New amenities at 650 From Road in Paramus include a new café with indoor and outdoor seating and a recreation center with a putting green, a pool table, lounge seating and arcade games. — Courtesy: Onyx Equities/Kimmerle Group
By Joshua Burd
Onyx Equities has unveiled a series of upgrades and new amenity spaces at a 350,000-square-foot office building in Paramus, under a newly completed project by Kimmerle Group.
According to the firms, the property at 650 From Road features redesigned and upgraded tenant amenities such as a new café with indoor and outdoor seating and a recreation center with a putting green, a pool table, lounge seating and arcade games. Tenants also have access to a high-end conference center and lounge with accent lighting and custom perforated metal celling details, seeking to create an urban ambiance in an otherwise suburban location.
Kimmerle, a design, real estate, planning, development and branding practice based in Harding Township, spearheaded the project on behalf of Onyx. The firm provided site design, conceptual and architectural design, interior design and product purchasing and procurement services for all interior and exterior areas, while conducting conceptual studies for branding, signage and messaging elements in 650 From Road’s common areas.
“The successful repositioning of Onyx Equities’ 650 From Road points towards our firm’s deep understanding of the New Jersey office market and its transitions, and our ability to deliver a complex multiphase, multidisciplinary assignment, even during the pandemic,” said Paul Newman, a vice president and partner at Kimmerle Group. “Onyx Equities had a clear vision for the reimagining of its New Jersey office assets for a new era, and Kimmerle Group was proud to help bring that vision to reality.”
Onyx acquired the five-story property in 2019 from the former Mack-Cali Realty Corp., giving way to a series of enhancements that also include a new-look, lakeside common activity area. The space includes outdoor seating under a new canopy, pergola shelters with Wi-Fi and power access, active fitness and walking paths and recreation stations and outdoor workstations and collaboration areas for tenant use.
Inside, 650 From Road now features a central atrium lobby with a custom-designed chandelier, a full-height live green wall and a customizable RBG lighting feature wall that can accommodate tenant and owner branding. This new lighting is highlighted throughout the day and evening hours and is a landmark visible from the Garden State Parkway, Kimmerle said, noting that the green wall lines a new corridor leading to the conference center and lounge.
The adjacent lobby, meantime, is finished in warm wood tones and concrete and porcelain LVT flooring, as well as contemporary furniture in a similar color palette and tones.
“Working with Kimmerle Group on the modernization of 650 From Road, with the addition of a myriad of desirable amenities and features, has elevated the property to a Class A destination that is sure to attract a variety of tenants that will enjoy the offerings for years to come,” said DJ Venn, senior vice president of asset management at Onyx Equities. “This project points the way for the reinvention of older, suburban New Jersey office assets, as active and amenity-rich office parks gain new appeal and market advantage for a new age of users.”
Onyx has tapped Kimmerle for assignments at seven other buildings, including 15 East Midland Ave. and 461 From Road, as well as interior fit-outs for tenants at Onyx properties, such as Savvas Learning Co. and Coda Staffing.
