Listen to this article

A planned retail building with three restaurants secured construction financing at the former Roche site in Belleville.

JLL Capital Markets announced the funding for 11 Franklin Ave. Oct. 15. The team worked on behalf of the borrower, Tulfra Real Estate and The Hampshire Cos., to arrange the floating-rate loan through First Bank. The financing amount was not disclosed.

Rochelle Park-based Tulfra and The Hampshire Cos. of Morristown acquired the property as part of the Roche Diagnostics Redevelopment Area. The latest addition at the 18.7-acre Essex County site will house a trio of restaurant tenants, JLL said. Chipotle has already executed a long-term lease for the property, while negotiations continue with two other national retailers.

The building marks the second at the site. Fully leased by Starbucks, the first opened in October 2022.

Senior Managing Directors Michael Klein and Jon Mikula, Director Ryan Carroll and Analyst Kevin Badger led the JLL Capital Markets Debt Advisory team representing the borrower.

Creating value

Carroll described the “attractive financing opportunity.” He highlighted, “This property’s prime location featuring excellent visibility and access to major roadways in one of Essex County’s most dynamic retail corridors, combined with a strong tenant roster.”

“Tulfra and Hampshire have established an impressive track record as major redevelopers throughout New Jersey. Their vision for transforming this former Roche Diagnostics site into a thriving mixed-use development continues to attract high-quality tenants and create significant value,” Carroll added.

The emerging Park 11 property in Belleville is a mixed-use, master-planned project taking shape adjacent to Clara Maass Medical Center. According to the project partners, the site draws more than 18,600 vehicles per day. The traffic count grows to over 159,000 within a 2-mile radius and upwards of 347,300 within a 3-mile radius.

Tulfra and Hampshire acquired the storied property in 2015. It originally housed the Belleville Copper Rolling Mill from 1813–1938. In 1868 The Newark German Hospital was established (renamed to Clara Maass in 1952). Andrew Jergens Co. took over the site in 1939, before Roche Diagnostics and Roche Molecular Systems opened doors there in 1975.

The project secured a $6.37 million construction loan in 2022 from First Bank “to fuel the next stage of growth for Park 11,” Tulfra President and CEO Sonny Jumani said at the time.