Iron Stone Real Estate Partners

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Iron Stone Real Estate Partners, sometimes referred to simply as Iron Stone, is a real estate private equity firm located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania that has a niche focus on value added real estate assets, the acquisition of real estate related operating companies, and the assumption of mortgage notes. Iron Stone has developed and currently owns in excess of 3 million square feet of medical, life science and mixed-use properties in Philadelphia, PA. Since 1995, Iron Stone has completed approximately $1 billion in real estate related projects. The principals are Andrew Eisenstein, Jason Friedland, Matthew Canno, Michael Pearson and Sam Patterson.^{[citation needed]}

Adaptive reuse is at the core of Iron Stone's redevelopment and investment strategy.^[1]

Iron Stone is responsible for the redevelopment of the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania in the East Falls, section of Philadelphia, which served as the first women's medical teaching hospital in the United States. Before Iron Stone acquired it, the 700,000 square feet (65,000 m²) hospital suffered from a number of rapid ownership changes and was finally abandoned in 2005 after the previous owner declared bankruptcy. The huge complex continued exacerbating urban blight in Philadelphia until Iron Stone was able to acquire it in 2006 and begin the process of adaptive reuse. In 2008, the principals registered the property in the National Register of Historic Places to honor its significance as the nation's first women's medical school.^{[citation needed]}

Falls Center was originally constructed in the 1920s by Ritter & Shay, a prominent architecture firm in Philadelphia during the 1920s, and Iron Stone worked hard to preserve as much of the architectural elements as possible throughout the redevelopment process. The site has been successfully adapted for mixed-use student housing, commercial space and medical offices and has led to the creation of over 2,000 permanent full-time jobs.^[2] The Falls Center is home to over 18 businesses.^[3]

Iron Stone was responsible for the redevelopment of the long vacant Elkins Memorial YMCA, located at 1425 Arch Street in Center City Philadelphia. This historic building was constructed in 1911 by the Gilded Age architect Horace Trumbauer. Using the existing floor plate as a guide, Iron Stone repositioned the former YMCA to house commercial office spaces, municipal operations, and a hotel with one of the only indoor pools in Center City. ^[4]

Iron Stone was selected by Cooper Hospital, Rowan University, and the City of Camden to buy the vacant land adjacent to the Cooper Medical School, and develop it as apartments for the medical students of Cooper Hospital. The mixed-use project, located along the 400 block of South Broadway, salvages blighted buildings and intersperses ground-up five story buildings. This development utilizes historic tax credits, NJ Economic Redevelopment and Growth tax credits (ERG), CDBG funds, and HMFA "A Better Camden" funds.

The City of Philadelphia chose Iron Stone to design and develop the co-location facility for the Philadelphia Police Department's Special Victims Unit (SVU), the Department of Human Services (DHS) Sexual Abuse Investigations Unit, the Philadelphia Children's Alliance, and offices for the staff of the District Attorney. Located in Hunting Park, Philadelphia, Iron Stone used the existing envelope of a former truck terminal as the base of the development and subsequently added 10,000 square feet of new construction to complete the project.^[5]

The Provident Campus is a 15-acre transit-oriented development featuring 325,000 sf of public health, clinical and educational uses. PHMC, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), and KIPP Philadelphia are the property's anchor tenants.

In 1924, the Provident Mutual Insurance Company purchased undeveloped land at 46th and Market streets with the intent to move its headquarters from the corner of 4th and Chestnut streets. The site was selected to provide the company with the “ideal workplace” at that time which was to include spaces for recreation, food services, medical facilities, parking and easy access to public transportation. Architects Cram and Ferguson were retained to design the monumental Classical Revival building which was completed in 1927. This would serve as the company's headquarters until 1983.

When Provident moved to Center City, Philadelphia, it donated the building to the Urban Education Foundation (a coalition of Lincoln and Cheyney Universities). In 1991, the complex was purchased and renamed the “Center for Human Advancement” which housed over 35 institutions, non-profit groups and small entrepreneurs. In 2008, City Council directed the PIDC to buy the building and in 2014, Mayor Nutter held a groundbreaking for the new Philadelphia Public Safety Services (PPSS). The City abated environmental concerns, cleaned the exteriors, improved the exterior envelope, demolished certain outbuildings as well as interiors, and stabilized the property for redevelopment.

In 2017, Mayor Kenny announced that the PPSS would move to Broad Street and directed the PIDC to issue a formal RFQ. A public site tour was held in which more than 62 real estate professionals attended, including developers, architects and lawyers. Later that year, a follow-up RFP was issued in which IS3 Team LLC submitted a proposal to acquire and redevelop the property. IS3 Team LLC was chosen as the developer and purchaser of the property.^[6]

Over the next 12 months, IS3 Team gathered public support for the project by meeting with key neighborhood stakeholders, politicians, and Walnut Hill Community Association. On February 7, 2019, an ordinance was passed by City Council conveying the property to PAID to be further sold to IS3 Team and on February 19, 2019, the bill was signed by the Mayor.

In January 2020, Iron Stone Real Estate Partners purchased the property with senior construction financing from Washington Capital Management, Inc. The National Trust for Historic Preservation and Dudley Ventures provided from their New Markets Tax Credit funds. Historic tax credit equity was contributed by CitiBank. The majority of the construction on site was supervised by the general contractors TN Ward Company and Pride Enterprises.

By summer, 2022, the first commercial tenants moved into the newly reconstructed building. When at full occupancy, it is anticipated that CHOP and KIPP will employ more than 1,000 individuals at this location. In total, total project costs exceeded $90 million.

St. Christopher's Hospital for Children is a 15-acre, 900,000 sf children's hospital in Philadelphia. Acquired at bankruptcy auction, the goal was to preserve and ensure the continued stability of the hospital. The building and parking garage is leased to Drexel University and Tower Healthcare.^[7]

The Behavior Wellness Center (formerly Girard Medical Center) is a 350,000 sf series of distinct buildings on 7-acres. Acquired at bankruptcy auction,^[8] the goal was to preserve and restructure the existing behavioral health, addiction treatment and recovery programs while improving patient outcomes. The property is leased to a variety of commercial and non-profit uses with the BeWell Center and Self Inc as the anchor tenants.

• Official website