NAIOP: Bayonne Bridge Will Bode Well for NJ Recovery

BAYONNE, NJ-Despite concerns about high tolls and traffic taking away business from New Jersey to Eastern Pennsylvania, Norfolk and Halifax, industry officials are saying “fuggedaboutit.” Michael McGuinness, executive director of NAIOP, tells GlobeSt.com that Garden State’s industrial sector will be a force to be reckoned with once the raising of the Bayonne Bridge is complete.

“We have far more warehouse and distribution facilities and potential facilities far closer to the port than the Lehigh Valley in Pennsylvania,” McGuinness says. “Someone can make the argument that there are no tolls to go to Pennsylvania, but guess what, it is about two or three times the distance,” he adds, noting that tenants are more likely to stay close to New Jersey given rising gas prices, proximity to the waterfront and shorter driving distances.