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Twin brothers Scott Shalek (left) and Eric Shalek are principals of Ridgecut Road, a two-year-old
fifififififirm focused on low-coverage and outdoor industrial storage sites and ground-up warehouse development.
DUAL APPROACH
Shalek brothers, identical twins, making their mark in low-coverage industrial, with ground-up development on the horizon
The experience was eye-
opening for Eric Shalek, then
a member of Brookfield Asset Management’s debt investments team, when the fund manager in
2021 was weighing a loan for a large industrial project in Hudson County. It was notable, he recalled, that the borrower had underwritten what
it described as parking rents at the development site, seeking to capture value from space that was outside the four walls of the building.
“This was land adjacent to a warehouse facility,” said Shalek, now a principal of the real estate investment firm Ridgecut Road
alongside his brother, Scott Shalek. “I think that was an early indicator or sign in the market that there was demand for that type of space.”
The identical twins, who hail from Teaneck, have largely focused on low-coverage and outdoor industrial storage sites since launching Ridgecut Road in early 2022, having started their careers with several well-known real estate firms. The company and
its partners own five such properties in Middlesex and Monmouth counties after a series of acquisitions starting in spring 2023, with two more pending and others expected by year- end.
And with a two-pronged strategy, the Shaleks are also planning
a groundbreaking this year in Montgomery, New York, about
30 miles from the New Jersey border, where they’re developing a 146,075-square-foot distribution center just north of Interstate 84.
“We liked the dynamic up in Montgomery when we were entitling that,” Eric said. “It’s a great distribution node. We’ve watched rents grow very strongly over there, really trending off the back of what’s going on in New Jersey and its growth.”
The brothers, age 30, are former standout hockey players at Tenafly High School who were both integral to a deep, dramatic playoff run in 2012, one that included four overtime wins before the team lost in the state championship game to Summit High School. Both attended Northwestern University, graduating in 2016 before launching their respective careers.
For Scott, that meant jobs with the former General Growth Properties, followed by more than two years
as a broker with Meridian Capital Group and then positions with Tishman and Valyrian Capital. He also obtained a master’s from New York
By Joshua Burd
Photo by Aaron Houston for Real Estate NJ