The effort to redevelop a Morristown, N.J., strip mall and massive parking lot into a modern office and retail complex recently achieved a milestone as the entirety of M Station is slated to wrap next year.
SJP Properties, in partnership with Morristown's Scotto Properties, celebrated the topping out in mid-January of what will be the 260,000-sq.-ft. New Jersey flagship location of Sanofi, a French healthcare and pharmaceutical company, at M Station West.
Ground broke on the second phase of the project last summer, which followed an initial portion that opened in 2022, reported Jersey Digs.
The new building was designed by Gensler, a San Francisco-based architecture firm, to achieve LEED certification, and will feature floor-to-ceiling glass and a metal panel façade to offer abundant light throughout the property while its innovative side core design will enable maximum openness and flexibility on each floor, SLP noted in a news release.
Additionally, energy efficiency will be enhanced with solar reflective roofing to enable daylight harvesting.
M Station West also is designed to include three separate terraces along with an expansive landscaped rooftop complete with wellness areas for yoga and outdoor movement classes, entertainment and gardens.
More than 20,000 sq. ft. of retail space on the ground floor will be open to the public at the site's second building, according to SJP, which will be linked to the first phase by a 1,000-car parking structure that includes public parking for the development's on-site retail and EV charging stations.
The project's second phase also will continue to connect Morris Street via a 10,000-sq.-ft. landscaped promenade and two public plazas.
"The topping out of M Station West is a landmark moment in redefining the modern workplace across New Jersey," explained Steve Pozycki, founder and CEO of SJP Properties. "State-of-the-art, vertically integrated buildings are attracting the most influential corporations in the world. Sanofi joins Deloitte, which moved its headquarters to M Station East last year, and Valley Bank, which celebrated its grand opening at our new Speedwell Avenue property this fall."
The completed first phase of the M Station, a six-story, 120,000-sq.-ft. building, is home to 1,495 employees of Deloitte, the global business management consulting firm, and includes a retail component. Officials with Sweetgreen, a health-food restaurant chain, also announced last summer that they had signed a lease to occupy space at the property, according to Jersey Digs.
M Station West Offers Companies Lively Campus
Sanofi's upcoming move to M Station represents a shift from a sprawling, multi-building suburban campus to a seven-story, build-to-suit property in the heart of walkable, transit-oriented Morristown.
Known for its lively arts, entertainment and restaurant scene, the city will enable a seamless work-life balance for Sanofi's 1,900 employees, who will begin to occupy M Station West upon its completion in the first quarter of 2025.
"I am thrilled to welcome Sanofi to its new headquarters in Morristown," said Mayor Tim Dougherty. "SJP and Scotto Properties have successfully executed our vision of a project which would invigorate our business district, attract leading-edge companies, and reinforce our position as one of the top towns in the country to live and work."
To enhance walkability for employees of both Sanofi and Deloitte as well as create a vibrant pedestrian experience, both M Station West buildings are set back 45 ft. from Morris Street, in the process creating the expansive promenade and public plazas. The design will improve the area's connectivity, particularly between the nearby NJ TRANSIT station and the historic Morristown Green.
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