The signing was complicated, including both a sublease with the building's current tenant, CBS Viacom, which is cutting back on its space use in the region. Also part of the transaction is a long-term lease extension with the locally based Hartz. Jaime M. Weiss and Ronald Blaufelder of the Moonachie-based Weiss Realty represented North Fork, and John Jay Garibaldi of the Chatham-based Garibaldi Group spoke for CBS Viacom.

The locally based Hartz was represented in-house. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. "The fact that the CBS Viacom space was absorbed so quickly demonstrates the viability of the Meadowlands office market," says Hartz president and COO Emanuel Stern. "North Fork recognized the value of the location and its ability to serve the tri-state region."

"Timing was a critical element in this situation," says Weiss. "North Fork, having recently acquired the Trust Co. of New Jersey, and having also announced its merger with GreenPoint Financial Corp., needed immediate space to serve the check processing and back office needs of more than 350 metropolitan New York, New Jersey and Connecticut branches.

"This location offers proximity not only to their current northern New Jersey and New York City branches, but also those in Rockland and Westchester counties in New York, "Weiss says.

The building itself features a raised floor, back-up generator and UPS room, according to Stern. Besides access to the Lincoln Tunnel and George Washington Bridge to Manhattan, it's also near the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in Rutherford.