Paramount Assets adds 33K sq.ft. office building to its Newark property portfolio

Paramount Assets has added a four-story office building to its Newark property portfolio, it announced Friday.

The acquisition, located at 560 Broad St., is comprised of 33,000 square feet and an 18,000-square-foot neighboring space that previously housed the Broad Street Café and Little Theatre.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The purchase will provide Paramount Assets a value-add real estate asset with adaptive reuse potential, Richard Dunn, senior vice president, said.

“The accumulation of real estate in this downtown area is significant, and 560 Broad Street certainly is a valuable addition to our portfolio,” Dunn said. “Existing properties in urban locales with strong adaptive reuse potential are very attractive to us. In this case, having two contiguous spaces that can be combined into one larger block — measuring about 110 feet wide by 170 feet deep — was a key factor in our decision to purchase these two properties.”

The property lies in the heart of Newark’s Central Business District and is within walking distance to the Broad Street Station. It is also within close access to Interstates 78 and 280, the New Jersey Turnpike and Routes 1 and 9.

Dunn said Paramount Assets is still figuring out the best use for the property.

“We’re in the strategic planning phase, conducting our due diligence and evaluating what’s possible — and feasible — in that location. It’s exciting because we have two great structures to work with and, ultimately, a lot of possibilities ranging from historic preservation to converting the property into a mixed-use mid-rise tower. This downtown area is the economic engine of the city; it’s where people want to be. The goal in transforming this property is to bring more life and more people to this area which has long-term, sustainable benefits for Newark.”