Saxum Real Estate closed a $17 million construction loan from CIT, a division of First Citizens Bank, for the financing of two industrial developments in Hazleton, PA.

The current sites, both within opportunity zones, are poised to become two Class-A industrial developments of 105,000 SF and 115,000 SF.

Humboldt Park is a well-established industrial development which consists of 3,000 acres and is located minutes from Interstate 80 and 81, putting it in the center of 25% of the population and total production of the entire nation. Humboldt Industrial Park supports various types of manufacturing, e-commerce distribution and commercial tenants. Saxum’s strategy with these smaller footprint assets is to provide Class A space to a currently overlooked tenant base that doesn’t fit within the big box industrial buildings.

“CIT spent the time to understand these market dynamics and furthermore saw the value in establishing a new relationship with a growing platform like ours, which culminated in an attractive loan and a successful closing,” said Sridhar Vankayala, Director of Capital Markets.

“We were pleased to arrange financing for these attractive construction projects," said Chris Niederpruem, Managing Director and Eastern Group Head for CIT's Real Estate Finance business. "This transaction is another demonstration of the value that CIT's financing capabilities provide for real estate investors and developers."