John Saraceno is co-founder and managing principal of Onyx Equities LLC. Since founding the firm in 2004 with partner Jonathan Schultz, Saraceno and Onyx have acquired more than $3 billion worth of real estate assets throughout New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut and executed over $400 million in asset repositioning projects across all property types.
In addition, he oversees Onyx’s investment fund arm, which has historically and continues to generate fund-level returns in excess of 25%. Onyx is currently working on a revamp of the Gateway Center in Newark, introducing modern sanitizing technology and opening the project to the city’s streets. The office and retail complex sits in the center of the city’s commercial district adjacent to Newark Penn Station and was originally oriented indoors.
That project is proceeding apace. In October, Onyx introduced what it referred to as a “carefully curated” selection of dining options offering both grab-and-go convenience and full-service selections at The Junction, Gateway’s 100,000-square-foot retail and hospitality area. the multimillion dollar renovation at The Junction is almost complete, Onyx said, designed to improve the tenant, as well as pedestrian, experience at the complex. The work will result the opening of Gateway Center’s ground floor for the first time in the building’s more than 50-year history, with a grand pedestrian entrance and street-facing retail, and will add a two-story steel, aluminum and glass “Jewel Box” entrance to The Junction.
The firm also announced that The Junction’s final available restaurant space would be determined by a competition: Open to Newark restaurateurs, the space will be built out and delivered to a Brick City-based operator at no-up front cost to them.
