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NJLMEF program will focus on Reinventing a Product hurt by Recession and Obsolescence
Event Date: July 12, 2013
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., July 2, 2013 – Against a backdrop of New Jersey’s suburban office markets’ continued struggle with high post-recession vacancies and building obsolescence, the New Jersey League of Municipalities Educational Foundation (NJLMEF) has slated a program titled “Reinventing New Jersey’s Obsolete Suburban Office Campus-The Local and Statewide Impacts.” The event is scheduled for July 12, beginning at 8:30 a.m., at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy in New Brunswick.
NJLMEF president Arthur R. Ondish, mayor of Mount Arlington, will provide the opening remarks, and James W. Hughes, Dean, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy will be discussing Twenty-First Century Office Market Realities. Among the scheduled speakers are Sam Morreale, managing partner and CIO of Vision Equities and Eugene R. Diaz, principal of Prism Capital Partners, who will participate in a panel discussion on “Reimagining Obsolete Properties and Suburban Campuses;” and Michael McGuinness, CEO of NAIOP New Jersey, the commercial real estate development association, whose panel will discuss “Concerns, Imperatives and Future Strategies.”
“The suburban office boom of the 1980s has given way to an aging building stock with a high vacancy rate,” said Morreale. “Faced with the competition of newer, state-of-the-art buildings, many of these properties will never be re-leased. But the real estate itself is valuable, and we will discuss ways of creating new value from this real estate.”
“Changing workplace dynamics and an evolving labor force are forcing fundamental changes on a mostly outmoded office market,” said Diaz. “With buildings from 25 to over 30 years old, knowledge based, lifestyle centric work environments are rendering buildings obsolete, both in New Jersey and neighboring states. Our panel will focus on how to create that new value by providing examples of what can be accomplished through creative thinking.”
“As the title suggests – ‘Concerns, Imperatives and Future Strategies’ – we will discuss the realities of the present and what can be done to resolve these problems,” said McGuinness. “Not only is the suburban office building stock aging, the market faces a scenario where information technology, globalization and demographics have changed office buildings’ internal functions and preferred locations. This is indeed a critical issue.”
“In the 1980s, New Jersey’s automobile-dependent suburban office campuses were the country’s cutting-edge growth model at the time,” said Dean Hughes. “But this office empire is not only aging, but in many cases obsolete. Municipalities facing declining office ratables must work with developers to reimagine the suburban office campus.
“Attendees at this event will learn about the 21st century office market, examine properties that have been reinvented, and discuss the many issues stemming from the new market realities,” said Hughes.
For a complete agenda, list of speakers and registration, visit http://www.njlmef.org/events/071213-Reinventing.html.
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About Vision Equities, LLC
About Prism Capital Partners
About NAIOP New Jersey
About NJLMEF