Steiner Signs Insurer to HQ Lease

Further terms were not released; space in the building had been listed with an asking price in the $30-per-sf range. Marc Policarpo and Bob Carr of Binswanger, Philadelphia, repped both sides.

"We're very anxious to relocate our headquarters here," says Thomas Smith, CEO of Maksin, an insurance agency and third-party insurance administrator specializing in the student health market. "Having lived in Camden County for many years, I've had the opportunity to see first hand the improvements made to the city and its waterfront. We're excited to be part of the revitalization."

The 100,000-sf Ferry Terminal Building was completed by the Columbus, OH-based Steiner just this past July. It consists of three floors of office space atop a ground floor of restaurant, retail and public space, and sits next to the state-owned Adventure Aquarium. It's also the first phase of Steiner's Cooper's Crossing, a 35-acre waterfront mixed-use redevelopment that projects a build-out cost in the $200-million range.

Maksin is the second tenant to sign on at the Ferry Terminal Building, which was built on spec. As reported by GlobeSt.com, Susquehanna Patriot Bank moved its HQ into the facility in October with a similar 25,000-sf full-floor lease. Susquehanna was the first financial institution to be based in this city in more than two decades, and the building itself is the first privately financed office building to be built in this city since the 1950s.

"The development of the building by Steiner has now attracted two strong and growing businesses to make Camden their corporate headquarters," says Tom Corcoran, president of the Cooper's Ferry Development Association. "This is a sign of confidence in Camden's long-term viability."

To facilitate its likely eventual acquisition of the building, Maksin is also eligible for two separate loans from the New Jersey EDA. They include a $2-million Local Development Financing Fund package, and a $3-million Urban Plus Loan, both at rates of the higher of one-half the federal funds rate or 3%. Both would be at terms of seven years with a 25-year amortization.