ENGLEWOOD, NJ — The S. Hekemian Group (SHG) has signed two leases for the retail component of the company’s under-construction ES4 office building in Englewood, announced senior managing director Peter Hekemian. Panera Bread and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza are set for ground-floor occupancy, according to Hekemian, and with another signing anticipated shortly, the 46,000 s/f office building’s 10,000 s/f retail component will be fully leased. SHG officially broke ground for ES4 on June 3 and has slated completion for first quarter 2016.
Both Panera Bread and Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza will operate their prototype stores at ES4, with the latter offering a full bar. “We obtained a liquor license for ES4, which we have transferred over to Anthony’s,” said Hekemian.
“Panera and Anthony’s, as well as another soon-to-be-announced foodservice tenant, will have a positive impact on the neighborhood, and ES4, when completed, will provide a full live-work-play environment,” said Hekemian. ES4 is the latest phase in the Englewood South neighborhood, a redevelopment of eight contiguous industrial properties, including a historic General Motors plant, the result of a collaboration between SHG and the City of Englewood.
“One will be able to walk over, get your coffee, or croissant, or grab a sandwich or dinner or your pint of beer or glass of wine with co-workers or friends,” he said. “For a resident or office worker, other than having a grocery store, what better neighborhood amenity can you ask for?”
Hekemian terms ES4 “the intersection of urban and suburban living, combining with nearby apartments to create more of an urban-type neighborhood with the conveniences of the suburbs, including direct highway access. ES4 will add energy to the street, with as many as 250 office workers on-site during the day and residents in the evening.”
Leasing activity has also been brisk on the office component of ES4, the first new office building to be constructed in Bergen County in more than five years. Of the 34,000 s/f of available office space, 17,000 s/f has been signed, with announcements to be made shortly, according to Hekemian. “We are also talking to another potential high-end headquarter-type user for a 7,500 s/f space.”
The leasing assignment for ES4, located at 10 Sterling Blvd., is being handled by Brian Silbert, president and CEO, and Wayne Kasbar, vice president, of Silbert Realty & Management of Millington, NJ.
With tenant spaces featuring oversized ceiling heights and loft-like open-plan build-outs, “we are creating a high-end, boutique office building product that will address an unmet demand, or even create a demand that didn’t exist,” said Hekemian. “The high level of interest and pre-leasing of the property is a clear indication of that.”
ES4 is situated less than five minutes from the George Washington Bridge and access to New York City, and is near the confluence of I-80, the NJ Turnpike/I-95, and Routes 4 and 17.
Headquartered in Paramus, N.J., The S.Hekemian Group (SHG) develops high-quality, highly-finished real estate for long-term ownership. With over 80 years as one of the country’s most stable property owners and developers, the company’s significant and highly selective portfolio includes luxury residential, office, mixed-use, and retail/lifestyle properties located in the strongest demographic areas of New Jersey, the Northeastern U.S., and California. SHG owns assets both in the private form and also through the First Real Estate Investment Trust of NJ, a publicly-traded REIT (trading under the ticker symbol “FREVS”), of which the Hekemian family was a founding member.