For earlier story, click on:SJP Breaks Ground on First Phase of 1.1-Mil SF Complex

That is indeed the case, as Parsippany, NJ-based SJP has announced that work will proceed immediately on the second 13-story, 550,000-sf building, bumping the total space under construction to 1.1 million sf. "This project has been well-received by the market, and that has given us the confidence to move ahead to complete the entire project," according to SJP Properties' president Steven J. Pozycki. "We feel that the leasing opportunities will remain strong in this market for at least the next several years."

While this new space is essentially being developed on spec, the track record for major developers in New Jersey in recent years has been that almost no big block of space has moved ahead without at least an unofficial commitment. In most cases, such new construction has been quickly followed by an announcement that most of the project has been taken, suggesting that a deal was in the works all along.

Observers suggest that such an announcement in this case would not be a major surprise, and that SJP officials likely have good reason to be confident. Altogether, the officially uncommitted portion of Waterfront Corporate Center checks in at more than 660,000 sf.

Waterfront Corporate Center is the commercial office centerpiece of Hoboken's South Waterfront redevelopment. The larger project is the result of a long-term effort by the city of Hoboken, the Port Authority of New York/New Jersey and private developers like SJP Properties to turn 50 unused waterfront acres into a thriving mixed-use development.

No timetable for phase-two development has been given yet. Phase one is expected to be completed and ready for occupancy by Wiley, Sumitomo, et al. in the first quarter of 2002. Given the fact that phase two is kicking off about six months after phase one, a late-2002 build-out would be likely.