Onyx Equities LLC and PCCP LLC are the new owners of a nearly 400,000-square-foot office building in Morris Township that once served as a former regional headquarters for AT&T.The firms announced this week that they had acquired the building, known as Kemble Plaza I, at 340 Mount Kemble Ave. and plan to reposition the property. Terms were not disclosed.

The Colliers International team of Jacklene Chester, Jonathan Schlussel, John Banas and Richard Madison represented the seller. Cole Schotz P.C. members Jordan Metzger and Michael Jones, plus associates Elizabeth Navatto and Patrick Quinn, represented Onyx Equities in the acquisition and on its joint venture with PCCP. 

Totaling 387,277 square feet, the property sits in a 40-acre corporate park between Interstate 287 and Route 202 and is minutes from downtown Morristown, Onyx said in a news release. The Woodbridge-based firm noted that Kemble Plaza I was “surrounded by Fortune 500 company headquarters …. (and) offers one of the few, large block opportunities in this market.”

“We view this as a strategic opportunity to acquire a potential headquarters-quality asset situated on a large infill land site within five minutes of downtown Morristown,” Stephen Sullivan, executive vice president of investments for Onyx, said in a prepared statement. “We believe that through our attractive cost basis and through leveraging our local market knowledge, we anticipate creating substantial value through the repositioning of the property.”

John Randall, managing director of PCCP, added that his firm and Onyx both “have a strong record when it comes to executing on value-add transactions in New Jersey. We are acquiring a high quality asset at essentially land cost and we will ultimately offer prospective tenants the highest quality product and a Morristown address at very competitive rental rates.”

In marketing the building earlier this year, the Colliers team noted that local officials were on board with plans to reposition the site. At the time, Morris Township Mayor Daniel Caffrey said the municipality “will work with interested parties to reposition this site for alternative commercial uses, including retail, medical and hotel use.”

AT&T had occupied Kemble Plaza I since the building was constructed in 1979, according to published reports, one of many spaces occupied by the telecom giant in past decades. But the company vacated its space about two years ago once its lease expired.