In 2008, The Hampshire Companies have been awarded the highly coveted Economic Impact Deal of the Year Award from the New Jersey Chapter of National Association of Industrial and Office Properties (NJ-NAIOP) for its work in transforming the 8 Sylvan Way property in Parsippany, NJ. Hampshire received the award in conjunction with Cushman & Wakefield, Inc., GVA Williams and The Medicines Company at the Twenty-First Annual Commercial Real Estate Awards Gala on Thursday, May 15, 2008, at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) in Newark.
The award was given for Hampshire’s vision, creativity and determination in repositioning and leasing the Sylvan Way property, which Hampshire acquired in 2005. Hampshire collaborated with Cushman & Wakefield to develop an ambitious and well-researched plan that was consistent with Hampshire’s strategic vision to create substantial added value to the property. This resulted in an opportunity to breathe new life into an aging and out-dated Class-B property and transform it into a first-class office building.
Together with HLW Architects, Hampshire designed a plan to take the 100,000-square-foot building down to the steel and rebuild a new 175,000-square-foot headquarters quality Class-A office building. In addition, Hampshire was able to preserve the property’s open space park-like setting, and added as many LEED initiatives as possible.
Just prior to breaking ground in late 2007, the opportunity to offer the building on a long-term lease basis to The Medicines Company as their new world headquarters presented itself. Together with Moore Horizons and HLW Architects, Hampshire was able to create an “explosion” movie which was able to achieve in motion picture format what was basically impossible to do with renderings, allowing The Medicines Company and GVA Williams, their exclusive broker, to visualize the entire process from start to finish in just 30 seconds (see animation above).
“Hampshire was able to meet all the timing, growth and quality requirements of The Medicines Company in this redevelopment and expansion, and accommodate both the short-term objectives for The Medicine Company’s current employee base as well as the long-term growth opportunities for the company,” said Todd Anderson, Principal of The Hampshire Companies. “From start to finish, this transaction required an incredible amount of teamwork. This truly is a great honor for everyone involved.”
8 Sylvan Way is a part of Hampshire Partners Fund VI, Hampshire’s $235 million institutional real estate investment fund. Hampshire Partners Fund VI is a commingled, discretionary value-added real estate investment fund managed by Hampshire. The goal of Hampshire Partners Fund VI is to deliver superior, above-market returns to its investors through the acquisition, repositioning, and operation of investment-grade properties. The focus of investment for this value-added fund is on industrial, retail, and suburban office products located in the growth corridors of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic.