Mill Creek Named MFE Award Winner for Best Adaptive Reuse Project

Jersey City-based Apartment Development Modera Lofts Earns 2017 Honors

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Sep 20, 2017, 09:07 ET

LAS VEGAS, Sept. 20, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Mill Creek Residential, a leading multifamily investor and operator specializing in premier apartment communities across the U.S., today announced it has been named a 2017 Multifamily Executive Award winner for Project of the Year in the Best Adaptive Reuse category.

Winners spanning 37 categories were honored Sept. 19 during an awards luncheon at Bellagio Las Vegas as part of the 2017 Multifamily Executive Conference.

Mill Creek earned the award for its first adaptive reuse efforts in the development of Modera Lofts, a luxury apartment community in Jersey City, N.J., that was completed in Sept. 2016. The community is the complete reinvention of the 112-year-old former Butler Brothers warehouse in the city's Powerhouse Arts District.

"It's an honor to be acknowledged alongside many of the industry's top developers and operators," said Rich Murphy, managing drector at Mill Creek Residential. "We took particular pride in the development of Modera Lofts, as we reimagined the former warehouse into modern industrial lofts residences. We took special care to preserve the rich history inside the original brick walls and rustic wood beams, while transforming the building into an upscale apartment community with an aesthetic appeal like no other in the neighborhood."

Modera Lofts, which features 366 apartment homes in a mix of studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom homes, also contains 14 ground-level art studios and a 3,500-square-foot public art gallery. The site's original 500,000-square-foot building was constructed in 1905 as a retail distribution center and was the last post-and-beam facility of its kind in the Tristate area.

Utilizing the expertise of industrial designers, artists, masons and restoration specialists, Mill Creek sought to restore the building's most iconic features. Workers replaced the roof, enlarged 1,200 windows, sandblasted the brick walls and beams – and later sanded the beams by hand – to preserve the original aesthetic. Design elements that reference the building's venerable past were woven in, including exposed brick walls, fire spools, ladders and refurbished original steel emergency doors. Other original features, such as the 100-year-old brass elevator gears, have been repurposed as elegant design elements throughout the community.

Modera Lofts stands on the building's original 1,350 timber columns and 7,380 beams and boasts spacious, light-filled interiors with top-of-the-line amenities. Those include a club-quality fitness center with a yoga studio and spin room with stadium seating, a clubroom with pool table, shuffleboard and multiple flat-screen televisions, and a fully equipped bike repair lounge. A hotel-style roof deck with views of Manhattan highlights the outdoor amenities, which include a skylounge, outdoor kitchen, fireplace,,gaming tables and pet run.

Local political figures and Jersey City's Powerhouse Arts District Neighborhood Association were steadfast proponents of the redevelopment, eager to see the building's original aesthetic maintained within an industrial-chic residential community.

About Mill Creek Residential
Mill Creek Residential Trust LLC is a national multifamily company focused on the development, acquisition and operation of apartment communities in targeted markets nationwide. The company proactively pursues development, acquisition and construction opportunities through its seasoned team of real estate professionals in 14 offices across the United States. Mill Creek is building its portfolio in many of the nation's most desirable apartment markets in Seattle, Portland, the San Francisco Bay area, Southern California, Denver, Dallas, Austin, Houston, South Florida, Tampa, Orlando, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., New Jersey, New York, and Boston. As of March 31, 2017, the company's portfolio comprises 68 communities representing over 18,600 apartment homes that are operating and/or under construction. For more information, please visit www.MillCreekPlaces.com.