Newmark Knight Frank begins marketing 1.13m s/f center.

Newmark Knight Frank has been retained by The Morris Companies of Rutherford, N.J. as the exclusive leasing agent for its planned Amboy Corporate Center complex, a 1.13-million-square-foot Class A industrial development project in Perth Amboy, N.J. that broke ground this spring.

Morris is one of New Jersey's largest private development companies specializing in "big box" industrial building development.

Newmark Knight Frank principal William J. Cariste announced the assignment for the 70-acre site, which is part of the ongoing redevelopment of the Chevron Asphalt Refinery surplus properties.

Cariste of Newmark Knight Frank's Woodbridge, N.J. office, along with principals Daniel Frankel and Doug Bansbach, represented Chevron in its disposition of this and other surplus sites in Perth Amboy.

They now have been retained by Morris to market the Amboy Corporate Center complex to prospective users.

Cariste said that The Morris Companies acquired title from Chevron late last year and broke ground this spring on the first "spec' building. Construction on the second building will likely commence in less than 12 months, he noted.

"This is a very exciting project," Cariste said. "It is one of the first in a generation of major industrial projects on large redevelopment sites north of Exit 11 on the New Jersey Turnpike." It is also part of New Jersey's "Portfields Initiative," a joint effort undertaken by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA) and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey (PANYNJ).

He pointed out that the project expects to benefit from dramatic growth in overseas import activity, predicted when expansion of Port facilities and river dredging in nearby Newark and Elizabeth is completed in the next 24 months.

"Our port facilities in Newark and Elizabeth handle some of the country's largest import shipping volumes, yet less than five percent of the building inventory north of Exit 11 consists of truly modern distribution buildings. Since Port proximity means transportation savings, and overseas shipping volumes continue to grow, the timing and location needs have converged to usher in a new round of development," Cariste said.

He added, "The Amboy Corporate Center capitalizes on the area's excellent labor availability, road network and will continue Perth Amboy's emergence as an important industrial center in the Garden State."

The Amboy Corporate Center will feature two state-of-the-art industrial buildings totaling 1,131,500 s/f. The first building planned will total approximately 614,500 s/f and the second building will comprise 517,000

"Perth Amboy's nearby labor force availability is expected to be a major attraction," stated Bansbach.

Additionally, the City of Perth Amboy has been designated as an Urban Enterprise Zone (UEZ), which conveys additional tax incentives to companies locating in the area.