Princeton Place at Hopewell — Courtesy: American Real Estate Partners
By Joshua Burd
The owner of a Hopewell office complex said it has inked three leases totaling more than 200,000 square feet in recent months, anchored by a deal with the state’s largest health insurer.
The owner, American Real Estate Partners, announced Thursday that the deals at Princeton Place at Hopewell total 207,000 square feet. The activity has brought the two-building complex to 95 percent occupancy within 18 months of the firm acquiring it and launching a series of upgrades.
The largest among the deals is with Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, which has signed a 140,000-square-foot long-term lease at 1700 American Blvd. Horizon, represented by Phil Lipper and Roby Bull of JLL, will take occupancy in January 2017
At 1800 American Blvd., Janssen Research and Development, a subsidiary of Johnson and Johnson, leased 39,000 square feet, American Real Estate said in a news release. Janssen’s lease accommodates the expanding needs of the company’s Titusville-based regional operation, with Ed DaCosta of CBRE representing Janssen in the transaction.
A third tenant, CENLAR, was represented by Steve Tolkach of Newmark Grubb Knight Frank in its lease of 28,000 square feet at the building.
Cushman & Wakefield’s Paul Giannone, Todd Elfand and Kevin Carton have headed the Edison-based marketing team for Princeton Place since mid-2014, when an affiliate of American Real Estate Partners purchased the property, the news release said. Ownership has since completed a major renovation there to help the site become a multitenant property.
“We are pleased with the execution of our leasing strategy and delighted with the performance of our management and leasing teams,” said Michael Gribbon, principal and executive managing director of American Real Estate Partners. “The hard work and professionalism of Paul Giannone, Kevin Carton and Todd Elfand of Cushman & Wakefield was instrumental in our success.
“Our ability to attract such strong corporate tenants to our campus on long term commitments speaks to the quality of the real estate and team.”
Princeton Place at Hopewell sits at a four-way interchange along Interstate 95 and is well-positioned in Princeton’s office and pharmaceutical corridor, the news release said. The property is minutes from downtown Princeton and Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
American Real Estate noted the campus has a standalone amenity building with a café, fitness center, covered parking and a shared conference facility. It also has a 1.5-mile jogging trail and other recreational amenities, along with an onsite conference center, fully equipped cafeteria, day care facilities and an onsite dry cleaner.
“This property offers an amenity package and state-of-the-art infrastructure that rivals anything in this market,” Carton said. “This has been key in attracting household-name tenants who, after evaluating regional build-to-suit opportunities, recognize they can take advantage of these attributes at a lower cost point than new construction.”
