10C — January 25 - February 7, 2019 — Economic Development — M id A tlantic
Real Estate Journal
www.marejournal.com
M orris C ounty , N ew J ersey By Meghan Hunscher, Morris County Economic Development Corporation Morris County is home to over 800 headquarters locations
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hope that memories of a sunny beach or moun- tain getaway are strongly
space in northern New Jersey, has over 32,000 non-residents commute to the Township daily. Many companies have relocated or renewed their leases in the County this year. Notable recent corporate relo- cations include UPS, Barclays, Langan, Allergan and Teva who have relocated thousands of employees to their campuses in Morris County. Despite these successes, there is more work to be done promoting the value of the County especially considering the over twenty percent office vacancy rate that remains as businesses consolidate, merge and in some cases relo- cate. The vacancy rate has a negative impact on municipal revenue as assessed values decrease. The silver lining is the County is benefitting from sophisticated and well-capital- ized private sector developers who repositioning many of the older corporate campuses by investing millions of dollars and upgrading the spaces to have world-class amenities. Two great examples are 340 Mt. Kemble in Morris Town- ship (developer Onyx Equities) and Morris Corporate Center IV, known as “Latitude” (de- velopers Vision Real Estate Partners). The Morris County Econom- ic Development Corporation, with support of the Board of Chosen Freeholders, has em- barked on a targeted digital marketing campaign with
NJ Advance Media in the five boroughs of New York City to promote the county and at- tract growing companies. The campaign highlights the value of corporate relocation and expansion to Morris County including the advantages of lower real estate costs; easy access via road, rail and air; connections to suppliers and customers; access to talent and excellent schools. Successful economic de- velopment hinges on Morris County providing companies a talented workforce and ac- cess to continuing education and training. With this in mind, the MCEDC has estab- lished a Workforce Committee and has launched Morris@ Work, a talent initiative with the Workforce Development Board. Morris@Work will, on a regular basis, provide a forum for employers where they can learn from each other and ac- cess the resources to help them succeed. Fortunately New Jer- sey public schools are ranked second in the nation and Mor- ris County schools are consis- tently highly ranked in the state and country lists – both public and private education. This is attractive to employees that are raising a family and employers recruiting students from CCM or returning with prestigious university degrees. Morris County is fortunate not to depend entirely on one industry, or on a single em- ployer. With approximately
28,000 businesses in various sectors the diversity of the economy is reflected in the top economic sectors including: • professional, scientific and technical services; • health care; • government; • retail; • food services; • administrative support; • manufacturing; • finance and insurance; and • wholesale trade The MCEDC is supporting municipalities’ economic de- velopment efforts by creating “market profiles” and high- lighting the assets of the thirty nine communities within the County. We also link to their webpages, which improves search engine optimization, considering that the majority of searches by businesses and site location consultants are conducted on-line. In 2018, the Morris County Economic De- velopment Alliance, the non- profit arm of the MCEDC, ran the first ever municipal grant program. Municipal efforts to attract and retain businesses are also supported by the MCEDC’s outreach initiative “Listening to Business.” Nationwide, economic de- velopment organizations are seeking ways to grow and support small businesses and local entrepreneurs. While most residents are employed by large corporations, 50% of the businesses in the County have fewer than five employ- ees. The MCEDC recognizes
the additional support that new businesses need to suc- ceed and as such has launched an entrepreneur initiative to support fledgling business- es within the County. The “StartUp, MoveUp Morris” initiative, in conjunction with the MorrisTech MeetUp and in partnership with the public and private sector, will con- nect businesses with resources and opportunities to meet and discuss challenges and suc- cesses. If you or someone you know is considering starting their own business, enroll in Entrepreneur 101, a six week evening course, will start this September. Morris County is truly an exceptional place with many collaborative efforts between the public, private and non- profit sectors. The MCEDC is fortunate to have many vol- unteers and committee chairs that give of their time and talent to advance these initia- tives. I am grateful for their support of the organization and expertise to make Morris County an even better place to live and work. Learn more about our committees here. I look forward to seeing you this fall at one of the many MCEDC or Chamber events! To learn more about the MCEDC, join us at our upcoming Open House on Sep- tember 20 at noon in Florham Park. Meghan Hunscher, exec- sCounty Economic Devel- opment Corporation. management firm, Blue Rock, to source local and regional contractors and suppliers for the anticipated 600 jobs dur- ing construction. Permanent job opportunities are expected to be available 2nd quarter 2019.
in your mind as you enter busy fall and fourth quar- ter ahead. I am glad to a n n o u n c e that Morris County con- tinued to see
Meghan Hunscher
strong economic growth over the past year. Morris Coun- ty’s gross domestic product (GDP) – the measure of total economic output – was $53 billion in 2017, which is a $3 billion increase since 2016. A remarkable amount of com- merce is occurring in Morris County, which has the third highest GRP in the state third only to Bergen and Middlesex counties. This situates the county’s economy within the top 100 economies in the US and exceeds the GDP of five states. The County has a 4% unemployment rate overall, a well-educated workforce with over 20% having a graduate degree or higher, and amedian income of $95,000. See the 2018 data sheet here. Home to over 800 head- quarters locations, Morris County continues to prove itself as a choice location for corporations of all sizes. The County has over 28,000 busi- nesses and 315,000 employees. Parsippany, which boasts the largest concentration of office these companies and orga- nizations has been crucially important. Those relation- ships have enabled us to develop a vision for the fu- ture for many of our sites, making them productive again, getting them back on the tax rolls and producing thousands of new jobs. In contrast to the pollu- tion produced by the original facility, as was once typical of the steel industry, Mill 19 has been designed to be eco- friendly, environmentally sustainable and LEED v4 Gold certified. A high-performance envelope provides maximum thermal efficiency and up to 96% daylight autonomy. Two-thirds of the complex’s total electricity usage will be offset by energy generated on site and storm water will be conveyed through a rainwater
Transforming properties and communities . . . continued from page 4C
1 million s/f, began in October and the fulfillment center is expected to open in 3rd quar- ter 2019, according to a news release. The Indiana-Armstrong Builder’s Association is work- ing with the construction PENNSYLVANIA — Jef- frey Box , president & CEO of the Northeastern Pennsyl- vania Alliance , is pleased to announce that DonovanKlem has joined the staff as a Busi- ness finance specialist. Klem will be responsible for continuing the success of the NEPA Alliance’s loan program, working closely with the SBA 504 program. He will also be responsible for evaluating business loan applications and advising clients of the proper course towards loan approval. Donovan will also be working on financial statement analy- sis, credit analysis, data entry/ reporting and loan servicing. Donovan earned a bachelor’s degree in Business Administra- tion fromMisericorida Univer- sity. He recently interned at NEPA in the Business Devel- opment Division. Donovan is a native of Hillsgrove, PA and currently resides in Dallas. NE Pennsylvania Alliance hires Klem Urban Outfitters Announces Indiana . . . continued from page 9C
Mill 19
garden to centrally located infiltration basins. Captured rooftop rainwater will be re- used in the cooling tower and for flushing in the restrooms. The entire 168-acre Hazel- wood Green property adjacent to Mill 19 – separately owned by Almono LP, a collabora- tion of three major Pittsburgh foundations – benefitted early on from RIDC’s management of multi-million-dollar site grading, environmental reme-
diation and road access proj- ects. Today, RIDC’s Mill 19 is creating a center of gravity for the entire site and, indeed, for the entire community, as in- vestors and other businesses, spurred by recent news of new construction and exciting new tenants, are showing in- creased interest in surround- ing property. There is already emerging a new energy and vitality that we haven’t seen in this area for many years.
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