Case files on the developers and investors holding Newark's tax-abated buildings — who they are, what they paid, how they financed it, and how the buildings are actually run.Case files on the developers and investors holding Newark's tax-abated buildings — who they are, what they paid, how they financed it, and how the buildings are actually run.
BRP Companies — a Goldman-Sachs-backed New York developer led by co-founder Meredith Marshall (ex-Wasserstein Perella; a decade-long partnership with Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group) — bought 420–440 Washington St, a 1970s residential tower (the former St. Michael’s), for $14.6M in November 2017 (Essex deed 20180/3731). It mails from 100 Park Ave, 36th Fl, New York.BRP Companies — a New York developer backed by Goldman Sachs and led by co-founder Meredith Marshall (formerly of Wasserstein Perella; a decade-long partnership with Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group) — bought 420–440 Washington St, a 1970s residential tower (the former St. Michael's), for $14.6M in November 2017 (Essex deed 20180/3731). It mails from 100 Park Ave, 36th Fl, New York.
The building carries a 40A:20 PILOT dating to the 1970s, stacked with HUD rental subsidies, state tax credits, and $11M of BRP’s own equity — a deeply public-subsidized asset.The building carries a 40A:20 PILOT dating to the 1970s, stacked with HUD rental subsidies, state tax credits, and $11M of BRP's own money — an asset deeply supported by public funds.
Sources: Essex County tax roll (BRP 440 WS Urban Renewal LLC; deed 20180/3731, $14.6M, 2017); Local Talk Weekly, Feb 7 2025; brpcompanies.com (Meredith Marshall profile). The heat / receiver / abatement-strip statements are as reported; not independently verified here.Sources: Essex County tax roll (BRP 440 WS Urban Renewal LLC; deed 20180/3731, $14.6M, 2017); Local Talk Weekly, Feb 7 2025; brpcompanies.com (Meredith Marshall profile). The statements about heat, a receiver, and stripping the abatement are as reported in the press; we have not independently verified them.
Each row is a developer/investor network we’ve unmasked from the tax roll, county deeds, SEC filings, and public reporting. “Parcels” and “assessed” are on the deduped building-record basis; some counts are PILOT-only, others whole portfolios (noted).Each row is a developer or investor network we've identified from the tax roll, county deeds, SEC filings, and public reporting. “Parcels” and “assessed” counts use de-duplicated building records; some counts cover only PILOT properties, others whole portfolios (noted where so).
| Owner / network | Based | Parcels | Assessed | Dossier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRP Companies (Meredith Marshall) | New York, NY | 1 | $4,000,000 | Goldman-Sachs-backed NYC developer — co-founder Meredith Marshall (100 Park Ave, 36th Fl; decade-long Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group partnership). Bought 420–440 Washington St — a 1970s tower (the former St. Michael’s) — for $14.6M in 2017, holding it under a 1970s-era 40A:20 PILOT stacked with HUD rental subsidies and state tax credits. In February 2025 tenants were left without heat; the council threatened to strip the abatement and a member sought a court-appointed receiver. Full dossier on the Owners page.A Goldman Sachs–backed NYC developer — co-founder Meredith Marshall (100 Park Ave, 36th Fl; a decade-long Goldman Sachs Urban Investment Group partnership). Bought 420–440 Washington St — a 1970s tower (the former St. Michael's) — for $14.6M in 2017, holding it under a 1970s-era 40A:20 PILOT stacked with HUD rental subsidies and state tax credits. In February 2025 tenants were left without heat; the council threatened to strip the tax break and a member sought a court-appointed manager for the building. Full dossier on the Owners page. |
| J&L Companies | Roseland, NJ | 57 | $149,300,000 | Real estate arm of Newark restaurateur Jose “Pepe” Lopez (Don Pepe Restaurant, est. 1981). 58 Newark parcels across 30+ LLCs. PILOT filed May 2023 for the McWhorter St development.The real estate arm of Newark restaurateur Jose “Pepe” Lopez (Don Pepe Restaurant, opened 1981). 58 Newark parcels across 30+ LLCs. A PILOT was filed in May 2023 for the McWhorter St development. |
| Springfield Power Urban Renewal | Lancaster, PA | 2 | $14,102,500 | Registered at 120 N Pointe Blvd, Ste 301, Lancaster, PA. Holds two long-term PILOTs — 82–110 South Orange Ave ($13.2M) and 206–208 Springfield Ave ($0.9M) — plus ~$6.3M of non-abated ‘Springfield Marketplace’ parcels nearby. (Previously listed as “Pennrose, $70.7M”; that figure conflated the separate Matterhorn/SPG McCarter Hwy PILOTs and is corrected here.)Registered at 120 N Pointe Blvd, Ste 301, Lancaster, PA. Holds two long-term PILOTs — 82–110 South Orange Ave ($13.2M) and 206–208 Springfield Ave ($0.9M) — plus about $6.3M of regular taxable ‘Springfield Marketplace’ parcels nearby. (An earlier version listed “Pennrose, $70.7M”; that figure wrongly merged in the separate Matterhorn/SPG McCarter Hwy PILOTs and is corrected here.) |
| 300 Wilson Ave = QCRE / the Cerqueira family | Newark, NJ | 29 | $17,252,600 | 300 Wilson Ave is the office of QCRE (Quinas Commercial Real Estate), the Newark brokerage run by the Cerqueira family (broker Ryan Cerqueira; IG @thequinascos). The 2010 deed for the flagship PILOT — South Street Developers Urban Renewal (224–242 South St, $8.76M) — names the grantors as Albino, Manuel & Antonio Cerqueira (via South Street Developers LLC and St Charles Street LLC; Essex Book 12263/Page 2865). So some of the ~19 LLCs here are the family’s own holdings, while others are brokerage clients — QCRE also sells “on behalf of the owners” (e.g. 86–96 Norfolk St, $3.4M, 2022). A shared 300 Wilson Ave address therefore mixes a real owner-network with a broker ‘lockbox’, so the 29 parcels / $17.25M are routed through this office, not all one owner’s. (Per Essex deed 12263/2865 + traded.co + @thequinascos.)300 Wilson Ave is the office of QCRE (Quinas Commercial Real Estate), the Newark brokerage run by the Cerqueira family (broker Ryan Cerqueira; IG @thequinascos). The 2010 deed for the flagship PILOT — South Street Developers Urban Renewal (224–242 South St, $8.76M) — names the sellers as Albino, Manuel & Antonio Cerqueira (through South Street Developers LLC and St Charles Street LLC; Essex Book 12263/Page 2865). So some of the ~19 LLCs here are the family's own holdings, while others are brokerage clients — QCRE also sells “on behalf of the owners” (e.g. 86–96 Norfolk St, $3.4M, 2022). A shared 300 Wilson Ave address therefore mixes a real owner-network with a broker's mail drop — the 29 parcels / $17.25M are routed through this office, not all owned by one person. (Per Essex deed 12263/2865 + traded.co + @thequinascos.) |
| Gomes family | Newark, NJ | 5 | $31,895,500 | Ironbound-based developer. Largest holding: Envy By Gomes LLC at 58–84 Norfolk St ($26.1M assessed, filed under 40A:21-1 financial agreement). |
| New Community Corp (NCC) | Newark, NJ | 20 | $9,359,800 | Newark nonprofit affordable housing developer founded by Msgr. William Linder. 20 PILOT parcels concentrated in the Central and South Wards. |
| Arch Street Capital Advisors | Greenwich, CT | 1 | $60,141,300 | Greenwich-based real estate investment advisor managing the “Total Return Fund” (TRF). Acquired Riverfront Plaza I — 826–836 McCarter Hwy — from SJP Properties (Parsippany, NJ) in December 2016 for $165,000,000. The PILOT (40A:20-1) transferred with the property. Current assessed value ($60.1M) represents 36 cents on the dollar of the 2016 purchase price. Chain of title: Matrix Two Riverfront Associates (2012) → Matrix/SJP Riverfront Plaza I Urban Renewal LLC → TRF Urban Renewal Property Corp (2016). The TRF entity mails to Arch Street’s New York office — 70 West 40th St, 3rd Fl (Attn: Anup Patel) — confirmed in a 2021 SEC filing.A Greenwich, CT–based real estate investment firm managing the “Total Return Fund” (TRF). It acquired Riverfront Plaza I — 826–836 McCarter Hwy — from SJP Properties (Parsippany, NJ) in December 2016 for $165,000,000. The PILOT (40A:20-1) transferred with the property. The current assessed value ($60.1M) is about 36 cents on the dollar of the 2016 purchase price. Chain of ownership: Matrix Two Riverfront Associates (2012) → Matrix/SJP Riverfront Plaza I Urban Renewal LLC → TRF Urban Renewal Property Corp (2016). The TRF entity mails to Arch Street's New York office — 70 West 40th St, 3rd Fl (Attn: Anup Patel) — confirmed in a 2021 SEC filing. |
| Pacific Oak Strategic Opportunity REIT | Non-traded REIT | 1 | $34,000,000 | Publicly-registered non-traded REIT (formerly KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT; managed by Pacific Oak Capital Advisors). Owns “Eleven80” — the 36-story Art Deco residential tower at 1180 Raymond Blvd — through 1180 Raymond Urban Renewal LLC. Per an August 2023 SEC filing, the tower is cross-collateralized in a $188M Bank of America secured facility alongside office buildings in Minneapolis, Oakland, and Austin. The $34M PILOT transferred via a $100 restructuring deed (Book 12500 / Page 7754, Oct 2013). As of February 2026 the REIT is distressed and moving toward liquidation — it terminated its advisor, replaced top executives, and is negotiating a debt restructuring with its Israeli bondholders (the debt was raised through a BVI subsidiary that reports to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange). So the Eleven80 PILOT tower sits inside a REIT being wound down. (Per Pacific Oak SEC filing, CIK 1452936; AltsWire, Feb 2026.)A publicly registered non-traded REIT — a real estate investment trust whose shares don't trade on an exchange (formerly KBS Strategic Opportunity REIT; managed by Pacific Oak Capital Advisors). It owns “Eleven80” — the 36-story Art Deco residential tower at 1180 Raymond Blvd — through 1180 Raymond Urban Renewal LLC. Per an August 2023 SEC filing, the tower is pledged as shared collateral in a $188M Bank of America loan facility alongside office buildings in Minneapolis, Oakland, and Austin. The $34M PILOT transferred via a $100 restructuring deed (Book 12500 / Page 7754, Oct 2013). As of February 2026 the REIT is in financial distress and moving toward liquidation — it fired its advisor, replaced top executives, and is negotiating a debt restructuring with its Israeli bondholders (the debt was raised through a British Virgin Islands subsidiary that reports to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange). So the Eleven80 PILOT tower sits inside a company being wound down. (Per Pacific Oak SEC filing, CIK 1452936; AltsWire, Feb 2026.) |
| Jonathan Rose Companies | New York, NY | 2 | $27,692,800 | Mission-driven affordable housing developer (551 Fifth Ave, 23rd Fl). Holds Grace West Manor at 221–305 Irvine Turner Blvd — 429 units (324 senior, 105 family), 100% affordable Section 8. Acquired 2013; recapitalized with $90M+ financing; $51.8M deed transfer Oct 2018. One of the largest affordable senior complexes in Newark’s South Ward.A mission-driven affordable housing developer (551 Fifth Ave, 23rd Fl). Holds Grace West Manor at 221–305 Irvine Turner Blvd — 429 units (324 senior, 105 family), 100% affordable Section 8 housing. Acquired 2013; refinanced with $90M+ in new money; a $51.8M deed transfer in Oct 2018. One of the largest affordable senior complexes in Newark's South Ward. |
| Hudson Valley Property Group | New York, NY | 12 | $50,147,400 | NYC-based affordable-housing preservation investor (200 Vesey St, 24th Fl). Holds 12 long-term (40A:20) PILOT parcels totaling ~$50.1M — the two biggest are Nevada Street Urban Renewal LLC ($22.5M) and Court Tower Urban Renewal LLC ($15.7M) on Mayor Gibson Ave, plus Ironbound Living Chestnut ($8.7M), Pilgrim Baptist Village, Broadway Manor, and the Lincoln Park Towers & Villa Victoria preservation entities (several showing $0 assessment). HVPG markets itself as an affordable-housing preservation investor — but the City's Non-Compliant Landlord List (Feb 2026) names Hudson Valley Property Group for 118 code violations at Villa Victoria and Pilgrim Village, so this operator is itself city-flagged on two of its own sites. (The list's third property, “Lincoln Towers” at 151–161 Court St, is a different building owned by Lincoln Towers Urban Renewal, LP, controlled by Lincoln GP LLC — a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Newark Housing Authority — and managed by the Michaels Organization; no HVPG connection appears anywhere in that ownership chain. It sits about two blocks from HVPG's actual Lincoln Park Towers (Crawford St/Lincoln Park). The most likely explanation is a name/geography collision inside the City's own list — two similarly-named “Lincoln” buildings near Lincoln Park — not a third HVPG violation site.) The pre-council “Hudson Valley Properties” bad-actor references overlap HVPG's confirmed sites (the Nevada Ave sale to Fairstead; the Lionsgate/Aspire purchase from “Hudson Valley Properties” in Lincoln Park); the relationship is unresolved — the two are not established as unrelated.A New York City–based investor in preserving affordable housing (200 Vesey St, 24th Fl). Holds 12 long-term (40A:20) PILOT parcels totaling about $50.1M — the two biggest are Nevada Street Urban Renewal LLC ($22.5M) and Court Tower Urban Renewal LLC ($15.7M) on Mayor Gibson Ave, plus Ironbound Living Chestnut ($8.7M), Pilgrim Baptist Village, Broadway Manor, and the Lincoln Park Towers & Villa Victoria preservation entities (several showing $0 assessment). HVPG markets itself as an affordable-housing preservation investor — but the City's Non-Compliant Landlord List (Feb 2026) names Hudson Valley Property Group for 118 code violations at Villa Victoria and Pilgrim Village, so this operator is itself city-flagged at two of its own sites. (The list's third property, “Lincoln Towers” at 151–161 Court St, is a different building owned by Lincoln Towers Urban Renewal, LP, controlled by Lincoln GP LLC — a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Newark Housing Authority — and managed by the Michaels Organization; no HVPG connection appears anywhere in that ownership chain. It sits about two blocks from HVPG's actual Lincoln Park Towers (Crawford St/Lincoln Park). The most likely explanation is a name-and-geography mix-up inside the City's own list — two similarly-named “Lincoln” buildings near Lincoln Park — not a third HVPG violation site.) The pre-council “Hudson Valley Properties” bad-actor references overlap HVPG's confirmed sites (the Nevada Ave sale to Fairstead; the Lionsgate/Aspire purchase from “Hudson Valley Properties” in Lincoln Park); that relationship is unresolved — the two are not established as unrelated. |
| SPG entities / Matterhorn Capital Partners | West Conshohocken, PA | 4 | $57,535,900 | The “SPG” Urban Renewal LLCs are registered at Matterhorn Capital Partners’ office (100 Front St, Ste 350, West Conshohocken, PA). Holds two of Newark’s ten largest long-term PILOTs — 2013–2075 McCarter Hwy ($36.6M) and 58–108 Frontage Rd ($19.9M), $56.6M in abated value — plus two smaller Paris/St Charles St parcels, ~$57.5M across 4 Newark parcels. (Firm identity inferred from the shared registered address; per matterhorncapitalpartners.com + the Essex tax roll.)The “SPG” Urban Renewal LLCs are registered at Matterhorn Capital Partners' office (100 Front St, Ste 350, West Conshohocken, PA). They hold two of Newark's ten largest long-term PILOTs — 2013–2075 McCarter Hwy ($36.6M) and 58–108 Frontage Rd ($19.9M), $56.6M in abated value — plus two smaller Paris/St Charles St parcels, about $57.5M across 4 Newark parcels. (The firm's identity is inferred from the shared registered address; per matterhorncapitalpartners.com + the Essex tax roll.) |
| Moshe Winer / 1002-1008 Realty LLC | Fair Lawn, NJ | 65 | $9,580,600 | Packard Loft Condominium, 1002–1008 Broad St (Mayor Gibson Ave) — 33 condo units acquired October 2017 for $10.5M from original developer David Dubrow (1002 Broad Street Urban Renewal Company LLC, 45 Academy St, Newark). PILOT transferred with the property. Each of the 33 units carries an individual 40A:20-1 exemption record, generating 65 parcel entries.Packard Loft Condominium, 1002–1008 Broad St (Mayor Gibson Ave) — 33 condo units bought in October 2017 for $10.5M from original developer David Dubrow (1002 Broad Street Urban Renewal Company LLC, 45 Academy St, Newark). The PILOT transferred with the property. Each of the 33 units carries its own 40A:20-1 exemption record, which is why it generates 65 parcel entries. |
| Prologis | Denver, CO | 1 | $3,741,700 | World’s largest industrial REIT. Holds one PILOT parcel at 337–391 Wilson Ave (warehouse/logistics), registered as Liberty 357 Wilson, LLC c/o Prologis. |
This page collects the owner-level detail; the property-level tables, the out-of-state concentration analysis, the “Following the LLCs” method, and the school-revenue projection are on PILOTs. For the taxable rental stock (non-abated), see Landlords.This page collects the owner-by-owner detail; the property-level tables, the out-of-state concentration analysis, the “Following the LLCs” method, and the school-revenue projection are on PILOTs. For the ordinary (non-abated) rental stock, see Landlords.