliation, as laid out on the project's website. Pricing materials on the River's Edge pages indicate entrance fees that start in the high six figures and monthly charges that run into the thousands, underscoring that this is firmly a luxury product. For specific figures and contract details, see River's Edge.
Regulatory oversight and consumer protections
The financing release notes that the project will operate as an Article 46 life care CCRC under state supervision, a structure that comes with added disclosure, actuarial review and solvency safeguards, according to Ziegler. New York's Public Health Law Article 46 requires a certificate of authority, feasibility and actuarial studies and approvals from the commissioner before a CCRC may enter into life care contracts, as outlined by state law.
Local impact and the market for senior housing
Industry watchers say the size of the bond package, combined with the high presale level, signals strong demand for a full life plan product inside New York City, where very few true CCRCs operate. RiverSpring Living frames River's Edge as an extension of its nonprofit mission and says the financing will bolster long-term operations on the Riverdale campus, while the construction phase is expected to generate local jobs and contracting opportunities.
With the bonds now sold, the development team can move ahead toward construction and remaining regulatory milestones while continuing to accept priority reservations, according to the River's Edge site. Project leaders say the capital stack created by the financing is designed to support long-term operations and resident care on the Riverdale campus.
