CARTERET, N.J. — Circle Squared Alternative Investments and the Hampshire Cos. have acquired land for a planned industrial property in Carteret. The property, located at 1500 Blair Road, will be developed into a 156,000-square-foot warehouse/distribution facility. The project will be constructed on a six-acre parcel of land ground leased for a term of 50 years with two renewal options of 20 and 25 years each.
MADISON AND SHORT HILLS, N.J. — Mack-Cali Realty Corp. (NYSE: CLI) has acquired a 1.1 million-square-foot office portfolio that includes six Class A properties in northern New Jersey for $368 million. The sales price of the portfolio is one of the highest ever recorded statewide in the office sector, according to a news release. RXR Realty LLC sold the portfolio, which includes 1, 3 and 7 Giralda Farms in Madison and 51, 101 and 103 JFK Parkway in Short Hills. The portfolio is 91 percent leased to tenants such as KPMG, Wells Fargo, Merrill Lynch, UBS, Dun & Bradstreet, Investors Bank, Citibank, Franklin Mutual Advisors, Pfizer and Prudential. All of the properties are located in the Route 24 corridor and benefit from a strong retail amenity base, including The Mall at Short Hills, the downtown areas of Morristown, Madison and Summit and the retail offerings along Route 10. “This acquisition signifies Mack-Cali’s substantially expanded presence in the affluent Short Hills submarket — positioning us as the owner of nearly all of the Class A office space, as well as some of the most premier assets in the Madison submarket,” said Michael J. DeMarco, president of Mack-Cali, in a press release. “This transaction exemplifies …
WEBSTER, N.Y. — KeyBank Real Estate Capital has provided a $24.8 million Freddie Mac first mortgage loan for Waverlywood Apartments & Townhomes in Webster. The 361-unit multifamily property was built in 1974 and underwent $1.5 million in renovations over the past five years. Upgrades included new carpeting, floor tiling, appliances and boilers. Dirk Falardeau of Key’s Commercial Mortgage Group arranged the non-recourse loan with a seven-year term, two years of interest only and a 30-year amortization schedule. The loan was used to refinance existing debt.
STAMFORD, CONN. — Hunt Mortgage Group has provided a $28 million first mortgage bridge loan to facilitate the recapitalization and renovation of a mixed-use multifamily and commercial property in Stamford. Park Square West Apartments is a nine-story property located at 101 Summer St. The property was built in 1999 and includes 143 residential units, two commercial spaces and a 213-space parking garage. The unit mix features 10 studios, 64 one-bedroom units, 64 two-bedroom apartments and five three-bedroom units. The two-year floating rate loan includes three options to extend the term for a period of 12 months each. The residential component is currently 92 percent occupied and the commercial component is 100 percent occupied. The loan also includes a $703,000 capital improvement reserve, which will go toward renovations. Additional improvements planned include interior renovations of 48 of the property’s units, including replacing countertops and cabinets, flooring upgrades, installation of new lighting, bathroom fixtures and kitchen appliances. Property amenities include a concierge, shuttle service, valet dry cleaning, roof deck, fitness center, garage parking and a ground floor restaurant.
NEW YORK CITY — New Project, a Brooklyn-based fabrication company specializing in museum, exhibition and commercial design/build projects, has purchased a 12,500-square-foot, two-story building in the Greenwood neighborhood of Brooklyn. With the purchase, the company will combine its administrative offices, metal and finish shop, and woodworking facilities into one location at 223 25th St. Since New Project’s founding in 2004, the company has grown from two employees to more than 30. Over the last five years, the firm has experienced a 376 percent growth in revenue. New Project will move to its new location in spring 2017.
WESTAMPTON, N.J. — Hersh Realty Group Commercial Real Estate (HRG) has arranged the $7.4 million sale of The Westampton Marketplace located at 483 Woodlane Road in Westampton. The Westampton Marketplace is a 32,140-square-foot Class A retail shopping center consisting of 24,000 square feet of inline retail space and an 8,300-square-foot freestanding Family Dollar situated on 8.3 acres. Additional pad sites are available for future development. The center, built in 2008, is located near I-295 and the New Jersey Turnpike. In addition to Family Dollar, other tenants located at the center include Subway, Scotto Pizza, a nail salon and a daycare center. Seth Hersh of HRG was the sole broker involved in the transaction and represented the seller, a private local real estate investment group. The buyer was a private real estate investment group located in the New York area.
NEW YORK CITY — Ricoh USA has signed a 10-year lease for a 30,469-square-foot office space at 711 Third Ave. in New York City. SL Green is the landlord. Ricoh USA will consolidate into 711 Third Ave. from three other Manhattan buildings. Located one block east of Grand Central Terminal, 711 Third Ave. features a mosaic mural designed by expressionist Hans Hofmann in the lobby. The building was recently renovated with new elevator cabs, windows, corridors and restrooms. Other tenants include McKinsey & Co., Goldberg Segalia and Ackman Ziff. CBRE’s Joseph Mangiacotti, Carolyn Sica and Kurt Burdack represented Ricoh USA, while Howard Tenenbaum and Gary Rosen represented the landlord in-house at SL Green.
By Gregory Schaffer Pennsylvania property owners and tenants, who pay some of the highest property taxes in the nation, are no doubt aware of the annual deadline to file a property tax appeal. After all, one look at a new tax bill is often enough to make even the most seasoned tax manager scramble to contact their local tax counsel. However, very few taxpayers are aware that the assessment they may have accepted as favorable could easily trigger a reverse appeal filed by the local school district. Assessment appeals filed by the taxing entities, often referred to as reverse appeals, are increasingly common as cash-strapped school districts seek to fill their coffers. Just as a tax manager might view an inflated assessment as a reason to appeal, more and more school districts see potentially under-assessed properties as a much-needed source of additional revenue. To the bane of many taxpayers, this tactic has now reached the city of Philadelphia. Despite undergoing a citywide property revaluation for the 2014 tax year, with another currently slated for 2018, the Philadelphia School District recently decided to begin filing reverse appeals against properties it feels are under-assessed. On Sept. 15, 2016, for the first time, …
BOSTON — Skanska USA has topped out 121 Seaport, a 17-story, 400,000-square-foot office building under construction in Boston. The construction milestone marks the completion of the building’s steel frame. Designed by CBT Architects, 121 Seaport is scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2018. The property is located in Boston’s Seaport district across from District Hall and Seaport Square Green. Its three-story lobby will face Boston Harbor and open onto Harbor Way, a 70-foot-wide pedestrian street. A team of nearly 200 construction workers has put more than 35,000 hours into the project to date.
TARRYTOWN, N.Y. — Cushman & Wakefield has arranged the $30 million sale of 660 White Plains Road, an office building in Tarrytown. GHP Office Realty, a privately held real estate firm, acquired the property from RA 660 White Plains Road LLC, an entity controlled by RNY Property Trust. The six-story building totals 279,000 square feet and features on-site food service, 24-hour access and access to public bus service. It sits on 11 acres in the Tarrytown Corporate Center. Cushman & Wakefield’s Andrew Merin, David Bernhaut, Gary Gabriel, Brian Whitmer, Frank DiTommaso and Al Mirin brokered the transaction. The property is 87 percent leased to more than 40 tenants ranging in size from less than 1,000 square feet to nearly 60,000 square feet.