Highland Cross
Real Estate

Amazon to Lease Rutherford Industrial Site, Hundreds of Jobs Expected

The full-service real estate firm announces North Jersey lease for Amazon’s last-mile delivery center; building completion expected in early-2022

Lincoln Equities Group (LEG), one of the Northeast’s leading full-service real estate companies, today announced that multinational technology and logistics leader, Amazon, will occupy its future 360,000-square-foot industrial warehouse in Rutherford, Highland Cross.

The state-of-the-art last-mile distribution center, which will create hundreds of jobs, is in the heart of the bustling Meadowlands industrial market. LEG procured $115 million in industrial build-to-suit construction financing for the facility, a Class A industrial site that recently received requisite approvals.

Upon its completion in early-2022, Highland Cross will be on the short list of modern buildings in the Meadowlands, with less than 20 existing properties offering 36-foot-plus-clear heights. The property will feature cross-docked loading, 70-plus dock high doors and 80-plus trailer parks.

“We’re thrilled that Amazon has selected our Rutherford facility for its latest delivery center,” said LEG President Joel Bergstein. “We have been working with Rutherford for 20 years and are excited to see this project come to fruition and create a ratable for the borough. It was this administration that supported the vision for industrial.”

Highland Cross is located at the crossroads of the New Jersey Turnpike (I-95) and N.J. Routes 3 and 17. The facility offers convenient access to New York City, the Port of NY/NJ and 18 million consumers within a one-hour drive.

“We are excited to continue to invest in New Jersey with a new delivery station in Rutherford that will provide efficient delivery for customers and create hundreds of great job opportunities for the talented local workforce,” said Amazon spokesperson Jenna Hilzenrath. “This new delivery station represents Amazon’s unwavering commitment to safety, technological innovations and skilled teams who are obsessed with delivering for our customers.”

LEG was appointed by the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission (NJMC) and the Borough of Rutherford as redeveloper of this 30-acre brownfield site in 1998. Working with the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), LEG developed and implemented a five-year Remedial Action Work Plan (RAWP) and successfully completed a wetlands mitigation program.

“Highland Cross is optimally positioned to capitalize on the sustained growth in demand for ‘last-mile’ industrial product proximate to consumers, labor and infrastructure,” said LEG Acquisitions and Development Officer Lance Bergstein. “The lease is a continuation of the success LEG has felt in the industrial space of late, including our Bayonne site – which will be occupied by UPS.”

Earlier this year, LEG announced that UPS will lease the firm’s waterfront Lincoln Logistics Bayonne facility. The regional hub and distribution center is being built on the site of the former Military Ocean Terminal at Bayonne (MOTBY).

Just north of Port Terminal Boulevard, the 880,000-square-foot building will bring more than 1,000 jobs to MOTBY.

This year, LEG also sold its Lincoln Logistics at Hicksville site – located on 10 acres at 344 Duffy Ave., and fully occupied by Home Depot. The brand-new, 195,610-square-foot warehouse was completed in December 2020. It serves as Home Depot’s market distribution operation on Long Island – and features 36-foot-clear heights, 50-by 54-foot-wide column spacing, 29 dock-high doors, two drive-in doors and 4,185 square feet of office space.

LEG’s Highland Cross project was designed by Ford & Associates. Construction is being carried out by RC Andersen LLC.

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