A 170-year-old former factory complex, former home of the American Hemp Company in Paterson, New Jersey, will expand Great Falls Industrial Park and the number of creative professionals calling the Art Factory Studios home.

With a loan infusion of $12.5 million from nationwide private lenders, Silver Arch Capital Partners and Procida Funding & Advisors, Great Fall Industrial Park will be able to expand the facility. According to Silver Arch Capital Partners, Great Falls will use the loan proceeds to pay off debt and make capital upgrades.

Redevelopment efforts include retail stores, exhibition and event spaces, light industrial spaces, more office and studio space.

"We came through for the borrower, Great Falls Industrial Park, Inc., and we are happy to help finance this key component of the ongoing cultural and economic revival of Paterson," says William 'Billy' Procida, President & CEO of Englewood Cliffs-based Procida.

"The borrowers came to us after other lenders promised a closing that never happened," said Jeffrey Wolfer, President & CEO of Silver Arch Capital Partners of Hackensack, adding that the collateral also included a three-building, 106,000-square-foot property located at 468 Totowa Ave., Paterson.

Sandwiched between Route 80 and the Passaic River, the 21-building, 4.781-acre Art Factory property is located at 60-70 Spruce Street in Paterson's Great Falls historic district; around 90 filmmakers, photographers, and many other creative professionals call Art Factory Studios home.

At Art Factory Studios, carpenters, painters and metalworkers produce their crafts side-by-side in open and private studio spaces complete with high, lofty ceilings, large antique windows and original brick walls. Cobbled courtyards crop up between the buildings, providing a breathtaking backdrop for photography and videography.

"Art Factory Studios isn't a cut-and-dry office park," adds Procida. "It is such an interesting property with so many different purposes which can be too complicated for conventional lenders to even think about.

"Located deep in the heart of an old urban center, it was clear that Art Factory Studios fits a unique role in the Paterson community, with many pathways for success," he says.

"Not only is Art Factory Studios already an in-demand studio space and venue, but the planned expansions will further solidify the space's role in the continued revival of historic Paterson," Wolfer said.

"This century-plus-old complex is the perfect backdrop for so many exciting creative endeavors, with so much room to grow," said Procida.