Property Management Software

These are some of the companies that recently moved into new locations in Fairfield County: STAMFORD: GERALD METALS INC. Gerald Metals Inc. has relocated its headquarters within Stamford from High Ridge Park to 680 Washington Blvd. in order to get more space and be closer to the downtown train station.

"We enlarged the activities of our office and we needed more space for major growth," said Jeffrey Malakoff, chief financial officer of the company. The new office occupies 36,720 square feet, compared with about 20,000 feet at 6 High Ridge Park. The move took place in April.

Gerald Metals is the parent company of a worldwide group of related entities that trade precious and nonferrous metals for industrial, bank and government customers. The privately held company, founded by Gerald Lennard in 1962, also has a financing division. In the fiscal year ended in April 2004, the group had a turnover of more than $9.3 billion, according to the company web site.

The new building is owned by Reckson Associates Realty Corp., which Malakoff said played a key role in his company`s decision to move. "Reckson has very high standards for their buildings from what we have seen, so that was important," he said. "We wanted a very good, landmark building." Gerald Metals was represented by Choyce Peterson Inc., an 8-year-old commercial real estate brokerage firm that represents corporate tenants headquartered in Fairfield or Westchester, N.Y., counties in local and international real estate transactions.

A marketing company called i3 Marketing Group Inc. has moved into a 1,500-square-foot office at 11 Grumman Hill Road in Wilton. The business has a five-year lease, and all of its five full-time employees will work from the new location. The company, previously in White Plains, N.Y., is 3 years old and has created promotional materials, print ads and in-house communication pieces for clients, including Dannon, White Rock Beverage, Unilever, Rail Europe Group, Star Brand Imports and Sherwin Williams.

Moving to Wilton is useful because the company relies on a lot of freelance talent, and much of it is in and around Wilton, Westport and Norwalk, company president Jim Fennell said. "There are more promotions agencies within a mile of me than anywhere in Westchester County," he said. "This has to be the Madison Avenue of the northern suburbs."

Three new tenants have moved into 535 Connecticut Ave. in Norwalk, including the University of Phoenix, a for-profit institution owned by the Apollo Group Inc. that provides numerous classes over the Internet. The company, which has about 100 other locations around the country, signed a lease for 28,000 square feet. The branch is expected to open early next year, according to CB Richard Ellis, which brokered the deal. The Norwalk location will be the first in Connecticut for the University of Phoenix.

The Visiting Nurses Association, a licensed, nonprofit agency that provides health services to people at home and community services, moved into a 5,500-square-foot office space on the first floor of the building. The group moved from another location in Norwalk. Questionmark, a computer software company, will move from Stamford into a 2,500-square-foot space, also on the first floor of the same building. Paul Jacobs, Colin Reilly and Robert Caruso of CB Richard Ellis` office in Stamford represented the building`s owner, Matan Properties, in all three transactions. Questionmark was represented by WFL Real Estate; Trammell Crow Commercial Real Estate Services represented the University of Phoenix; and Barbara Segalini-Stilley and Ray Thomas, both of CB Richard Ellis, represented the Visiting Nurses Association.

MJ Metal Inc. has moved its corporate headquarters within Bridgeport from 561 North Washington Ave. to a 20,000-square-foot building at 201 Hancock St. Joal Hausman at Colonial Realty in Fairfield was the sole broker in the transaction. SHELTON: N.E. TECH INSTITUTE Lincoln Educational Services, a provider of post-high-school career education, expanded the space for its New England Technical Institute by an additional 15,000 square feet in a building at 8 Progress Drive.

New England Technical Institute`s Shelton location is one of its busiest in Connecticut. The new space is now being renovated and occupancy is expected early next year, according to a written statement released by CB Richard Ellis. Sean Cahill, Michael Dillon and Michael Nelson, all of CB Richard Ellis, represented the owner of the building, Winstanley Enterprises. Another 10,000 square feet of space in the building remains vacant. The property is also available for sale, according to CB Richard Ellis.