By Joshua Burd
A specialty chemicals maker has leased 20,000 square feet of industrial space in Parsippany as part of an ongoing expansion, brokers with NAI James E. Hanson announced.
The real estate services firm represented Jofra Realty, the landlord at 181 East Halsey Road, in the transaction with Morre-tec. The tenant will use the space for selected storage and processing of compounds in conformance with food-grade product requirements.
NAI Hanson’s Scott Perkins and LJ Koch completed the transaction.
“Although Morris County boasts exceptional accessibility and highly favorable demographics, the county’s industrial supply is well below that of the markets to the east,” Perkins said. “While that can make the market challenging for tenants searching for space, it provides many benefits to landlords like Jofra Realty.
“By leveraging our experience in the challenging Morris County market, we were able to strategically market this property to negotiate a long-term deal with a premier tenant on behalf of our client.”
Morre-tec, which is headquartered in Union, is an FDA registered manufacturer and distributor of Bromine Compounds, specialty chemicals, and unique products for the nutritional, food, personal care and biotech industries, as well as specialty adhesives, according to a news release. It also has warehouses in North Carolina, Amsterdam and elsewhere in New Jersey.
Its newest location, part of a 69,315-square-foot industrial and flex building, puts it less than a mile from the intersection of interstates 80 and 287. The space includes 956 square feet of office space, 23-foot ceiling heights and two tailgates to facilitate efficient warehousing and distribution of Morre-tec’s products.
“With only 38,603,715 square feet of rentable industrial building area, the Morris County industrial market remains one of northern New Jersey’s smallest. Only projected to add 25,000 square feet of new industrial space over the next several quarters, the market will continue to remain one of the region’s smallest,” said Kristen Jost, research analyst for NAI Hanson. “Unfortunately for tenants and fortunately for landlords, the small size of the market and the continued westward migration of industrial tenants will continue to drive vacancy rates lower and rental rates higher over the next several quarters.”
