UPSTATE AND NEW JERSEY
Developer to renovate Buffalo’s Paul
Robeson Theatre for community use
After purchasing the landmark building for an undis-
closed price early in 2017, developer Oren Evenhar and
his firm Pine Builders will work alongside design firm
DXA Studio to transform the Paul Robeson Theatre in
Buffalo into a space that will serve the local community.

Evenhar initially planned to convert the property into
a residential space. However, he said the building “has
too much charm” and en-
visioned turning it into a
school, professional per-
formance venue or a med-
ical facility.

While Evenhar is look-
ing for an operator, the
renovation is already mov-
ing ahead. On October 2017, the Landmarks Preserva-
tion Commission approved plans to update the
building’s facade and entrance for wheelchair access.

Construction on both areas is expected to commence in
the next three or four months.

DXA Studio’s Jordan Rogove, who will head the pro-
ject’s design team, said that they will keep many of the
building’s distinctive features, such as a cast iron
steeple and the original glass windows with paintings
by European artist Simon Berasaluce.

Rogrove said he would like to see the building kept
as a theater space, but understands that may be a long-
shot. Nonetheless, he is happy to contribute to the
transformation of the building he described as “a little
Hagia Sophia” because of its history of diverse uses.

In the past 153 years, the Forte Greene theater has
served various purposes including being a church, a
synagogue, and a performance space. It was built in
1864 as a Universalist church. It was then turned into
one of the borough’s first Reform synagogues. After
that, it became a Catholic church that catered to Polish
Brooklynites for 90 years.

It was only turned into a theater in 1980 by Dr.

Josephine English, actor and activist. For 30 years, plays
for the African-American community were staged in the
building. PREMIER Design + Build Group, LLC
completes massive 1,292,650 sq. ft.

industrial center in Perth Amboy
Perth Amboy, NJ, is now home to a recently com-
pleted industrial distribution center—a massive campus
offering 1,292,650 sq. ft. of space across three different
warehouses. PREMIER Design + Build Group, LLC led the charge
on design and construction of the center beginning in
the second quarter of 2015. The center features ultra-
modern facilities that can accommodate the needs of
today’s most sophisticated end users offering advanta-
geous proximity to a vast network of interstate high-
ways, deep-water cargo ports, air-freight hubs and rail
lines, the contractor says in a news release.

As part of a busy geographic region that covers
counties in both New York and New Jersey, Perth
Amboy is comprised of roughly 50,000 people. While
it’s much smaller than metropolises such as New York
City or Newark, its prime location makes it very attrac-
tive to companies looking for distribution hubs.

The site is less than one mile from the Outerbridge
Crossing and water access for shipping, only five miles
from the New Jersey Turnpike and 31 miles from the
Lincoln and Holland Tunnels—providing a direct route to
Manhattan. It is only 15 miles from Newark Airport and
the Port Newark-Eliza-
beth Marine Terminal.

John F. Kennedy In-
ternational Airport
and LaGuardia Airport
are nearby as well.

“We are honored
to have been a part
of this exciting proj-
ect,” says PREMIER executive vice-president Alec
Zocher. “While it had its challenges, we were able to
bring it to a successful completion working in conjunc-
tion with Bridge Development Partners and the city of
Perth Amboy.”
Tenants will benefit from a large and engaged labor
force from Perth Amboy and neighboring cities. An
added business advantage is that this industrial center
is located in an Urban Enterprise Zone, which permits
for a 50 percent reduction in sales tax for materials pur-
chased/used in the zone.

Additionally, incentives
are built into the Economic Redevelopment and Growth
Program to help fund projects. The Grow New Jersey
Program can help companies preserve and create jobs
and expand operations.

The three facilities constructed at the site include:
Building A at 354,250 sq. ft., Building B at 220,200 sq.

ft. and Building C at 718,200 sq. ft. They have 36 ft.

clear height ceilings, hundreds of truck dock positions,
ESFR fire protection sprinkler systems and 800 amp,
277/480-volt electrical service. Additionally, there are
parking lots with 703 spaces for cars and 441 spaces
for trailers.

Zocher oversaw the project for PREMIER along with
Karl Hoermann, vice-president of field operations (North-
east division).

Cornerstone Architects, Ltd. provided architectural
services. Executive vice-president Thomas Monahan
and first vice-president Noah Balanoff with CBRE are
representing the buildings. Bridge Development Part-
ners, LLC is the project’s developer.