Allergan Sales to Consolidate Four New Jersey Locations
The state Economic Development Authority approved Allergan’s application for Grow NJ tax breaks that it said would keep 1,019 workers in the state, and add 300 full-time jobs. Allergan has operations in Parsippany, Jersey City, Rockaway, and Bridgewater. It wants to consolidate those operations, and is considering two sites: a 431,500-sq-ft site in Madison, or a 344,280-sq-ft location in Lansdale, PA.
If the company chooses the Madison site, Allergan is expected to invest more than $103 million at Giralda Farms in Madison, site of the former estate of Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge. The EDA says keeping Allergan in New Jersey is expected to bring a net benefit to the state of more than $384 million over 20 years.
To take advantage of the Grow NJ tax breaks, Allergan would have to give up $15.2 million in tax incentives earlier awarded to its subsidiaries Forest Laboratories Inc. of Jersey City and Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. of Parsippany, the EDA said. Allergan has more than 7,500 employees in 20 locations in the United States.
“Allergan is a significant employer in New Jersey, and its presence adds to the state’s leadership in the pharmaceutical sector,” EDA Chief Executive Officer Melissa Orsen said.
The EDA also approved a 10-year Grow NJ grant for PsychoGenics Inc., which is based in Tarrytown, NY, and has a laboratory in Montvale, NJ, that employs 35 workers. The company applied to the EDA for the tax break to consolidate its operations into a 65,000-sq-ft site at an existing building at 215 College Road in Paramus, NJ.
That move would keep 35 workers in New Jersey and add 82 full-time jobs, with a median annual salary of about $83,200, the EDA said. In addition, PsychoGenics would invest $5.55 million in the new site, including the construction of office and laboratory space.
The state grant would come to $373,125 a year for 10 years. The net economic benefit to the state is estimated at more than $22.4 million over 20 years, according to the EDA.
PsychoGenics also is considering a site in Pearl River, NY. The company did not return calls seeking comment. PsychoGenics was founded in 1999 and provides testing services to pharmaceutical researchers specializing in treatment of neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia, and autism spectrum disorders.
Economic development officials say that state tax incentives are necessary to compete with other states in the fight to keep and create jobs. But the tax breaks have drawn criticism from NJ Policy Perspective, a progressive group, which says that they drain money from important public programs, including education and transportation, that are needed to grow New Jersey’s economy.
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