WILKES-BARRE, PA. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the $3.7 million sale of a 5,967-square-foot retail asset in Wilkes-Barre, approximately 65 miles north of Allentown. Located at 989 Schechter Drive, the freestanding property is net-leased to Chick-Fil-A. Derrick Dougherty and Mark Krantz of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, a limited liability company, in the transaction. The buyer was undisclosed.
HOPEWELL TOWNSHIP, N.J. — American Real Estate Partners (AREP) and Independencia Asset Management have sold 1100-1200 American Boulevard in Hopewell Township, approximately 10 miles west of Princeton, for $95 million. Originally built in 2000 as part of the Merrill Lynch corporate campus, the property consists of three Class A office buildings totaling 380,417 square feet. It is currently fully leased to Merrill Lynch, which Bank of America acquired in 2008. AREP purchased the property in 2013. Under terms of the new agreement, AREP will continue to lease and manage the asset. Cushman & Wakefield brokered the transaction. A New York City-based real estate investment firm was the buyer. “The deal offered positive cash flow from an investment-grade tenant for several years; desirable real estate centrally located between New York City and Philadelphia; and an opportunity to ensure management continuity by leveraging AREP’s operating platform,” says David Bernhaut, executive vice chairman of Cushman & Wakefield’s capital markets group. The Princeton/Route 1 Corridor has been one of New Jersey’s top submarkets for nearly two decades, according to AREP. Since 2004, the area has experienced a 20 percent increase in Class A asking rents. Headquartered in metro Washington, D.C., AREP is an institutional …
LAWNSIDE, N.J. — Cushman & Wakefield has brokered the $31.5 million sale of Lawnside Commons, a 151,000-square-foot retail property in Lawnside, a southwestern suburb of Philadelphia. Home Depot anchors the center, which is located at 310 White Horse Pike, and the tenant roster includes PetSmart, Wendy’s, T-Mobile and Mattress Firm. Andrew Merin, David Bernhaut and Gary Gabriel led a Cushman & Wakefield team that represented the undisclosed seller. The team also procured the buyer, a joint venture between MCB Real Estate LLC and United Hampshire US REIT.
WOODMERE, N.Y. — Houlihan-Parnes LLC has arranged a $10 million construction loan for a retail project that will deliver an 80,000-square-foot Stop & Shop grocery store in Woodmere, a city located on the western part of Long Island. An undisclosed national lender provided the loan, which carries a fixed interest rate of 2.78 percent. The grocery store will be constructed in the Five Towns Shopping Center, an approximately 500,000-square-foot retail center located at 253-01 Rockaway Blvd., just east of JFK International Airport. The tenant roster includes Lowe’s Home Center, TJ Maxx, Walmart, T-Mobile and Chick-fil-A. Jim Houlihan, Bryan Houlihan and Christie Houlihan of Houlihan-Parnes originated the loan.
NEW YORK CITY — Coworking office space provider HQ Global Workplaces LLC has renewed its 28,000-square-foot lease in Manhattan. The lease is for a coworking office space that encompasses the entire 16th floor of 100 Park Avenue, a 902,000-square-foot office building between East 40th and 41st streets. The landlord, SL Green, was represented internally in the lease negotiations. No brokers representing the tenant were disclosed.
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Cavany Foods, an organic grocer and food delivery service, will open a 1,750-square-foot market in Jersey City. The new store will be located within the retail space at 235 Grand, a 549-unit multifamily building in Jersey City. Cavany will relocate from its industrial kitchen in the nearby Bergen-Lafayette neighborhood and will utilize the space for its inaugural retail location, with a market offering prepared meals, produce and coffee all available for delivery. KRE Group and Ironstate Development Co. are the owners of the building
MILFORD, CONN. — Ethnic grocer Caribbean Corner Store LLC has signed an 800-square-foot retail lease in Milford, a western suburb of New Haven. The property is located at 225 Research Drive, a redeveloped warehouse constructed in 1988.. Bill Clark of The Geenty Group represented Caribbean Corner Store in the lease negotiations. Clark also represented the landlord, D’Amato Investments LLC.
From start-ups seeking flex space to major corporations that are expanding or relocating an entire office, finding a modern office space in the northern New Jersey commercial market is always a challenge. Barbara Gross, Sheldon Gross Realty Overall, it’s a very mature environment, with many older structures and corporate parks lining the highways, and with limited new development. As an example of the resultant complexities, let’s look back to the 1980s and ’90s, when the Route 280 corridor (primarily in western Essex County) was bustling. Office parks had few vacancies, and rental rates were among the highest in the state. Until relatively recently, only a few companies owned the majority of these buildings, thereby “controlling” who went where and at what rental rate. But over time, these owners have been selling the individual buildings in parks to a variety of new owners, resulting in a more competitive marketplace. It’s refreshing to see the new owners investing in renovations and adding new amenities. However, responding to a younger generation coming to or returning home to New Jersey and demanding greener, 24/7 communities, developers are demolishing some of those older office buildings and parks. Projects are before planning boards now that would …
NEW YORK CITY — Rivington Co. plans to develop 21 Garden Street, a 50-unit multifamily property in the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn. Rivington will redevelop an existing structure, formerly the home of a woodworking company that made custom furniture pieces and cabinetry, to construct the eight-story building. The property will include both affordable and market rate residences. DXA Studio will serve as the architect of the project. Construction is slated to complete in 2022.
NEW YORK CITY — The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has completed repairs of its L train tunnel, which connects Manhattan and Brooklyn. The 12-month project repaired damage to the tunnel caused by Hurricane Sandy in 2012. Under a revised plan from state Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the deans of the Cornell University and Columbia University engineering schools, the project was completed in three months less than its original 15-month estimation, which also included a complete shut-down of the tunnel. Under the revised plan, the tunnel remained operational during the day while repairs progressed in the nights and weekends. The project was also completed approximately $100 million under its original $477 million budget.