HASBROUCK HEIGHTS, N.J. — G3 Communications Inc. has leased office space at Heights Plaza, located at 777 Terrace Ave. in Hasbrouck Heights. The digital media company, which specializes in B2B marketing, will occupy 6,400 square feet at the six-story 200,000-square-foot office building owned by Alfred Sanzari Enterprises. Stephen Jennings provided in-house representation for the landlord, while Joe Tormen of Lee & Associates represented the tenant in the transaction.
EDGEWATER, N.J. — Waterton has completed the $6 million renovation and rebranding of The St. Moritz, a 225-unit apartment tower in Edgewater, just across the Hudson River from Manhattan. Waterton operates the community, which received a new outdoor pool and spa with private cabanas, grilling stations and fire pit, as well as an updated lobby, business center and fitness facility featuring all-new exercise equipment. Additional enhancements were made to the parking garage and façade of the building, which Barings Real Estate Advisers owns on behalf of an institutional investor. The 25-story apartment tower was built in 2004 and offers a mix of one-, two-, three- and four-bedroom floor plans ranging in size from 780 to more than 4,000 square feet.
WOODBRIDGE AND UNION CITY, N.J. — Redwood Realty Advisors has arranged the sales of two apartment properties in New Jersey. Jeremy Wernick assisted in the $2.55 million sale of a 22-unit garden apartment complex in Woodbridge. The sale closed at a 6.2 percent cap rate. Wernick also located a Florida investment property for the seller to purchase to complete a 1031 exchange. In Union City, Redwood’s Steven Matovski and Saul Ramirez brokered the sale of a 19-unit garden apartment complex for $1.15 million. The names of the buyers and sellers were not disclosed.
HOLMDEL, N.J. — Somerset Development has chosen Structure Tone Inc. to oversee construction plans, renovations and subcontractor management at Bell Works, the complete revitalization of the former Bell Labs campus in Holmdel. Structure Tone will assume management of all ongoing construction projects in the 2 million-square-foot property. Immediate renovations include the implementation of a new safety infrastructure along with a skylight replacement initiative, which will implement photovoltaic panels that will convert solar energy into electricity, reducing Bell Works’ environmental footprint while maximizing the building’s energy efficiency. Earlier this year, the Bell Works team executed a lease with anchor commercial tenant iCIMS, a leading provider of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) talent acquisition solutions.
NEWARK, N.J. — The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) and developer Dranoff Properties have started construction of One Theater Square, a $116 million high-rise multifamily complex in Newark. One Theater Square will be the first new ground-up, upscale residential high rise in the city since 1960, according to the developers. The 22-story project will be situated on 1.2 acres across from NJPAC and Military Park. It will contain 245 units, most of which will be one- and two-bedroom apartments that will range in size from 585 to 1,700 square feet. The project includes 24 affordable housing units that will be marketed as artist residences, though they will be available to anyone who meets the financial criteria. The ground floor will include 12,000 square feet of retail space. One Theater Square will have a 24-hour concierge, rooftop community gathering space, fitness facility and multiple club rooms. Developers plan to complete the project in the summer of 2018. The public-private partnership includes contributions from the City of Newark; the State of New Jersey; Prudential Financial; Fifth Third Bank; Dranoff; and NJPAC. Philadelphia-based Dranoff Properties develops, builds, finances and/or manages multifamily developments in and around the Northeast. Carl E. Dranoff founded the …
ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J. — Unilever has chosen a joint venture between OVG Real Estate and Normandy Real Estate Partners to acquire and redevelop the company’s 23-acre, 325,000-square-foot North American headquarters. The site is located at 700 Sylvan Ave. in Englewood Cliffs, just across the Hudson River from New York City. The agreement provides that upon closing, the land and the building will be leased back to Unilever via an 18-year triple-net lease. The sale is expected to close prior the end of 2016. The renovated headquarters will be both LEED- and WELL-certified and benefits will include reducing CO2 emissions, reducing energy consumption by 50 percent, reducing water demand via low-flow plumbing and diverting 75 percent of construction waste from landfills. OVG plans to increase the size of the property by 28 percent to accommodate 1,600 employees. Unilever expects the new campus to be largely finished by the fourth quarter of 2017. Cushman and Wakefield advised in the partnership formation. Other partners include Perkins + Will Architects; Unilever’s legal advisor Robinson Cole; Drinker Biddle & Reith and AKD Advocaten, both serving as legal advisors to the OVG-Normandy joint venture; general contractor StructureTone; and insurance advisor Parallel. — Jaime Lackey
FORT LEE, N.J. — A BFE affiliate has sold the fully leased Polygon Plaza in Fort Lee’s redevelopment district to H&M Group Inc., a New York investor, for $22 million. The 90,000-square foot property is located at 2050 Center Ave. BFE acquired the building in 1994 for $6.4 million from Connecticut Mutual Life, which had acquired it through a foreclosure. Today, Polygon Plaza is leased to a mix of small and mid-sized tenants, including many long-term occupants. Trans-Hudson Management Corp., a BFE affiliate, will continue to manage the building for the new owner. Andrew Merin, David Bernhaut, Gary Gabriel and Brian Whitmer of Cushman & Wakefield represented BFE in the sale. Ashley Kim and Bowen Pak of Eastern International Realty Inc. served as co-brokers for the seller in the transaction.
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Silver Arch Capital Partners has originated a $10.75 million loan allowing Tramz Hotels Group to refinance a 15,300-square-foot land parcel located at 155 Luis Munoz Marin Boulevard in Hudson County, N.J., on which it will develop a 202,495-square-foot, 276-room Marriott hotel. The property will include a full-service restaurant, a bar and lounge area plus associated services such as concierge, salon, meeting/banquet rooms and a full-service fitness center. Tarrunumn Murad along with her husband Tajjammal Murad founded Tramz Hotels Group in 1987. She was only the second woman to become a chartered accountant in Pakistan in 1976. In the U.S., she has financed transactions of more than $150 million and holds an MBA from Columbia University in New York.
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — The Hampshire Companies and joint venture partner Claremont Companies, along with project investment advisor Circle Squared Alternative Investments, have broken ground on the first phase of University Place along the west campus of New Jersey City University. The first phase will include 163 market-rate units and approximately 10,000 square feet of retail on West Side Avenue, along with 177 structured parking spaces, two bike terminals and more than 25,000 square feet of indoor/outdoor amenity space. The residential units will consist of 27 studio apartments, 112 one-bedroom, and 24 two-bedroom units ranging from 550 square feet to 1,300 square feet. Occupancy for the first project is slated for 2017. The remaining phases of development for University Place are expected to be completed and available for occupancy in 2018. The master redevelopment plan calls for eight buildings including a 100,000-square-foot performing arts center/academic building.
NEW YORK CITY — Meridian Capital Group has arranged $22 million in acquisition financing for the purchase of a 51-unit loft multifamily building located at 315 Seigel Street on the border of East Williamsburg and Bushwick, on behalf of Sugar Hill Capital Partners. The five-year loan, provided by a regional balance sheet lender, features a fixed-rate in the 3 percent range with one year of interest-only payments and a five-year extension option. Shamir Seidman and Daniel Neiss of Meridian negotiated the transaction.
