Tech Factor is Prime Mover Behind Office Property's Redevelopment

CLIFTON, NJ-Allied Office Products loved the old place so much it hated to leave. After moving to newer quarters and selling its former headquarters at 100 Delawanna Ave. to Mountain Development Corp. of West Paterson, NJ, the company was so impressed with the rehab just now winding up that it has signed back on for some of its overflow operations.

Mountain Development had high-tech tenants in mind when it bought the 210,000-sf building in Northern New Jersey’s heavily developed and highly competitive Route 3 Corridor. That rehab, now nearly complete, includes everything from a completely new roof, to a massive new electrical infrastructure and a new mechanical cooling system. Mountain Development has also revamped the cafeteria, added a conference facility and plans to install a gymnasium.

“The building lends itself well for data and telco tenants,” according to Mountain Development president Michael Allen Seeve. “It was built with heavy floor loads, high ceilings, a good power supply, proximity to fiber connections and an interior network of vertical shafts that allow for cabling between floors.

“We have also converted the former mechanical basement into a back-up generator farm,” Seeve continues. “It offers 20-foot ceilings and complements the other renovations.”

Der Scutt, a firm that has made some waves in redevelopment circles, has designed the renovation. Indeed, 100 Delawanna Ave. is another sample of a trend in New Jersey commercial real estate. As the office market has tightened up, older properties have come under the microscope for their redevelopment possibilities. In the case of 100 Delawanna, “we have entirely demolished and cleaned open floors,” according to Seeve.

For its part, Allied Office Products is scheduled to move back into the building in six to eight weeks as the first tenant, and “we have been having discussions with a number of other prospective tenants,” Seeve continues. “We expect to have several new lease signings within the next few weeks.”

Besides its Route 3 location, the property also has access to the Clifton commuter train station.