The Landmark Catering, 33 Route 17, East Rutherford, NJ The Landmark Catering, 33 Route 17, East Rutherford, NJ

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ—The Hampshire Companies has acquired The Landmark property, which consists of a 25,000-square-foot catering facility and a 53,000-square-foot industrial building at 33 Route 17 South in East Rutherford, NJ. NAI James E. Hanson brokered the sale, with Andrew Somple, SIOR and Greg James representing the seller, who was not identified.

“The opportunity to purchase this property and to redevelop it into a self-storage facility with a retail component in a densely populated, high traffic corridor in Bergen county fits well into our portfolio and our overall investment strategy,” says Todd Anderson, a principal at The Hampshire Companies. “At Hampshire we take pride in seeing real estate through a different lens and we believe that once our vision for this property is fully developed, we will have provided value for our investors and the community.”

The Landmark property, mostly vacant since 2012, is on a 3.2-acre lot encircled by the ramp from Rt. 17 South to Paterson Plank Road. It is opposite a strip mall with a Starbucks, Five Guys, Payless and Sleepy’s. The property offers direct access from Paterson Avenue as well as Route 17. The property is zoned for “regional commercial” and features 225’ of frontage along Route 17 South. The Hampshire Companies plans to redevelop the site with a modern 100,000-square-foot self-storage facility, a convenience store and gas station.

“Our involvement touched all aspects of being a professional real estate broker,” says James. “We were hired by the seller that ran a catering operation and were not professional landlords. We helped identify the property’s short comings and provided the necessary guidance to sell the property. We had to resolve environmental and zoning challenges as well as existing tenant and lender problems.”

“We were able to see the vision for this site, and were able to identify a buyer for this mostly vacant property who could bring higher ratables to the Borough of East Rutherford,” says Somple. “The excellent location of the property in terms of accessibility and proximity to the American Dream and Sports Complex made this an interesting opportunity for the right developer.  Through our marketing efforts we were able to identify the top developers in the state who would share our vision of redeveloping the property and be most qualified to get this deal done.”