Rugby Realty acquires iconic Three Gateway Center in Newark
By Joshua Burd
NJBIZ – December 8, 2014
NEWARK, NJ
Rugby Realty Co. has acquired Three Gateway Center in Newark, adding the 19-story office tower to its growing list of commercial real estate assets in New Jersey.
The New Rochelle, New York-based firm did not disclose financial terms of the deal with the seller, Tahl Propp Equities. But Rugby said it plans to spend $20 million on improvements to the 579,000-square-foot building, which has about 360,000 square of available space.
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“This was a rare opportunity to purchase an iconic building in Newark,” Maurice Ades, the firm’s principal and managing director, said in a prepared statement.
Three Gateway is Rugby’s third office acquisition in New Jersey in the past year, following its purchase of the 303,000-square-foot 300 Lightning Way in Secaucus and of the 135,418-square-foot City View Corporate Center in Lyndhurst.
The news also comes two months after Prudential Financial signed a 160,000-square-foot lease at Three Gateway, where it previously had a full-building lease. The insurance company was slated to vacate the space as soon as it opened a new tower nearby, but instead will continue to occupy at least 40 percent of the property under the long-term deal.
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Cushman & Wakefield’s Richard Baumstein is leasing agent for the Three Gateway.
Ades also noted Newark qualifies as an Urban Transit Hub municipality under the state’s Grow New Jersey program, which provides tax credits for job creation and retention, meaning prospective tenants at Three Gateway may be eligible for additional incentives.
“I couldn’t be happier with our decision to invest in northern New Jersey,” Ades said. “I believe the future is very bright there, and for Newark in particular.”