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This is at Marin Blvd. Remember when Healy said that Washington Blvd is the waterfront? Did we get hit by a tsumami or something?

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Will the taxes paid to JC double (or even increase) if the building is sold at the price mentioned, or is there an abatement that remains in place?

Wells Buys One NJ Office Tower, Eyes Another
Written by Jillian Ambroz

Wells Real Estate Funds Acquired the 1.1M-SF PSE&G Building in Newark and Is Circling Jersey City Gem International Financial Tower

Two big office deals in northern New Jersey valued at about $362.5 million could grow Wells Real Estate Funds' portfolio by more than 1.7 million square feet. The Atlanta-based investment company closed on the PSE&G Building in Newark and is believed to be circling International Financial Tower in Jersey City.

Now there?s talk that Wells has International Financial Tower, a 19-story, Hudson River waterfront property at 95 Christopher Columbus Dr., in its crosshairs. The buzz is that Wells would pay about $215 million for the fully leased, 622,000-square-foot office tower in a quiet, off-market deal with owner CommerzLeasing und Immobilien GmbH Duesseldorf and GOA Germania of America Inc., according to sources familiar with the deal. Wells declined to comment on the possible transaction.

CommerzLeasing, a German investor, acquired the pentagonal building in 2000 for $152.5 million in 2000 from Mack-Cali Realty Corp., which developed the property in 1989.

If a deal goes forward, the purchase price would work out to about $346 per square foot, considered to be top dollar for the area.

Recent comparable trades have seen buildings sell in a wide range, from $175 to $326 per square foot. For example, Rockwood Capital Corp. paid $326 per square foot last year for the property at 2 Montgomery. In June, the office tower at 30 Montgomery sold for $175 per square foot.

Tenants at the property include financial firm Pershing LLC and NTT Data USA, the facility management subsidiary of Japan-based data communications provider NTT.

Both deals would satisfy Wells? criteria for well-leased, class-A properties and its large appetite for acquisitions. From 2003 through 2005, the company spent $5.5 billion on real estate investments. Its acquisition goals for 2006 could not be learned.

Wells has $7.5 billion of assets under management through its investment vehicles, which include two public non-traded REITs and several limited partnerships. Its portfolio totals more than 37 million square feet.