HORSHAM, Pa., and NEW YORK, Dec. 08, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Toll Brothers, Inc., the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes (NYSE: TOL ) ( tollbrothers.com ), and Gemdale Properties and Investments (“GPI”, 535.HK), an affiliate of Gemdale Corporation (600383.SH), one of China’s largest and leading real estate developers, announced today their formation of a joint venture to co-develop a luxury condominium project at 121 East 22nd Street in Manhattan. The project consists of a two-tower, 133-unit luxury condominium building, designed by the Office for Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), which was founded by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Rem Koolhaas. Designed by principal Sho Shigematsu, the residential tower marks the firm’s first building in Manhattan, as well as Sho’s decade-long tenure directing OMA New York.
The project is located in Manhattan’s exclusive Gramercy Park neighborhood on a site spanning East 22nd Street to East 23rd Street with corner frontage on Lexington Avenue at 23rd Street. The building will have two connected towers with a single residential entrance on East 22nd Street. The site lies one block north of the prestigious Gramercy Park, placing the project in the heart of the neighborhood which is home to a wealth of history, art, and exceptional dining. Tree-lined streets offer area residents a distinctive setting in close proximity to Midtown Manhattan, one of the most highly concentrated Class A business centers in the world, and within blocks of Silicon Alley, a tech hub benefiting from one of the most significant flows of venture capital in the United States. The site is also a short stroll to both Madison Square Park and Union Square Park.
The Toll Brothers-Gemdale joint venture has secured a $237 million construction loan from a syndicate of five banks including Bank of New York Mellon as Administrative Agent and Joint Lead Arranger, Capital One as Joint Lead Arranger, China Merchants Bank New York, MUFG Union Bank, N.A., and CIT Bank. The debt and equity were arranged by Toll Brothers’ in-house Finance Department.
Douglas C. Yearley, chief executive officer of Toll Brothers, stated: “We are very pleased to team with Gemdale to develop this spectacular luxury condominium project. 121 East 22nd Street is another in a long line of dramatic, residential projects built by Toll Brothers City Living in the New York City market. Its exceptional location within the Gramercy Park neighborhood makes this one of the most appealing buildings in which to live in all of New York City.”
Jason Zhu, Chairman of Gemdale USA, stated: “This distinctive 121 East 22nd Street project benefits from a world-class Pritzker Prize-winning architectural firm which has designed some of the leading buildings in the world.”
Michael Krupa, President of Gemdale USA, stated: “We are delighted to work with Toll Brothers, a Fortune 600 Company, and the leading builder of luxury homes in the U.S., with a nearly 50-year history of developing exceptional projects across the country. Moreover, we are delighted and honored to be part of such an iconic project in Manhattan’s distinctive Gramercy Park neighborhood.”
Frederick N. Cooper, Toll Brothers’ Senior Vice President of Finance, International Development and Investor Relations, stated: “We are excited to be partnering with Gemdale to develop this unique project. This, our first joint venture with Gemdale, is the culmination of a relationship spanning ten years and multiple interactions both in the U.S. and China. We also are very pleased that our solid banking relationships have resulted in a strong lending group to finance this landmark project.”
About Toll Brothers
Toll Brothers, Inc., A FORTUNE 600 Company, is the nation's leading builder of luxury homes. The Company began business in 1967 and became a public company in 1986. Its common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “TOL.” The Company serves move-up, empty-nester, active-adult, and second-home buyers and operates in 20 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, and Washington, as well as in the District of Columbia.
Toll Brothers builds an array of luxury residential single-family detached, attached home, master planned resort-style golf, and urban low-, mid-, and high-rise communities, principally on land it develops and improves. The Company operates its own architectural, engineering, mortgage, title, land development and land sale, golf course development and management, home security, and landscape subsidiaries. The Company also operates its own lumber distribution, house component assembly, and manufacturing operations. Through its Gibraltar Capital and Asset Management joint venture, the Company provides builders and developers with land banking and joint venture capital. The Company acquires and develops commercial and apartment properties through Toll Brothers Apartment Living, Toll Brothers Campus Living, and the affiliated Toll Brothers Realty Trust, and develops urban low-, mid-, and high-rise for-sale condominiums through Toll Brothers City Living.
In 2016, Toll Brothers ranked #6 among all 1,500 companies in Fortune magazine’s survey of the World’s Most Admired Companies in the Quality of Products/Services Offered category behind only Apple, Walt Disney, Amazon, Alphabet, and Nordstrom. The firm was also named as the Most Admired Home Building Company for 2016, the second year in a row it has been so honored. Toll Brothers was named 2014 Builder of the Year by Builder magazine, and is honored to have been awarded Builder of the Year in 2012 by Professional Builder magazine, making it the first two-time recipient. Toll Brothers proudly supports the communities in which it builds; among other philanthropic pursuits, the Company sponsors the Toll Brothers Metropolitan Opera International Radio Network, bringing opera to neighborhoods throughout the world. For more information, visit www.tollbrothers.com .
Toll Brothers discloses information about its business and financial performance and other matters, and provides links to its securities filings, notices of investor events, and earnings and other news releases, on the Investor Relations section of its website (tollbrothers.com/investor-relations).
About Toll Brothers City Living
Toll Brothers City Living® is the urban development division of Toll Brothers, Inc., the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes. Toll Brothers City Living® is bringing the same quality, value, and service familiar to our luxury home buyers throughout the country to some of the most dynamic urban markets including New York City; Hoboken and Jersey City, New Jersey; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and the Greater Washington, D.C., metro area. Toll Brothers City Living communities combine the energy of an urban lifestyle with unparalleled amenities, spectacular architecture, and energy-efficient home design. For more information, visit www.tollbrotherscityliving.com .
About Gemdale Properties and Investment
Gemdale Properties and Investment, a subsidiary of Gemdale Corporation, is a leading real estate developer and operator in the Greater China region. Gemdale PI is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (535.HK) and is principally engaged in residential, commercial, and business park property investment, development and management. Gemdale PI currently operates 43 projects covering 15 major cities in China. Since its first investment in the U.S., in Los Angeles in 2015, Gemdale PI has expanded rapidly in the international property market and intends to expand its presence in other carefully selected major metropolitan cities around the world.
Gemdale Corporation (600383.SH) was founded in 1988 and listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange in 2001. Gemdale Corporation is renowned for being a large-scale national property developer in China with highly regarded projects throughout the country. While Gemdale’s roots are in the residential condominium sector, with over 45,000 residential condominium units built and sold in 29 major cities in China in 2015 alone, Gemdale has also embarked in recent years on commercial/mixed-use developments as well as real estate private equity funds management. Gemdale has received numerous real estate industry awards over the years, including “Top 10 China Listed Real Estate Companies in terms of Comprehensive Strength,” “Blue Chip Property Developers in China,” and the “Most Valuable Listed Real Estate Enterprise in China,” amongst other honors.
Forward Looking Statement
Certain information included in this release is forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, information related to: anticipated operating results; anticipated financial performance, resources and condition; selling communities; home deliveries; average home prices; consumer demand and confidence; contract pricing; business and investment opportunities; market and industry trends; and the anticipated benefits to be realized from the acquisition of Coleman Homes.
Such forward-looking information involves important risks and uncertainties that could significantly affect actual results and cause them to differ materially from expectations expressed herein and in other Company reports, SEC filings, statements and presentations. These risks and uncertainties include, among others: local, regional, national and international economic conditions; fluctuating consumer demand and confidence; interest and unemployment rates; changes in sales conditions, including home prices, in the markets where we build homes; conditions in our newly entered markets and newly acquired operations; the competitive environment in which we operate; the availability and cost of land for future growth; conditions that could result in inventory write-downs or write-downs associated with investments in unconsolidated entities; the ability to recover our deferred tax assets; the availability of capital; uncertainties in the capital and securities markets; liquidity in the credit markets; changes in tax laws and their interpretation; effects of governmental legislation and regulation; the outcome of various legal proceedings; the availability of adequate insurance at reasonable cost; the impact of construction defect, product liability and home warranty claims, including the adequacy of self-insurance accruals, and the applicability and sufficiency of our insurance coverage; the ability of customers to obtain financing for the purchase of homes; the ability of home buyers to sell their existing homes; the ability of the participants in various joint ventures to honor their commitments; the availability and cost of labor and building and construction materials; the cost of raw materials; construction delays; domestic and international political events; weather conditions; and the anticipated benefits to be realized from the acquisition of Coleman Homes. For a more detailed discussion of these factors, see the information under the captions "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in our most recent annual report on Form 10-K and our subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Any or all of the forward-looking statements included in this release are not guarantees of future performance and may turn out to be inaccurate. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Contact For Toll Brothers Frederick N. Cooper, Senior Vice President fcooper@tollbrothersinc.com (215) 938-8312 For Gemdale Michael H. Krupa, President michael.krupa@gemdaleusa.com (212) 266-0184
