Crescent Heights (company): Difference between revisions

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[[4/C]] is a proposed 94-story tower in Seattle across from the 76-story [[Columbia Center]], and would be the tallest skyscraper in the Pacific Northwest.<ref name=”plansfor101storyseattle”>{{cite news|last1=Bhatt|first1=Sanjay|title=Plans for 101-story Seattle super-tower scaled back|url= https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/plans-for-101-story-seattle-tower-scaled-back/|access-date=December 10, 2017|work=Seattle Times|date=February 24, 2016}}</ref> The building will be designed by [[LMN Architects]].<ref name=”miamideveloperplans”>{{cite web|title=Miami developer plans huge, new skyscraper in downtown Seattle|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/blog/2015/08/miami-developer-plans-huge-new-skyscraper-in.html|website=Puget Sound Business Journal|access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> The firm bought the property, which consisted of two parking garages, for $48.75 million in September 2015.<ref name=”miamifirmpays49m”>{{cite web|title=Miami firm pays $49M for half-block on Fourth|url=http://www.djc.com/news/re/12081859.html|website=Daily Journal of Commerce|access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref>

[[4/C]] is a proposed 94-story tower in Seattle across from the 76-story [[Columbia Center]], and would be the tallest skyscraper in the Pacific Northwest.<ref name=”plansfor101storyseattle”>{{cite news|last1=Bhatt|first1=Sanjay|title=Plans for 101-story Seattle super-tower scaled back|url= https://www.seattletimes.com/business/real-estate/plans-for-101-story-seattle-tower-scaled-back/|access-date=December 10, 2017|work=Seattle Times|date=February 24, 2016}}</ref> The building will be designed by [[LMN Architects]].<ref name=”miamideveloperplans”>{{cite web|title=Miami developer plans huge, new skyscraper in downtown Seattle|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/blog/2015/08/miami-developer-plans-huge-new-skyscraper-in.html|website=Puget Sound Business Journal|access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref> The firm bought the property, which consisted of two parking garages, for $48.75 million in September 2015.<ref name=”miamifirmpays49m”>{{cite web|title=Miami firm pays $49M for half-block on Fourth|url=http://www.djc.com/news/re/12081859.html|website=Daily Journal of Commerce|access-date=December 10, 2017}}</ref>

=== Orange County ===

In April 2025, Crescent Heights bought into the South Coast Metro submarket in Santa Ana in a transaction reported at approximately $240 million (about $686,000 per unit).<ref>{{Cite web |date=2025-04-08 |title=Miami-based investor buys into OC’s South Coast Metro for $240M |url=https://therealdeal.com/la/2025/04/08/crescent-heights-buys-into-ocs-south-coast-metro/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.fo/BHAgp |archive-date=2025-04-08 |access-date=2025-12-12 |website=The Real Deal |language=en}}</ref>

== Former projects ==

== Former projects ==

American real estate development company

NEMA (San Francisco)

Crescent Heights, Inc., is a privately held American real estate development company based in Miami, Florida known for high-rise residential and mixed-use projects in major U.S. cities.[1] The company is associated with partners Sonny Kahn, Russell W. Galbut, and Bruce Menin, and maintains projects in markets including Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami, and Seattle.[2][3]

History

Crescent Heights was co-founded by Kahn, Galbut, and Menin in the 1980s. It emerged as a developer active in large-scale residential and mixed-use projects in U.S. gateway markets by the 1990s.[4][5] Early activity in Miami Beach included work associated with properties such as the Shelborne, the Alexander, the Decoplage, Carriage Club, and the Casablanca.[4][6] In 1997, The firm completed the first office to residential rental conversion in Lower Manhattan of the Broad Exchange Building, a property initially purchased in 1994 for $5 million.[7] The firm sold the property for $260 million to Swig Equities in 2005.[8][9] In Honolulu, Crescent Heights acquired the Ala Moana Hotel in 2004 and pursued a condo-hotel conversion that became effective in 2005.[10]

In February 2015, the firm sold its development site at 325 Fremont Street in San Francisco to Fulton Street Ventures for $28.5 million.[11] Later that year,it acquired Hotel Paris on the Upper West Side of Manhattan for $150 million[12] and bought Burnham Pointe, a 298-unit building in the South Loop.[13] The company acquired a building at 165 East 66th Street in Lenox Hill on the Upper East Side for $230 million to remodel it into condominiums; they were sued over allegations of tenant evictions.[14] In 2016, the company agreed to purchase the 55-story, 600-apartment North Harbor Tower in Chicago, for an estimated $200 million.[15]

Per Crain’s Chicago Business, in 2022 the company sold a 30-story building Astoria Tower in Miami and was planning to develop a new high-rise on the northern edge of the Fulton Market District and another 47-story, 413-unit apartment tower at 640 W. Washington Blvd.[16]

Crescent Heights recently began construction of a 39-story building, called NEMA Miami, located at 2900 Biscayne Boulevard in Miami. The firm obtained a $224 million construction loan from Blackstone for their planned mixed-use development.[17][18]

Operations

Crescent Heights develops, owns, and operates high-rise rental and mixed-use properties, often in central business districts or rapidly densifying neighborhoods.[19][20] The company has been active in metropolitan markets including Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami, and Seattle.[5][21][22]

Crescent Heights is headquartered in Miami, Florida. In June 2025, the firm sold its Edgewater headquarters property at 2200 Biscayne Boulevard, though it reportedly remained at that address on a temporary basis.[23]

Notable projects

Chicago

In 2012, the company acquired land for Grant Park-area development in the Central Station neighborhood for $29.5 million.[24] NEMA Chicago is a 76-story residential tower on Grant Park designed by Rafael Viñoly that opened in 2019.[25][26] At the time of its completion, it was considered one of the tallest buildings in Chicago.[27] Architecture critic Blair Kamin of the Chicago Tribune described NEMA Chicago as “an instant landmark,” drawing a comparison between its stepped form and that of the Willis Tower.[28] That same year, the project was refinanced with a $340 million loan, with additional refinancing activity reported in 2021.[3] NEMA Chicago received the 2021 Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat Awards of Excellence for the Americas and for the 200–299 m height category.[29][30]

At 640 West Washington Boulevard, the firm assembled a site and advanced plans for a 47-story, 413-unit apartment tower; the site purchase and related assembly occurred in 2020.[31][32]

San Francisco

NEMA San Francisco is a 754-unit, two-tower rental residence on Market Street.[33] In 2015, the property was refinanced with a $390 million loan.[34] NEMA San Franciso, designed by Handel Architects, has received LEED Silver certification.[35] In early 2024, the owner reached a loan modification agreement that included a $10.5 million payment, with continued ownership contingent on meeting revised terms.[21]

10 Van Ness is a planned project in San Francisco that includes two 41-story towers with 984 residences over 30,000 square feet of ground floor retail space, with an alternate submission for a 55-story single tower.[36] In May 2014, the firm bought the site on the southwest corner of Market Street and Van Ness Avenue for $58.3 million.[37]

Boston

NEMA Boston is a 22-story, 414-unit residential apartment complex at 399 Congress Street in the Seaport District built on a parcel of land purchased for $36 million in 2016.[38][39] The complex was subsequently sold to KKR in 2021 for $332 million.[40]

Los Angeles

At 1045 South Olive Street in Downtown Los Angeles, the city approved a 70-story, up to 794-unit mixed-use tower with a maximum height of roughly 810 feet.[41][42]

Ten Thousand, a 40-story, 283-unit tower at 10000 Santa Monica Boulevard designed by Handel Architects, achieved LEED Gold certification in 2018.[43][44]

In Koreatown, the company proposed a 34-story residential building with 297 units at 3100 Wilshire Boulevard, which incorporates preserved elements of a 1930s structure. The project remained entitled following the denial of an appeal in August 2024.[45][46]

4/C is a proposed 94-story tower in Seattle across from the 76-story Columbia Center, and would be the tallest skyscraper in the Pacific Northwest.[47] The building will be designed by LMN Architects.[48] The firm bought the property, which consisted of two parking garages, for $48.75 million in September 2015.[49]

Orange County

In April 2025, Crescent Heights bought into the South Coast Metro submarket in Santa Ana in a transaction reported at approximately $240 million (about $686,000 per unit).[50]

Former projects

Crescent Heights assembled and entitled a two-tower site at 1901 Minor Avenue in the Denny Triangle and sold it to Concord Pacific in August 2019 for $72 million.[51] The separate 4th & Columbia (4/C) downtown site has been entitled for a very tall tower; the property was listed for sale in 2024, and as of late 2025, no construction activity or development timeline has been publicly announced.[47][52]

References

  1. ^ “Company Overview of Crescent Heights, Inc”. Bloomberg Business. Retrieved December 7, 2017.
  2. ^ “NEMA Chicago – The Skyscraper Center”. www.skyscrapercenter.com. Retrieved 11 December 2025.
  3. ^ a b Balbi, Danielle (2017-01-30). “Bank of China Lends $390M for Luxury Los Angeles Rental Tower”. Commercial Observer. Archived from the original on 2025-06-19. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
  4. ^ a b Semple, Kirk (April 6, 1994). “Hot Properties”. Miami New Times. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  5. ^ a b Gallun, Alby (2019-07-01). “Unfinished South Loop skyscraper scores $340 million loan”. Crain’s Chicago Business. Archived from the original on 2025-04-19. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
  6. ^ Galvan, Abraham (2025-05-07). “Russell Galbut: Developing his ownership-based Crescent Seas cruise line – Miami Today”. www.miamitodaynews.com. Archived from the original on 2025-05-08. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  7. ^ Slatin, Peter (July 28, 1997). “There Goes the Neighborhood”. Barron’s. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  8. ^ Jones, David (June 6, 2008). “Swig in talks to rescue 25 Broad conversion”. The Real Deal. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  9. ^ “Developers are Resident Bulls on Wall Street”. Chicago Tribune. February 4, 1996. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  10. ^ Gomes, Andrew (2004-07-21). “Ala Moana Hotel bought | The Honolulu Advertiser | Hawaii’s Newspaper”. the.honoluluadvertiser.com. Archived from the original on 2024-06-21. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
  11. ^ “Meet the Chinese developer quickly becoming one of the Bay Area’s hungriest investors”. San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  12. ^ Weiss, Lois (September 15, 2015). “The Paris apartment building sells for $150 million”. The New York Post. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
  13. ^ Gallun, Alby (July 13, 2015). “South Loop apartment buyer borrows $78 million”. Crain’s Chicago Business. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  14. ^ “Husband of NYC consumer affairs commissioner tried to force out tenants at UES building: AG”. The Real Deal. Retrieved February 27, 2016.
  15. ^ “Miami-based firm accumulating Chicago apartments”. The Real Deal. January 31, 2016. Retrieved February 27, 2016.
  16. ^ Gallun, Alby (2022-03-16). “Miami apartment developer moves in on Fulton Market”. Chicago Business.
  17. ^ Echikson, Julia (2022-04-04). “Crescent Heights Lands $224M From Blackstone to Build in Miami’s Edgewater”. Commercial Observer.
  18. ^ Kallergis, Katherine (2022-04-01). “Russell Galbut’s Crescent Heights scores $224M loan for Whole Foods-anchored Edgewater project”. The Real Deal.
  19. ^ Herzog, Rachel (2024-05-28). “South Loop skyscraper development site handed over to lender”. Crain’s Chicago Business. Archived from the original on 2025-05-15. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
  20. ^ Miller, Brian (2019-08-09). “Denny Triangle high-rise site sells for $72M, with 953 condos possible”. Daily Journal of Commerce. Archived from the original on 2020-11-08. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
  21. ^ a b Waxmann, Laura (2024-01-09). “Exclusive: Owner of S.F. luxury apartment complex reaches deal to stave off foreclosure”. San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on 2024-10-08. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
  22. ^ “1045 S. Olive Street | Urbanize LA”. Urbanize Los Angeles. Archived from the original on 2025-04-21. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
  23. ^ Bandell, Brian (2025-06-09). “Company sells former Miami headquarters for $42 million”. South Florida Business Journal. Archived from the original on 2025-06-10. Retrieved 2025-12-11.
  24. ^ Gallun, Alby (September 23, 2015). “76-story apartment tower proposed in South Loop”. Crain’s Chicago Business. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  25. ^ Gallun, Alby (March 15, 2015). “Miami developer loads up on more downtown apartments”. Crain’s Chicago Business. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  26. ^ Rockett, Darcel (February 8, 2019). “South Loop’s building boom: A look at 3 residential towers set to open soon”. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
  27. ^ Koziarz, Jay (2019-07-17). “A peek inside NEMA Chicago, the city’s tallest rental building”. Curbed Chicago. Archived from the original on 2019-07-17. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  28. ^ Kamin, Blair (2019-12-09). “Column: NEMA, city’s tallest rental high-rise, reinterprets Willis Tower in one of the finest efforts of Chicago’s current building boom”. Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2025-07-23. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  29. ^ “Winners | CTBUH Awards”. 2021-05-20. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  30. ^ “World’s Best Tall Buildings Announced”. The Urban Developer.
  31. ^ Ori, Ryan (2020-12-07). “Huge apartment towers pitched for South Loop, Near West Side despite uncertainty for downtown Chicago”. Chicago Tribune.
  32. ^ Koziarz, Jay (2020-12-08). “Developer Plans Massive 47-Story Apartment Tower East Of Kennedy Expressway”. Block Club Chicago.
  33. ^ “Crescent Heights to buy site for second Mid-Market highrise project”. San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  34. ^ Ghigliotty, Damian (April 17, 2015). “Crescent Heights to Refinance NEMA Complex With $390M Bank of China Loan”. Commercial Observer. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  35. ^ “SF: NEMA Brings Luxury Rentals to Mid-Market”. Haute Living. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  36. ^ “Exclusive first look: Two 400-foot S.F. towers land at prime Mid-Market spot”. San Francisco Business Times. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  37. ^ “Refined Designs and Timing for a Pair of Hub District Towers”. SocketSite. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  38. ^ Acitelli, Tom (July 17, 2017). “Seaport District’s 399 Congress Street now under construction”. Curbed Boston. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  39. ^ “Twin-tower Development Site in Denny Triangle Sells for $72M | Kidder Mathews”. Kidder Mathews. 2019-08-08. Archived from the original on 2021-06-18. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  40. ^ Martinez, Andrew (2021-07-12). “KKR Buys Seaport Residential Tower For $332M”. Bisnow. Archived from the original on 2021-07-14. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  41. ^ “1045 Olive Project | Los Angeles City Planning”. planning.lacity.gov. Archived from the original on 2025-09-15. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  42. ^ Sharp, Steven (2021-05-13). “Finally: L.A. City Planning Commission approves 70-story DTLA tower | Urbanize LA”. la.urbanize.city. Archived from the original on 2022-06-29. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  43. ^ “Ten Thousand in Los Angeles is now LEED Gold”. Handel Architects. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
  44. ^ Khouri, Andrew (January 29, 2016). “Apartment builders woo the wealthy with over-the-top services”. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  45. ^ Sharp, Steven (2024-08-22). “Proposed apartment tower clears a hurdle at 3100 Wilshire Boulevard in Koreatown”. Urbanize LA. Archived from the original on 2024-08-22. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  46. ^ “Crescent Heights beats appeal on highrise apartments in Koreatown”. The Real Deal. 2024-08-26. Archived from the original on 2024-08-26. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  47. ^ a b Bhatt, Sanjay (February 24, 2016). “Plans for 101-story Seattle super-tower scaled back”. Seattle Times. Retrieved December 10, 2017. Cite error: The named reference “plansfor101storyseattle” was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  48. ^ “Miami developer plans huge, new skyscraper in downtown Seattle”. Puget Sound Business Journal. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  49. ^ “Miami firm pays $49M for half-block on Fourth”. Daily Journal of Commerce. Retrieved December 10, 2017.
  50. ^ “Miami-based investor buys into OC’s South Coast Metro for $240M”. The Real Deal. 2025-04-08. Archived from the original on 2025-04-08. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  51. ^ Miller, Brian (2023-06-23). “New architect and fresh signs of life at 1901 Minor — now taller and with more units”. Daily Journal Commerce. Archived from the original on 2023-06-06. Retrieved 2025-12-12.
  52. ^ Trumm, Doug (2024-06-12). “County’s Plan for Redeveloping Downtown Campus Still Shrouded in Mystery » The Urbanist”. The Urbanist. Archived from the original on 2024-06-12. Retrieved 2025-12-12.

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