Page 7 - RE-NJ

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EDITOR ’S
NOTE
square for workers and residents
alike. Connell has already taken
steps toward opening the corporate
park to the public — offering gym
memberships and nighttime social
events inside its renovated offi ce
space — all with a level of branding
to open the new mixed-use, Main
Street-style corridor known as The
District.
“The goal is a 20-minute
neighborhood — everything you need
WHAT’S OLD
IS NEW
is within 20 minutes,” said Shane
Connell, the fi rm’s executive vice
president, envisioning a collection
of resort-style brands, services
The reinvention of the suburban
and facilities that make The Park a
offi ce park has become a familiar
unique offering in New Jersey.
theme in
New Jersey.
Elsewhere in this edition, we
Fortunately
highlight Fidelco Realty Group’s
so, given the
Those efforts will be Those efforts will be
ongoing turnaround of a historic
alarming glut of
offi ce tower in downtown Newark.
vacant, obsolete
disp on full display by
The fi rm acquired 550 Broad St.
buildings
in mid-2019 and withstood the
mid-2026, when Connell mid-2026 when Conne -2026 when Conn
that dot our
pandemic that crippled the market
highways, many
expects to open the
less than a year later, thanks in
of them prime
part to its vast experience and
candidates to be torn down and
new mixed-use,
wherewithal. Perhaps equally critical
redeveloped.
Main Street-style Main Street-style
was its decision to pursue a diverse
tenant mix, recognizing a burgeoning
That’s anything but the case at The
kn corridor known as
demand for smaller, fl exible spaces
Park in Berkeley Heights, where The
and coworking environments. It has
Connell Co. is overseeing something
The District The District.
since welcomed an eclectic group
far more ambitious. As you’ll read in
ranging from tech startups and
this month’s cover story, the fi rm is
foundations to traditional law and
entering a new phase of its decade-
engineering fi rms, fueling 130,000
long, $500 million update of the
square feet of new leasing activity
185-acre campus along Interstate 78,
and another 65,000 square feet of
with construction underway on new
renewals, expansions or relocations
residential, dining and entertainment
of existing tenants.
spaces that will create a town
and merchandising that is unlike
anything seen at other commercial
properties in the state.
Those efforts will be on full display
by mid-2026, when Connell expects
Our February issue also includes
our coverage of a project that
has brought new life to an iconic
industrial property in Newark.
As you’ll read, Shorewood Real
Estate Group welcomed city
offi cials and other well-wishers last
month to unveil The Ballantine,
a collection of 280 apartments in
the city’s Ironbound section. That
project followed an $88 million
redevelopment of the historic
Ballantine Brewery site, bringing new
market-rate and affordable housing
to the East Ward and setting the
stage for additional projects nearby.
You can fi nd those stories and more
in the latest issue of Real Estate NJ,
which follows an incredibly busy
January for not just our publication,
but for many of you I’ve spoken in
the new year. Let’s hope that there’s
more where that came from and that
2025 turns out to be the return to
normalcy (or prosperity) that many
of you have long called for.
Until next time, thanks for reading
and enjoy the issue!
Joshua Burd
Editor
[email protected]
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