JLL Sells 160 Park Avenue in Florham Park for Columbia Property Trust

On Jun 19, 2014

JLL has recently completed the sale of 160 Park Avenue in Florham Park for Columbia Property Trust Inc. Automatic Switch Co., an Emerson company that manufacturers power transfer switches, bought the Class A, 250,589-square-foot commercial office building for an undisclosed amount.

The seller, Columbia Property Trust, was represented by Jonathan Meisel, managing director; Dennis McConnell, senior vice president; and Dan Spero, associate, all with JLL. The tenant, Automatic Switch, was represented by Curt Stanton, principal, with Paine/Wetzel TCN Worldwide in Chicago in conjunction with Christopher Kinum, executive director, and Jules Nissim, senior director, with Cushman & Wakefield of New Jersey Inc.

“Previously occupied by ATT Shannon Labs, 160 Park Avenue had for years quietly served as a crucible of incredible telecommunications discoveries and ground-breaking mobile communications innovations,” said Meisel. “We knew the facility offered an ideal fit for Automatic Switch and worked closely with the owner to highlight the building’s potential to the prospective buyer. We brought in architectural firm Gensler to design a virtual fly-through to show what the building could look like. JLL’s project and development services team created a presentation that clearly broke down how much Automatic Switch could save by relocating to 160 Park Avenue compared with other similar properties.”

”Automatic Switch conducted an intensive survey of the entire New Jersey market to short list a group of buildings that could meet its unique needs,” said Stanton. “160 Park Avenue became available during the search. The property satisfied all of Automatic Switch’s space needs, engineering and laboratory requirements, and was in close proximity to its existing location.”

The three-story 160 Park Avenue, previously known as Building 103 at 180 Park Avenue, is located at the intersection of Park Avenue and Florham Park Road. The office property lies within The Green at Florham Park, a 268-acre master planned development on the site of the former ExxonMobil Research Center on Park Avenue in Florham Park, N.J. The building will be renovated to Automatic Switch’s standards and currently features redundant utilities, a 125-seat auditorium, breakout areas for occupants to congregate, a full-service cafeteria and a fitness center.

Automatic Switch is relocating to 160 Park Avenue from the 400,000-square-foot 50 Hanover Road in Florham Park, N.J. The manufacturing company had occupied the facility for approximately 80 years and will move its operations to its new location over the next few years.

JLL is a leader in the northern/central New Jersey commercial real estate market, with more than 500 professionals and support staff providing agency leasing, tenant representation, industrial services, strategic consulting, project and development services, property management and investment sales/capital markets services to New Jersey’s leading corporate tenants, investors and landlords. The firm, which assists clients from three full-service offices in Parsippany, Iselin (Metropark) and East Rutherford, also acts as local service provider for JLL global and national corporate clients in need of real estate assistance in New Jersey.

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