BETHESDA, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 15, 2025--
Walker & Dunlop, Inc. announced today that it has arranged a $220 million bridge loan to refinance 626 Newark Avenue, an innovative 576-unit, Class A mixed-use multifamily property located within Jersey City’s Journal Square neighborhood.
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Walker & Dunlop New York Capital Markets, led by Aaron Appel, Keith Kurland, Jonathan Schwartz, Adam Schwartz, Dustin Stolly, Sean Reimer, Jordan Casella, Christopher de Raet, and Edward Leboyer, acted as an exclusive advisor to Namdar Group, with TYKO providing the capital.
The 27-story, 400,175-gross-square-foot property includes 290,000 residential rentable square feet (RSF) and 27,662 commercial/retail RSF. The building offers 576 units designed for Jersey City renters, including young professionals, students and middle-income earners seeking premium amenities and a Class A living experience at more accessible rates than New York City.
“626 Newark integrates luxury living with vibrant retail and commercial spaces that foster connection and convenience for all renters and neighbors alike. This dynamic mix supports a true live-work-play environment, positioning the property as a cornerstone of the rapidly evolving Journal Square community,” said Effy Namdar, chief investment officer at Namdar Group. “We are proud to bring this vision to life for Jersey City.”
Located in the heart of the Journal Square neighborhood, 626 Newark is a two-minute walk from the Journal Square PATH station, offering 10-minute access to Manhattan. The area’s central location, access to major highways and transit, and more affordable rents continue to draw residents from Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Ranked the fifth top tech city in the United States in 2024, Jersey City hosts nearly 400 tech and IT firms and attracts fintech and financial institutions supported by programs such as the Grow NJ tax incentive. With expanding investments in life sciences and innovation, Journal Square is emerging as a premier destination for forward-thinking residents seeking a dynamic urban lifestyle.
“We are glad to have helped structure a solution that aligns with Namdar Group’s goals for 626 Newark,” said Aaron Appel, senior managing director of New York Capital Markets at Walker & Dunlop. “This transaction appropriately recapitalizes the indebtedness now that the project is built and provides reserves to support a successful lease-up, which is already exceeding underwritten expectations. It was rewarding to partner with TYKO and Namdar Group to bring this complex deal to life while advancing the property’s vision as a premier residential destination in Journal Square.”
Walker & Dunlop is one of the top providers of capital to the U.S. multifamily market; in 2024 the firm originated over $30 billion in debt financing volume, including lending over $25 billion for multifamily properties. This vast experience has made them a top advisor on all asset classes for many of the industry’s top developers, owners, and operators. To learn more about Walker & Dunlop’s broad financing options, visit our website.
About Walker & Dunlop
Walker & Dunlop (NYSE: WD) is one of the largest commercial real estate finance and advisory services firms in the United States and internationally. Our ideas and capital create communities where people live, work, shop, and play. Our innovative people, breadth of our brand, and our technological capabilities make us one of the most insightful and client-focused firms in the commercial real estate industry.
626 Newark Avenue. Photo Credits: Namdar Group
KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — Voting began Thursday in Uganda’s presidential election despite a days-long internet shutdown that has been criticized as an anti-democratic tactic in a country where the president has held office since 1986.
Crowds gathered and long lines formed in some areas as polling station openings were delayed and voting materials were seen being delivered after the scheduled 7 a.m. opening time.
President Yoweri Museveni, 81, faces seven other candidates, including Robert Kyagulanyi, a musician-turned-politician best known as Bobi Wine, who is calling for political change.
The East African country of roughly 45 million people has 21.6 million registered voters. Polls are expected to close at 4 p.m. Thursday, according to the electoral commission. Results are constitutionally required to be announced in 48 hours.
Impatient crowds gathered outside polling stations expressing concerns over the delays Thursday morning. Umaru Mutyaba, a polling agent for a parliamentary candidate, said it was “frustrating” to be waiting outside a station in the capital Kampala.
“We can’t be standing here waiting to vote as if we have nothing else to do," he said.
Ssemujju Nganda, a prominent opposition figure and lawmaker seeking reelection in Kira municipality, told The Associated Press he had been waiting in line to vote for three hours.
In addition to delayed voting materials, biometric voter identification machines were not working properly, Nganda said, adding that delays likely will lead to apathy and low turnout in urban areas where the opposition has substantial support.
“It’s going to be chaos,” he said.
Uganda has not witnessed a peaceful transfer of presidential power since independence from British colonial rule six decades ago.
Museveni has served the third-longest term of any African leader and is seeking to extend his rule into a fifth decade. Some critics say removing him through elections remains difficult, but the aging president’s authority has become increasingly dependent on the military led by his son, Muhoozi Kainerugaba.
Museveni and Wine are reprising their rivalry from the previous election in 2021, when Wine appealed to mostly young people in urban areas. With voter turnout of 59%, Wine secured 35% of the ballots against Museveni’s 58%, the president’s smallest vote share since his first electoral campaign three decades ago.
The lead-up to Thursday's election produced concerns about transparency, the possibility of hereditary rule, military interference and opposition strategies to prevent vote tampering at polling stations.
Uganda's internet was shut down Tuesday by the government communications agency, which cited misinformation, electoral fraud and incitement of violence. The shutdown has affected the public and disrupted critical sectors such as banking.
There has been heavy security leading up to voting, including military units deployed on the streets this week.
Amnesty International said security forces are engaging in a “brutal campaign of repression,” citing a Nov. 28 opposition rally in eastern Uganda where the military blocked exits and opened fire on supporters, killing one person.
Museveni urged voters to come out in large numbers during his final rally Tuesday.
“You go and vote, anybody who tries to interfere with your freedom will be crushed. I am telling you this. We are ready to put an end to this indiscipline,” he said.
The national electoral commission chairperson, Simon Byabakama, urged tolerance among Ugandans as they vote.
“Let us keep the peace that we have,” Byabakama said late Wednesday. “Let us be civil. Let us be courteous. Let’s be tolerant. Even if you know that this person does not support (your) candidate, please give him or her room or opportunity to go and exercise his or her constitutional right."
Authorities also suspended the activities of several civic groups during the campaign season. That Group, a prominent media watchdog, closed its office Wednesday after the interior ministry alleged in a letter that the group was involved in activities “prejudicial to the security and laws of Uganda.”
Veteran opposition figure Kizza Besigye, a four-time presidential candidate, remains in prison after he was charged with treason in February 2025.
Uganda opposition presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, known as Bobi Wine, right, greets election observers, including former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan, at his home in Magere village on the outskirts of Kampala, Uganda, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Hajarah Nalwadda)
Billboards of Uganda President and National Resistance Movement (NRM) presidential candidate Yoweri Museveni are seen in Kampala, Uganda, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Samson Otieno)
Electoral workers deliver ballot boxes to a polling station during presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
Voters are reflected in a police officer's sunglasses as they wait in line after voting failed to start on time due to system failures during presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
Voters wait to cast their ballots during the presidential election in Kampala, Uganda, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
