A 25-story tower in Newark's Weequahic neighborhood that sat empty for more than a decade has now landed $70 million in financing, marking the final stage of a redevelopment that turned a shuttered, federally subsidized high-rise into 216 modern apartments. The building at 440 Elizabeth Avenue, now called Cosmo 440, was built in 1969 and spent decades as HUD-subsidized housing before regulators forced its closure.
Jackson-based Drew Capital arranged the $70 million non-recourse, interest-only loan for borrower 440 Elizabeth NJ Urban Renewal LLC, according to ROI-NJ. The lender, Dwight Mortgage Trust, is a New York-based real estate finance and investment firm, per the same report. Akiva Drew, founder and principal of Drew Capital, arranged the loan and said the deal reflects understanding the full cycle of a real estate transaction, from the sponsor and business plan to the asset, capital structure and the Newark market itself.
Drew Capital had worked with ownership on Cosmo 440 from construction through lease-up and into this latest financing stage, arranging both the construction financing for the building's gut renovation and the subsequent lease-up financing. That continuity capped a project with a rocky past: the tower opened in 1970 as Carmel Towers, offering federally subsidized Section 8 housing until the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development pulled funding and forced its closure in 2011 over failed inspections and deteriorating conditions, according to Jersey Digs. The building then sat vacant for more than a decade before redevelopment began, the outlet reported.
A Long Financing Trail to Stabilization
Before this month's $70 million package, the project relied on a $60 million loan secured in March 2025 from Miami-based BridgeInvest to cover final construction costs, reserves and initial lease-up operations, Jersey Digs reported at the time. The rehabilitation itself carried a $37 million price tag, made possible in part by a 20-year tax abatement the Newark City Council approved in December 2024 for developer 440 Elizabeth NJ Urban Renewal LLC, whose sponsor is Yisroel Berger.
That abatement came with a tradeoff over affordability. Rather than meeting the city's standard requirement of setting aside 20 percent of units for low- and moderate-income households, the developer was permitted to designate just 10 percent, 26 units, as affordable, and instead pay a fee into Newark's affordable housing trust fund. Jersey Digs reported that the arrangement drew concern from residents who voiced worries during city council meetings about tax breaks flowing to a predominantly market-rate development.
Rents and the Broader Affordability Debate
Cosmo 440's 190 market-rate units, split among 48 one-bedroom, 120 two-bedroom and 48 three-bedroom apartments, were listed starting around $2,150 a month for one-bedrooms and climbing to nearly $3,400 a month for three-bedroom floor plans as the building entered lease-up, per Jersey Digs. The pricing reflects a broader pattern in Newark, where rents in redeveloped high-rises have climbed as former public and subsidized housing sites are converted into Class A units.
The affordability tension surrounding Cosmo 440 arrives as Newark rethinks its own rules citywide. Under the city's Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance, residential developments or major gut rehabilitations with 15 or more units are generally required to reserve 20 percent of new units for low- and moderate-income households, according to NJ Spotlight News. This month, municipal leaders advanced legislation tying affordable housing eligibility to Newark's local median income of $58,490, rather than higher regional benchmarks, targeting households earning between $23,396 and $70,188, the outlet reported.
A 246,600-Square-Foot Overhaul Facing Weequahic Park
Architecture firm Mancini Duffy redesigned the structure, which totals 272,222 gross square feet with 177,336 square feet of net rentable area, reconfiguring floor plans and installing new mechanical, electrical and elevator systems along with new ground-floor amenities. The firm's project page notes the tower's original concrete framework was preserved while all interior systems and finishes were replaced.
Residences at Cosmo 440 feature oversized windows, private balconies and high-end furnishings, while building amenities include a concierge, fitness center, co-working lounge, bar and social area, playground, and a parking garage with EV charging. The building overlooks Weequahic Park, a 311-acre Essex County park designed by the Olmsted Brothers firm that includes a 2.2-mile jogging trail, a 30-acre lake and the oldest public golf course in the United States, established in 1913, according to Wikipedia. Cosmo 440 is also positioned near major transit lines, Newark Liberty International Airport, and university campuses including Rutgers University-Newark.
The tower is one of several late-1960s and early-1970s high-rises along the Elizabeth Avenue corridor facing the park, a stretch built during a high-density development wave in Newark's South Ward. Its 29-story neighbor, Zion Towers at 515 Elizabeth Avenue, went up in 1972 and was constructed by Anthony Padula, the same builder responsible for the original 440 Elizabeth Avenue tower, per Jersey Digs.
