Page 26 - RE-NJ

24 MARCH 2026
MARCH LANDS TENANT, REFIS 70,000
SQ. FT. WAREHOUSE IN WAYNE
March Construction has filled some
70,000 square feet of new warehouse
space in Wayne after a recent lease
with a fast-growing importer of nuts,
dried fruits, herbs and spices.
The developer, which is based in the
township, secured the deal with Silk
Road Wholesale and Distributors
after successfully redeveloping
a six-acre site at 125 Pompton
Plains Crossroad. It also recently
refinanced the property under a deal
arranged by G.S. Wilcox & Co., the
mortgage banking firm, securing a
$15 million loan from a life insurance
company.
125 Pompton Plains Crossroad in Wayne
‘VINTAGE CITY’ TEAM INKS $83
MILLION DEBT, MEZZANINE DEAL
A development team has secured
more than $83 million in capital to
build 258 new luxury apartments in
Elizabeth, in the second phase of
a project that has won widespread
acclaim.
According to JLL, which arranged
the transaction, construction is
already underway on what’s known
as ECCO at 250 Union St. and directly
across from the newly renovated
Elizabeth train station. Its sponsors,
Lecesse Development Corp. and
MAS Development, are moving
ahead with the help of a $63.2 million
construction loan from Bank OZK and
a $20.15 million mezzanine placement
from PGIM, with completion slated
for 2027.
The debt placement team noted
that ECCO represents the second
piece of the broader Vintage City
development, which received
NAIOP’s Mixed-Use Deal of the Year
Award in 2025. The sponsorship team
delivered the 267-unit first phase,
known as Vinty, in 2022 under a
project built by March Associates
Construction and subsequently leased
up the property within one year,
demonstrating strong demand for
luxury rental housing in Elizabeth’s
downtown core.
ECCO, which will have wood-
frame construction over a concrete
podium with 278 parking spaces,
is slated to have a mix of studio,
one-bedroom and two-bedroom
luxury rentals. The five-story,
233,880-square-foot building will
also have amenities such as a resort-
style pool, a high-end fitness center,
a golf simulator, an outdoor kitchen,
a business center, a dog park and
3,200 square feet of ground-floor
retail space.
Among the project’s many benefits
are its direct access to two NJ Transit
lines that provide direct routes to
New York Penn Station, Newark
Liberty International Airport and
the Jersey Shore. Renters will also
be within walking distance of Union
County College, Kean University,
Trinitas Regional Medical Center,
the Union County Courthouse and
Cushman & Wakefield’s Tom Tucci
and Torsten Thaler served as the
property’s leasing agent, part of a
team that also included Bohler and
Anderson Design Group. The project
has revitalized a former storage yard
for trucks and other equipment while
capitalizing on the site’s location less
than a half-mile from both Route 23
and Route 202.
Features include 40-foot clear ceiling
heights, 12 loading docks, 1 drive-in
door, 39 car parking spaces and 3,000
square feet of mezzanine office space.
“This site has been an eyesore in town
forever and is very favorably located
for a warehouse development,” Louie
March, managing director of asset
management for Wayne-based March
Construction, said in early 2024 ahead
of the groundbreaking for the facility.
“We are proud to bring another first-
class project to Wayne and excited to
get started.”
Bridget Wilcox, a partner with G.S.
Wilcox, sourced the project’s initial
$11.6 million loan with Kearny Bank.
She and Al Raymond, a principal
with the firm, also arranged the
latest financing transaction through
a correspondent life insurance
company, one of two new deals
announced recently by the mortgage
banker.
“We are pleased to see the completion
of both transactions on the behalf
of our repeat clients,” Wilcox said in
a prepared statement. “The closing
on the property in Wayne comes
full circle, having arranged the spec
construction loan on behalf of the
borrower and successfully executing
a cash-out refinance upon lease
execution.”
the under-construction $125 million
Union County Administrative
Building.
JLL, meantime, noted that Elizabeth
is the county seat of Union County
and is New Jersey’s fourth-largest
city by population with some
137,401 residents. The municipality
has experienced 10.6 percent
population growth since 2010,
with 73 percent of residents being
renters, while Union County has
seen average asking rents increase
by 18 percent over the past five
years while maintaining occupancy
rates above 96 percent.
Plans for ECCO, the second phase of Vintage City in Elizabeth, call for a mix of studio,
one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments with structured parking and ground-floor
retail space at 250 Union St.
Rendering courtesy: JLL