The deal was orchestrated by Leonard Knauer, president of Knauer Realtycorp of Raritan. Terms of the property sale and the cost of the remake of the building were not released. Work is under way and E&B expects to move into its new home later this year. The site itself is actually 10 acres, and E&B has won local approvals to subdivide and sell off half of it.
"This is a good example of adaptive re-use," Knauer says. "That process restores the viability of non-productive properties to become fully functioning, tax-paying buildings with employment opportunities.
For E&B, the move marks the company's second in 15 years, and both have been tied to eminent domain issue. Knauer has been involved in both moves.
"We were sacrificed for eminent domain before the phrase became today's buzz word," says Brian Skowronek of the family-owned E&B. In 1991, the company's previous location was the victim of highway improvements on the Somerville traffic circle. Knauer found the company's current location at 1450 Route 22 East.
The latest move is tied to additional highway expansion to US Route 22. "When the highway department came knocking at our door recently, we called on Knauer again," Skowronek says. "The state's message was the same."
"In my 40 years plus in the real estate business, I have never seen anything like it," Knauer says. "It's a little like getting hit by lightning twice."
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