New Jersey Industrial Market Heats Up

Greater Philadelphia’s industrial real estate market has boomed over the past year, particularly in Burlington County.

The Burlington County industrial market is expected to end the year with a 25 percent increase in leasing, which is approximately 1.2 million square feet of space. This is a significant increase from last year’s 985,450 square feet of leasing space.

Some of this year’s big leases include: a 721,000-square-foot lease by Bed Bath & Beyond’s Christmas Store division (Burlington County); Camden International Commodities Terminal’s 180,000-square-foot lease (Gloucester County); and a 155,000-square-foot lease by Missa Bay (Gloucester County).

Camden and Gloucester counties are similarly on the upswing. At the end of the third quarter, the Commodore Corridor in Gloucester County had leased out nearly 97 percent of its 21 million square feet of industrial space. The 10-mile corridor has five major industrial parks. In addition, Camden County has experienced a steady stream of deals totaling 514,500 square feet in 2006 and could possibly add another 500,000 square feet by the end of the year.

Many developers are looking to capitalize on this market boom. Some local construction companies with approximately 1.3 million square feet of space already leased in South Jersey.

Greater Philadelphia’s industrial real estate market is anticipated to remain strong. Its easy accessibility to the Northeast Corridor and availability of developable land are expected to continue to draw developers and tenants alike in the future.

World’s Largest Solar Company to Locate North American Headquarters in Pa.

Germany-based Conergy AG, the world’s largest solar power integration company, has announced that it will base North American Headquarters and East Coast operations of its solar engineering and installation subsidiary, SunTechnics, in Pennsylvania. The move is expected to generate 50 engineering, financing and management jobs and up to $100 million in clean energy deals over the next three years. It has not yet been determined where in Pennsylvania SunTechnics will locate its headquarters.

Conergy is one of the most successful international companies specializing in alternative energy projects and its decision to base operations in Pennsylvania shows that the region remains a key American market for clean energy investment. In fact, Greater Philadelphia is home to Spanish wind-energy company Gamesa Corp., the second-largest wind-energy company in the world.

The Pennsylvania Energy Harvest Grant Program has awarded $21 million and leveraged another $51.9 million in private funds since its inception in May 2003 for projects using sources such as wind, solar, biomass, waste coal and recycled energy.

$1.5 Million Invested in Greater Philadelphia Workforce

The Commonwealth has announced that it is investing more than $105 million in the Greater Philadelphia region to address the workforce needs of the biotechnology manufacturing industry. Greater Philadelphia’s biomanufacturing and life sciences industry will receive $1.5 million in workforce development funding.

This project will build pipelines for workers in the specialized life sciences through regional community colleges. The first step involves changing the way the industry and education relate to one another, through the work of the Biotechnology Human Capital Investment Project. This project has established the framework to support the biotechnology workforce needs.

The grant has been awarded to the Pennsylvania Workforce Investment Board (PWIB) as part of the Department of Labor’s High-Growth Job Training Initiative. The PWIB will work in partnership with the Collegiate Consortium for Workforce and Economic Development, Delaware BioScience Association, Delaware Economic Development Office, Delaware Valley Industrial Resource Center, Innovation Philadelphia, Life Science Career Alliance, Pennsylvania Bio, Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry and Select Greater Philadelphia.

New Jersey Tech-Tax Program Benefits Start-ups, Profitable Companies

New Jersey’s technology business tax certificate transfer program is encouraging high-tech companies to locate and expand in the region. Most high-tech ventures actually lose money in the early stages – this program allows small, high-tech firms in the region to transfer their tax losses to profitable companies. The initiative has generated more than $385 million of working capital for 400 high-tech companies since 1999.

The tech-tax program allows New Jersey high-tech start-ups to continue to strengthen and build their business as they strive to become profitable. Profitable companies in turn use these tax losses to lower their state business tax bills. This year 129 such ventures will generate $60 million in tax benefits.

All funds generated from the program must be reinvested in the business and can go towards covering a range of business and operational expenses.

Region’s Tech Companies Awarded $2 Million

Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania awarded nine small technology companies from the Greater Philadelphia region more than $2 million in state funding to support growth and product development. In industries ranging from medical devices and software to pharmaceuticals and Internet-based services, each company will receive between $100,000 to $300,000. The companies are located in Bucks, Delaware, Montgomery, New Castle and Philadelphia counties.

The firms receiving funding are: Bioconnect Systems Inc. (Ambler); Galleon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Philadelphia); Logic Explorers Inc. (Media); LumenVu Inc. (Philadelphia); TMX Interactive Inc. (Conshohocken); Topaz Pharmaceuticals L.L.C. (Jenkintown); Wellspring Acquisitions Inc. (Bristol); Cogniscape LLC (Media); and Lap Belt Cinch Inc. (relocating to Pennsylvania from Hockessin, Del.).

Ben Franklin Technology Partners is a non-profit organization that is funded by Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development and provides seed investments to promising early-stage technology companies.

Select Promotes Jeanne R. O’Connor and Erin McKenna

Select Greater Philadelphia last month announced that Jeanne R. O’Connor has been named Vice President and Chief Business Development Officer. In this capacity, Ms. O’Connor will be responsible for the design and execution of the organization’s business attraction and development efforts. She will report to Tom Morr, President and CEO of Select.

Ms. O’Connor was Select’s first employee and was previously the Chief Development Officer for the past three years. As Chief Development Officer, she directed the successful effort to raise $16 million to fund the organization during its initial years. Over the past year, in addition to leading Select’s investor and community relations effort, she also organized Select’s marketing conferences and life science focused marketing missions.

Erin McKenna has been promoted from Development Manager to Director of Investor and Community Relations. In this role, she will be responsible for Select’s fundraising, investor relations and business engagement programs. She will be assuming additional responsibilities for planning and executing Select’s investor and community relations program formerly carried out by Ms. O’Connor. Ms. McKenna will also report to Tom Morr.

Since joining Select in May 2005, Ms. McKenna has supported and coordinated the work of Select’s volunteer fund raising leadership.

County Breakfast Series Underway

The third annual County Breakfast Series, presented by the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce (GPCC) and Wachovia, is now in progress. This series is focusing on the positive economic growth impacts of the region’s higher education institutions. Programs include an update on Select Greater Philadelphia’s progress in the past year and outline the economic development organization’s new Business Ambassador Initiative.

Upcoming Breakfasts:
Philadelphia County, January 30, 2007
Mercer County, February 22, 2007
Southern New Jersey, March 30, 2007
Bucks County, April 12, 2007

The County Breakfast Series is presented in partnership with the Mercer Regional Chamber of Commerce, New Castle County Chamber of Commerce, the Princeton Regional Chamber of Commerce, Select Greater Philadelphia and the Southern New Jersey Chamber of Commerce.

For more information about the dates and locations of the County Breakfast Series, and to submit your questions for the panel featured at the upcoming breakfasts, please visit www.greaterphilachamber.com/countybreakfast.

Bucks County

Bucks County Company Receives $16 Million Defense Order
Data Systems Analysts Inc. of Trevose, Pa. has been awarded a $15.6 million contract from the Defense Information Systems Agency to continue supporting the agency’s Net-Centric Enterprise Services Program Management Office.  The Net-Centric Enterprise Services Program supports the Global Information Grid, which allows Defense Department organizations to transport information in real time to support all Department of Defense, national security and related intelligence missions.

Burlington County

Burlington Firms Participate in Tech-Tax Program
Four Burlington County technology and biotechnology companies were recently approved by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority to participate in the state’s Technology Business Tax Certificate Transfer Program. The program enables the companies to sell tax losses or research-and-development tax credits to profitable corporate entities in New Jersey in order to raise money to finance their business.

Chester County

New Business Park Opens in West Goshen
Developer Senya Isayeff has transformed a 14-acre former brownfields site in West Goshen into the Lincoln Independence Park, a 181,800-square-foot business park with five industrial/flex space condominium buildings.  Designed for small businesses in the community, the park has a total of 68 units: nine 1,800-square-foot offices; seven 3,600-square-foot spaces and 52 2,700-square-foot spaces. Tenants are expected to move in later this month or in early January. The total project cost is expected to approach $22 million.

Commonwealth Funds Two Industry Partnerships within Ches. Co.
The Chester County Economic Development Council (CCEDC) and the Chester County Workforce Investment Board (CCWIB) received grants to assist companies in the information and communications, and life sciences and bio-med research and production industry sectors. The CCWIB and the Montgomery County Workforce Investment Board (MCWIB) will combine efforts to implement the Information and Communications Industry Partnership, which is being funded with over $500,000.

The Life Science Industry Partnership will receive $200,000 for business development. This partnership was formed by the CCEDC, Pennsylvania Bio and the Life Science Career Alliance to find approaches for addressing life science industry issues and concerns in the region. This industry is currently the largest single sector in Chester County.

Both grants were awarded by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry and the Delaware Valley Industrial Resource Center (DVIRC).

Delaware County

Delco Pharmaceutical Raises $4 Million in Venture Funding
Yaupon Therapeutics, a pharmaceutical company based in Radnor, Pa., has raised $4 million in venture capital financing. The proceeds will support research and development of new treatments for lymphoma, methamphetamine addiction, and neuropathic pain. The company also has a smoking cessation product in its pipeline. The financing was successful largely due to contributions from Osage Ventures, BioAdvance Greenhouse Fund, Ben Franklin Technology Partners and TDH Capital.

Gloucester County

Developers Plan New Town Center in Harrison Township
Plans are in the works for a town center in the Richwood section of Harrison Township that would feature 700,000 square feet of commercial space. The proposal calls for a mixed-use downtown area in which residential homes will sit above commercial store fronts. The town center would be designed to share the architectural characteristics of outlying townhouse neighborhoods. The project, which has been approved by the township planning board, could generate more than $12 million a year in tax revenue.

Mercer County

Trenton’s Foundry to Undergo Massive Redevelopment
Plans are advancing for redevelopment of The Foundry in Trenton, located adjacent to the 10,500-seat Sovereign Bank Arena. The proposal calls for have four components: commercial space in a converted 19th-centruy factory building; a square of new buildings with restaurants and clubs; a four-story garage; and 99 units of rental housing. The Foundry is expected to open up 105,000 square feet of new entertainment-based retail space.

Developer Performa Trenton has already received roughly $22 million in funds from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency. The company is requesting an additional $20 million loan from Citibank to fund the bulk of the project.

The commercial section is projected to be completed by the spring of 2008.

New Castle County

Liberal Arts College Fosters Clayton Revitalization
American College – formerly the two-year Delaware School of Hotel Management – has received state approval to begin offering four-year bachelor’s degrees and has announced plans to establish its campus in Claymont. The residential college hopes to eventually expand enrollment to 1,000 students. Community officials expect it to attract new restaurants, coffeehouses, and offbeat shops to cater to the influx of students. The announcement builds on recent momentum from the nonprofit Claymont Renaissance Development Corporation to revitalize the community. In another ongoing redevelopment initiative, the low-rent complex Brookview Townhomes is being converted into a mix of homes, shops, and restaurants.

Philadelphia County

Office Complex Planned Along Independence National Park
J. Grasso Holdings Inc. is investing more than $8 million to create a corporate park complex in the two city blocks adjacent to Independence National Park. The company is renovating two historic office buildings, the Public Ledger Building and the Curtis Center, which it purchased earlier this year for $137 million. It envisions the new development to include a luxury hotel, a restaurant and coffee shop, 8,000-sq-ft of additional retail space, a fully-equipped gym, and a 3,500-sq-ft conferencing center.

Salem County

Renewable-Energy College Campus to be Built in Alloway
Salem Community College (SCC) has partnered with the Salem County Utilities Authority (SCUA) to create a renewable-energy campus in Alloway Township. The campus will expand the school’s popular glass education program to include an environmental and agricultural awareness component as well as economic development program to teach and promote the region’s glass production industry. Wistarburg Glass Works in Alloway Township was the first successful glass works in the American colonies in the 1700s. The campus will harness the energy produced from an adjacent SCUA landfill to power the facility.