By Joshua Burd
Sitex Group has added to its New Jersey industrial portfolio in 2023, completing more than $250 million in new transactions in some of the state’s most in-demand submarkets.
Most recently, the private equity firm said it acquired a three-building, 10-acre campus at 980 New Durham Road in Edison with parking for more than 400 vehicles. It plans to demolish one obsolete office building while modernizing the remaining two warehouses, which total 100,000 square feet, adding new lighting, offices, fresh paint and a repaved parking lot.
Sitex purchased the property from a privately held plumbing supply company, in an off-market deal brokered by Cushman & Wakefield’s Chuck Fern, according to a news release. Currently vacant, the site is expected to attract modern distribution companies with large vehicle fleets, given its proximity to New York City, area ports and the population centers in the Northeast.
“Despite market uncertainty, and a general slowdown across the board, we continue to grow our portfolio with high-quality properties in tier-one locations,” said Blake Chroman, a principal with Sitex, which is based in Englewood Cliffs.
In another transaction, the firm purchased a five-acre site with a 20,000-square-foot vehicle maintenance building at 290 Veterans Blvd. in Rutherford, the news release said. It will repurpose the building, creating 17,000 square feet of maintenance space and 3,000 square feet of office space, making it available immediately and likely appealing to tenants with large vehicle fleets.
McBride Corporate Real Estate’s Jim McNerney and John D’Amato arranged the transaction, Sitex said. The seller was Progressive Insurance.
“Each of these transactions presented a unique opportunity to secure assets in highly sought-after locations with high visibility and unparalleled access,” Chroman added, citing the properties’ access to the region’s vast highway network.
The deals follow a series of acquisitions by Sitex in 2022, when it added properties such as 7001 Anpesil Drive in North Bergen, 1601 Livingston Ave. in North Brunswick, 380 North St. in Teterboro, 160 Essex Ave. East in Avenel and 800 Corporate Drive in Mahwah.
