The basics:

• The Granetz Building in downtown Somerville sells for $2.7 million
• Property spans 45,000 square feet with two additional parking lots
• Buyer closed without contingencies; redevelopment plans likely

Towering over Main Street near the the far end of downtown Somerville, the circa-late 19th century The Granetz Building recently sold for $2.7 million.

The Kislak Co. Inc. announced the transaction for 201-217 W. Main St. May 27 following its exclusive marketing of the site. The building offers a key gateway to the area on the west side of town for visitors coming from the Somerville traffic circle, Routes 202/206 and other main arteries.

Sales Associate Max Levinston handled the assignment on behalf of the unnamed seller, described as a Central Jersey investor with development experience. While Somerville has generally experienced a resurgence of its storefronts and housing, especially in and around Main Street, the impressive white washed building at the corner of West Main Street and North Doughty Avenue has seemingly sat in waiting.

Vacant at the time of sale, longstanding tenants like Candyland Crafts have found new locations elsewhere, across the highway in Raritan. Meanwhile, tabletop gaming and collectible store The Only Game in Town shuttered at the site in 2022, siting an inability to bounce back after COVID’s business impacts.

Speaking with NJBIZ, Levison also highlighted the pandemic as a turning point for The Granetz Building. “They [the seller] had owned it for about 10 years, it was rented at the time they purchased it and they did some minor renovations, but really since COVID it took a dive as far as the occupancy,” he explained.

‘A phenomenal downtown location’

Situated on a 0.68-acre lot, the 45,000-square-foot The Granetz Building also includes two parking lots: a separate, nearby 10,000-square-foot area at the corner of Veterans Memorial Drive and New Street, as well as a smaller plot behind the building itself.

“It’s a phenomenal downtown location, as far as walking ability to the train and stores and restaurants — and it makes a great redevelopment or adaptive reuse property for the town and for the buyer,” Levinston said.

Originally built as a wool mill, the site later housed The Granetz Furniture Store. Today, the property features ground-floor retail spaces along with three upper floors of office suites. The building is currently zoned for commercial space.

Levinston says ownership enlisted Kislak to help cross the finish line following another contract that did not come to fruition.

“It was a tremendous amount of buyer vetting from the offset,” said Levison – adding that there was no shortage of interest from a variety of parties. “But the most important thing for the sellers in this particular situation was certainty of execution. So, this particular buyer was able to do their due diligence before the contract and close without any contingencies.”

The deal also involved extra attention from Levinston to engage and keep in touch with the oversees sellers – based in Asia and Europe – such as overnight Zoom sessions.

“Despite the challenges of a historic 1880s building with deferred maintenance, we identified an all-cash buyer … demonstrating our ability to navigate complex deals and deliver results. Through targeted outreach and rigorous buyer vetting, our team transformed this previously stagnant asset into a seamless sale,” Levinston commented.

What’s next?

The successful sale follows multiple market listings over the last several years. Most recently, MyCentralJersey reported a proposal for the site sought to transform the property into 27 apartments above an adult day care facility at the street level.

While noting a variance would be necessary for residential use, Levinston also highlighted that the building sits across the street from several other mixed-use properties comprising a few hundred units.

Levinston said he believes new ownership plans to potentially emulate previous proposals for the property, but added there is not a current application pending with the township as the buyers explore plans for the site.