Gibbons Advises NAIOP Award Winners on “Office/Mixed Use Deal Of The Year ” and “Industrial Deal of the Year”

The New Jersey Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NAIOP – NJ) has named the development deal between Bayer Healthcare and Vision Equities/Rubenstein Partners as its “Office/Mixed Use Deal of the Year” and Ahold eCommerce’s Pulaski Distribution Center as its “Industrial Deal of the Year.” Gibbons P.C. played a significant role on behalf of Bayer in this deal, and the firm assisted Ahold in its complex transaction.

Previously named the 2012 National Development Deal of the Year by Real Estate Forum, the Bayer Healthcare deal has now also been recognized by NAIOP – NJ as one of the most significant real estate transactions of 2012 in terms of depth, breadth, and complexity. Gibbons represented Bayer Healthcare in the purchase of its new, 94-acre headquarters in Whippany, NJ, from Vision Equities/Rubenstein Partners. The property includes 15 vacant office, laboratory, and support buildings, totaling 1.5 million square feet, and was designed to LEED gold standard which emphasizes sustainability. Russell Bershad, a Director in the Gibbons Real Property Department, led the team of lawyers working on this transaction.

Gibbons also assisted Ahold eCommerce with the “Industrial Deal of the Year,” helping Ahold to establish a warehouse facility currently under construction in Jersey City to support its Peapod online grocery business. Approximately 200 employees will be based at this facility, which will provide home delivery to customers in New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut. A team of Gibbons Real Estate Development attorneys, led by Howard D. Geneslaw, provided advice and counseling concerning zoning, development, and interstate licensing issues. Paul J. St. Onge of the Gibbons Government & Affairs Department provided assistance in securing $34.6 million in incentives from the State of New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

“Being so involved in the state’s two most impressive development deals of 2012 highlights the exceptional skills and scope of our real estate team,” notes Patrick C. Dunican Jr., Chairman and Managing Director of Gibbons.