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26 OCTOBER 2023
Manhattan-based 601W Cos. is advancing its plans to reposition Harborside buildings 1, 2 and 3 in Jersey City, a nearly 2 million-square- foot office complex along the Hudson River, after acquiring the property from Veris Residential Inc. for $420 million.
It wasn’t long before the team
at The 601W Cos. learned what many in New Jersey commercial
real estate have long known about Harborside buildings 1, 2 and 3 in Jersey City.
“It’s got the bricks and bones of an incredible asset,” the firm’s executives said.
That was made even clearer by
the fact that the complex — with
its nearly 2 million square feet of waterfront office space — is home to the likes of Morgan Stanley, Zurich American Insurance and Whole Foods’ Northeast headquarters, despite what they saw as a major shortcoming.
“There are no amenities in the building,” said Mark Karasick, a managing member of the firm, later adding: “They have an incredible roster of tenants despite not having any amenities, which is fascinating.”
For 601W, what was a weakness is now a source of great potential after the firm acquired the property earlier this year from Veris Residential Inc., in a $420 million deal that was billed as the largest U.S. office sale of 2023. The privately held, Manhattan-based company is now advancing its plan to reposition the historic complex, drawing on more than 25 years
of revitalizing major commercial properties around the country.
It’s doing so with the conviction that
upscale spaces despite unease within the office market, as well as a long- term belief in the location.
“Jersey City is a growth market,” Karasick said, speaking through
a company representative. “Its population is growing higher and higher and higher. ... So we see a lot of pluses behind the noise and behind the numbers. And I think,
at the end of the day, if you have a unique product of great distinction, there’s a great demand for it.”
The three interconnected buildings, part of a master-planned complex along the Hudson River, marked 601W’s first acquisition in New Jersey. Its past and present portfolio
includes dozens of well-known properties spanning more than 45 million square feet throughout the country, including 12 in Manhattan, with a collective value of more than $12 billion.
It now hopes to make its mark in Jersey City with a team that includes Gensler, the global design and workplace strategy firm, which has worked on several previous 601W projects. It will focus largely on Harborside 2 and 3, which are 80 percent leased and where it plans
to add a fitness center, a conference center and a tenant lounge. Each will measure between 8,000 and 10,000 square feet, the firm said, while it also expects to create a
THE NEXT CHAPTER
Inside 601W’s plan to reposition Jersey City’s iconic Harborside office complex
By Joshua Burd
tenants are still seeking dynamic,
Courtesy: Cushman & Wakefield