Needleman Management buys L3 building in Camden for $35M

Needleman Management has made its first foray into Camden, N.J., and acquired the L3 Communications building for around $35 million.

Needleman bought the building along with a group of undisclosed investors.

The transaction is significant for other reasons for the Cherry Hill, N.J., office landlord. "It's the biggest thing I have ever done in terms of dollars and in terms of size," Howard Needleman said. "We've been working on this for a good six months and it was complicated. Nothing is easy anymore."

Needleman bought the 575,000-square-foot building at 100 Market St. from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority by way of the Cooper's Ferry Partnership, which was in line earlier this year to acquire the property. Needleman essentially bought the agreement the state had with Cooper's Ferry, he said.

NJEDA had the building constructed in 1992 for the defense contractor. The property is comprised of a three-story, 350,000-square-foot office building and a two-story manufacturing structures that total 225,000 square feet.

For all those years, L3 occupied the entire building but has shrunk in size and the structure, for the first time, houses multiple tenants. Cooper University Hospital signed a lease for 123,000 square feet and its administrative offices will be housed in the building. A Camden law enforcement department leases 10,000 square feet and Lockheed Martin subleases 50,000 square feet.

Needleman plans to invest in several upgrades to the property including a new roof and landscaping.

Though this is the first acquisition in Camden for Needleman, it may not be the last. He is on the hunt for additional buys.

"There's a lot of money that is being thrown around in Camden and the incentives are working," he said. "That part of Camden is hot."

Source: Philadelphia Business Journal