1735 Jersey Ave. in North Brunswick — Courtesy: Cushman & Wakefield
By Joshua Burd
A private investor has paid nearly $19 million for a North Brunswick warehouse, where it plans to nearly double the building’s clear height as part of a major capital improvement.
Cushman & Wakefield, which brokered the off-market trade, identified Murray Construction as the seller of the 360,000-square-foot property. The building at 1735 Jersey Ave. is a 37-year-old former Church & Dwight facility that has been occupied by a subtenant for several years.
“This rail-served property benefits from ample parking capacity, favorable local taxes and a deep regional labor base,” said Cushman & Wakefield’s Jason Goldman, an industrial specialist. “At the same time, it is legacy industrial — and requires a significant upgrade to bring it to current standards.”
Goldman, who headed the assignment with C&W’s Andrew Merin and other members of the firm’s New Jersey industrial and investment sales teams, said the new owner is planning several improvements. The buyer, 1735 Jersey Avenue LLC, is pursuing approval to raise the roof from 21 feet to a 40-foot clear.
Other improvements will include modern sprinklers and new, energy-efficient lighting.
“With the subtenant’s lease set to expire, Murray approached us to explore the viability of selling or renovating the property,” said Merin, the firm’s head of capital markets in the region. “The New Jersey industrial investment market is red-hot, with near record fundamentals and strong tenant demand.
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“When Jack and his team expressed interest and the ability to take the property forward, it presented an ideal solution all around.”
The sale follows a record year for the New Jersey industrial market in 2016, when overall net absorption reached 14.9 million square feet and new leasing activity hit a 16-year high of 30.2 million square feet. Cushman & Wakefield researchers say vacancy remained at record low levels, ending the year at 5 percent and just 3.4 percent in Middlesex County.
