Ground broken for Eagle Rock III in East Hanover, NJ.

More than 150 real estate and business professionals recently joined local, county and state officials at the ground breaking celebration for Eagle Rock III, a 115,000 square-foot, Class A speculative office building now under construction on Eagle Rock Avenue in East Hanover, NJ.

Joint venture developers Sym Heller Associates and G. Heller Enterprises, along with exclusive agent Cushman & Wakefield of New Jersey Inc., hosted the event, which included a luncheon and ceremony.

"We couldn't be more pleased with the reception this project has received," said Cary Heller, president of Sym Heller Associates. "As one of the state's first pure speculative projects in this decade, Eagle Rock III represents a true milestone in the real estate market."

Situated on 15 acres at Eagle Rock Executive Park, Eagle Rock III will feature three stories of office space, highlighted by a full-height atrium lobby. The interior has been designed for maximum usage of the leasable space and will feature customized offices, state-of-the-art communications capabilities, fiber optics, and upgraded electrical and HVAC capacities. The grounds include two scenic ponds, with plans for extensive landscaping and walking paths. Eagle Rock III will offer five parking spaces per every 1,000 square feet constructed.

Eagle Rock III sits at the border of Morris and Essex counties and will offer one of the few large available blocks of Class A space in the northern and central New Jersey market. "In fact, this building is the only new Class A property that will be built between eastern Morris County and Newark International Airport for at least the next two years," said Jonathan S. Meisel of Cushman & Wakefield, who is marketing the project with Bonni Heller of Cushman & Wakefield, "We have already received inquiries from users seeking Class A space in the region."

The building will back up to I-280, near the Eisenhower Parkway interchange, offering opportunities for visible highway signage. The structure is expected to be ready for occupancy during the third quarter of 1998, shortly before the I-280/Edwards Road interchange will be completed. As a result, tenants at the property will have access to two full four-way interchanges within a mile of the site. Businesses located there will also benefit from proximity to Routes 80 and 46, as well as I-287 and the Garden State Parkway.

Eagle Rock III will complete development at Eagle Rock Executive Park, a four-building, 500,000 square-foot corporate campus on 50 acres. Three existing buildings are owned by Lincoln Equities Group, Reckson Associates and State Farm Insurance. The park's tenant roster includes such companies as AETNA, Ceridian, Federal Express and GMAC.

Based in South Orange, NJ, Sym Heller Associates is a family-owned and operated real estate organization. The firm has owned and managed several million square feet of office, industrial and retail property during the past 40 years. G. Heller Enterprises is headed by former Hartz Mountain President Gene Helle, who built more than 35 million square feet of space during his career with Hartz. Since forming G. Heller Enterprises six years ago, he has developed more than two million square feet of commercial projects in New Jersey. The joint venture partnership benefits from the combined property management, development, and construction strengths of the two organizations.