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Newmark Grubb Knight Frank (NGKF) and property owners Onyx Equities LLC and Rubenstein Partners announced the completion of major renovations at 211 Mount Airy Road in Basking Ridge, NJ. Onyx Equities LLC and Rubenstein Partners purchased 211 Mount Airy Road in September 2013 and have completely revamped both the exterior and interior of the building. Executive Managing Director Timothy R. Greiner, Managing Director Kenneth Porreca, Director Jamie Ragucci and Associate Daniel Reider serve as leasing agents for the 300,000-square-foot property. The improvements were unveiled to the brokerage community on October 21st at an open house attended by 96 guests.
Onyx Equities LLC and Rubenstein Partners have spent over $9 million renovating 211 Mount Airy Road for the adaptive reuse of what was a structurally obsolete suburban property. In a recent white paper, NGKF reported that obsolescence of office space has accelerated in recent years, due to the rapid changes in the way tenants use office space. However, there are several ways to counteract this including the addition of lifestyle amenities and contemporary design. The repositioning of 211 Mount Airy Road includes an entirely new multistory lobby with a 15-foot media wall and refurnished common areas, as well as a new state-of-the-art fitness center complete with locker rooms. A modernized cafeteria and 127-seat auditorium will impress tenants and their visitors alike. Aesthetic improvements have been made by removing the old façade and replacing it with a glass curtain wall, which will allow two times more light and panoramic views of the leafy 52-acre campus. The final touches of the façade replacement will be complete in November of this year.
The construction at 211 Mount Airy Road mirrors the renovations of similar properties in the surrounding area. Many companies in New Jersey seek modern space and owners such as Onyx Equities and Rubenstein Partners have been able to meet these needs through the modernization of existing buildings. “There are many big corporations that are looking for brand new space in this area and the product in New Jersey needs to be revamped in order to stay competitive,” Greiner noted. Somerset County has seen a growing trend of pharmaceutical and technology companies, including recent tenants GSK (GlaxoSmithKline), AT&T and Verizon, who seek the open-plan office environments with abundant natural light found in repositioned buildings such as 211 Mount Airy Road.
211 Mount Airy Road also offers substantial benefits in terms of location, which has made the area particularly attractive for new corporate headquarters. The building is located at Exit 26 of I-287 and is only a short distance from the four-way interchange of I-287 and I-78, downtown Basking Ridge and Bernardsville, and their respective train stations. Somerset County offers a tremendous wealth of talent in the pharmaceutical, consumer product, and telecommunications industries. The surrounding area has been called a high-end “bedroom community” where many top-level executives both work and reside, but the access to various forms of transportation also makes the property ideal for all types of commuters.
About Newmark Grubb Knight Frank
Newmark Grubb Knight Frank is one of the world’s leading commercial real estate advisory firms. Together with London-based partner Knight Frank and independently-owned offices, NGKF’s 12,800 professionals operate from more than 370 offices in established and emerging property markets on six continents.
With roots dating back to 1929, NGKF’s strong foundation makes it one of the most trusted names in commercial real estate. NGKF’s full-service platform comprises BGC’s real estate services segment, offering commercial real estate tenants, landlords, investors and developers a wide range of services including leasing; capital markets services, including investment sales, debt placement, appraisal, and valuation services; commercial mortgage brokerage services; as well as corporate advisory services, consulting, project and development management, and property and corporate facilities management services. For further information, visit www.ngkf.com.
NGKF is a part of BGC Partners, Inc., a leading global brokerage company servicing the financial and real estate markets. BGC’s common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol (NASDAQ: BGCP). BGC also has an outstanding bond issuance of Senior Notes due June 15, 2042, which trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol (NYSE: BGCA). BGC Partners is led by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Howard W. Lutnick. For more information, please visit www.bgcpartners.com.
About Onyx Equities, LLC
Onyx Equities, LLC is a fully integrated real estate investment company that specializes in acquiring and repositioning undervalued properties in the New York Tri-state region. Since its inception in 2004, Onyx has purchased and repositioned over 10 million square feet of commercial office, industrial, retail, and residential buildings. Onyx has completed over 65 transactions, with an aggregate transaction value of $1 billion on behalf of three private equity funds and a direct investment platform. Onyx is dedicated to generating attractive risk adjusted returns and capital appreciation for its high net worth investors and institutional partners. For more information, please visit www.onyxequities.com.
About Rubenstein Partners
Rubenstein Partners, founded in September 2005, is a private real estate investment management and advisory firm with operations throughout the Eastern United States. The firm is led by its founder, David Rubenstein, and a group of senior real estate executives, and is focused on directing and managing value-added office real estate investments, primarily in the Eastern United States. Rubenstein Partners’ predecessor company, The Rubenstein Company, LP and affiliates, founded in 1969, was one of the largest private owner operators of Class A office real estate in the Mid-Atlantic, owning and operating a portfolio of assets valued at approximately $1.2 billion at the time of its disposition in 2004. Since 2005, Rubenstein Partners has, on behalf of its investors and clients, invested in more than 10,000,000 sq. ft. of office real estate assets throughout the Eastern United States. For more information, visit www.rubensteinpartners.com.