The Birch Group and Lionstone Capital LLC, a New York City-based real estate investment firm, on Tuesday announced the $70 million acquisition of Princeton Place at Hopewell.
The asset comprises three Class A office buildings in Hopewell situated in the premier Princeton corridor submarket. Located at 1700, 1750 and 1800 American Blvd., together they total 307,510 square feet and are currently 96% occupied.
This latest acquisition marks the New York-based Birch’s second acquisition in the Princeton submarket, having previously acquired 600 and 700 Alexander Park late last year. Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller in this transaction.
“The Princeton submarket remains extremely attractive for us, in part due to its ability to draw from a deep and highly educated labor pool and accessibility to major metros including New York City and Philadelphia,” Mark Meisner, founder and president of the Birch Group, stated. ”With strong tenancy in place at these properties, we see this as a solid opportunity with tremendous upside that allows us to further execute on our strategy of building our portfolio of top-tier and high-performing assets in excellent locations.”
A best-in-class corporate office asset, Princeton Place at Hopewell features structured parking, wind-driven electricity, multiple cafeterias, a state-of-the-art fitness center with instructor-led classes, an indoor basketball court, an atrium overlooking a 30-foot-high view of greenery and an executive-level conference center. The buildings are set along a central plaza with water features, a pedestrian concourse and outdoor dining areas.
Adjacent to the property is the site of proposed medical development that will feature a 500-unit continuing care retirement community, along with a planned development directly across Scotch Road that will include 2,100 residential units, a new shopping center and gas station.
“As we continue to grow our portfolio of top assets, we are always looking for strategic opportunities where we can add value and Princeton Place at Hopewell was a perfect fit,” Scott Katz, principal of Lionstone Capital, stated. “Much like the Birch Group, we focus on the success of each of our properties and our similar approach — along with the strength and stability of this asset — were some of the key factors that led to this partnership.”
Princeton Place at Hopewell is currently anchored by a number of investment-grade tenants with long-term leases including Merrill Lynch, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, Janssen R&D (a Johnson & Johnson company), Geosyntec Consultants, Pershing LLC (BNY Mellon) and HDR Inc.
Situated just moments off of a four-way interchange at Exit 3A along Interstate 95 and just minutes from the Route 1 corridor, Princeton Place at Hopewell provides exceptional local and regional accessibility. The portfolio is in close proximity to Princeton University, located less than 10 miles from downtown Princeton and is regionally situated between Philadelphia and New York City.
