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We all know that developing in New Jersey is not for the faint of heart. Just ask any of the countless builders who have endured delays or scrapped projects altogether in the face of pushback by residents and a litany of regulatory hurdles.
The flip side? A supportive local government can go a long way in sparking new investment, as we’ve seen in what appears to be a growing list of municipalities in our state. That group includes the city of Orange in eastern Essex County, where at least 1,000 luxury apartments have been planned near two train stations with Midtown Direct service. As you’ll read in this month’s cover story, the projects have the potential to breathe new life into the town of 30,000 residents in 2.2 square miles, following decades of struggles despite its prime location on Interstate 280 and just west of Newark.
“We were overlooked, but now we let them know we are here,” said Mayor Dwayne Warren, whom developers credit for easing their entry into the municipality. That has equated to what city officials estimate is around $160 million in construction in the downtown, with more to come.
Our March issue also features a conversation with leaders of The Kislak Co., the iconic Woodbridge-based brokerage firm now in its 117th year. We spoke to the company’s Rob Holland, Jason Pucci and Peter Wisniewski after a year in which their team closed 212 transactions totaling more than $1.2 billion. It was a result of strong demand for investment properties, but also the firm’s deep ties to the industry and a stable of clients that go back multiple decades and multiple generations. That’s also why they see a resilient market and sustained demand in 2023, despite the recent slowdown caused by rising interest rates.
Elsewhere is this edition, we revisit the closely watched PARQ project in Parsippany, where a development team is transforming a large piece of a suburban campus that once housed 450,000 square feet of office space across nine buildings. With construction underway on the first phase — where plans call for 600 luxury apartments with retail, amenities and open space — the builders are advancing a plan that is heavily focused on sustainability. That includes having some 30 percent of the site dedicated to recreation or green space, eco-friendly construction materials and electric vehicle charging stations, among other ideas. The developer’s ultimate goal: Securing a LEED rating from the U.S. Green Building Council, not for a single building, but for the entire 45-acre community.
You can find those stories and more in the March issue of Real Estate NJ. This winter has often felt like spring, but I’m no less eager about what the new season will bring after a period of some uncertainty. Let’s hope that includes a strong rebound in leasing and investment sales and continued development across the market’s key segments. We’ll be sure to cover it all in these pages and online at RE-NJ.com. In the meantime, thanks for reading and enjoy the issue!
Joshua Burd
Editor
josh@re-nj.com
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