A portion of 80 Park Avenue, Newark, NJ, and surrounding plaza

NEWARK, NJ—Columbia Property Trust has sold 80 Park Plaza, a class-A office property in downtown Newark, NJ, that houses the headquarters of PSEG, New Jersey's largest electric and gas utility, to Nightingale Properties and private investor Simon Glick for $174.5 million in gross proceeds. Columbia will use proceeds from the sale to repay borrowings on its unsecured credit facility and for reinvestment in its target markets.

This latest property sale advances Columbia's previously announced plan to dispose of roughly $700 million to $1 billion of non-core assets, with approximately $532 million in assets already sold in 2016.

As of August 31, 2016, the 973,000-square foot property was 85-percent leased. Columbia acquired 80 Park Plaza in 2006.

“We are pleased to have completed the sale of 80 Park Plaza in Newark, and at pricing within our expected range,” says Nelson Mills, president and CEO of Columbia Property Trust. “This transaction brings us to over $500 million of completed dispositions in 2016 and represents another significant step as we continue to focus on our core markets.”

CBRE Group's Jeffrey Dunne, Kevin Welsh, Brian Schulz, and Dudley Ryan represented Columbia Property Trust. The team was also responsible for procuring the buyer, a joint venture between New York-based Nightingale Properties and private real estate investor Simon Glick.

80 Park Plaza includes an iconic 26-story office tower and a three story plaza building. The complex is at the center of Newark's urbanization, just two blocks from Newark Penn Station with numerous rail, PATH, light rail and bus options providing access to Manhattan and Newark Liberty International Airport in less than 15 minutes.

Newark's expanding 24/7 lifestyle environment surrounds the property with a growing number of national retailers (Whole Foods, Starbucks, Nike, Chipotle), more than 1,500 residential units either planned or under construction, several new hotels within two blocks, and a dedicated base of corporate tenants (Prudential, Panasonic, Audible) and universities (Rutgers-Newark, NJIT, Seton Hall Law) that continue to drive demand in the city.

“The property's long-term occupancy with PSEG provides stable cash flow with significant potential upside from the lease up of the top five floors,” says Dunne. “Nightingale and Glick plan to implement a new capital improvement program to enhance the lobby and amenities that may facilitate lease up and augment the net operating income.”

As of August 31, 2016, the 973,000-square foot property was 85-percent leased. Columbia acquired 80 Park Plaza in 2006.

Instant Insights /

Simon Glick and Nightingale Properties Snag 80 Park Plaza in Newark for $174.5 Million

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