Dive Brief:
- Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, New York’s largest biotech employer, is buying its corporate headquarters property in Westchester County, New York for $720 million, according to a regulatory document filed at the end of last month.
- Regeneron has been a tenant on the 150-acre campus of office buildings and lab space for more than 25 years.
- The company, which has 5,000-plus employees, struck a deal to purchase the property from affiliates of Biomed Realty. It is working out a lease financing agreement to lease the property for five years, then extend the lease, buy the property or sell it.
Dive Insight:
Regeneron’s purchase comes amid renewed effort to kickstart the New York biotech scene, long a runner-up to Boston and San Francisco in investment and research activity.
Earlier in January, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, aided by $17 million in state funding, said it would launch a new JLABS collaborative incubator in New York city. A month earlier, NYC mayor Bill de Blasio introduced a $500 million initiative aimed at creating thousands of new life science jobs and to promote the city as a R&D hub.
Industry insiders are noticing. Ron Cohen, the CEO of Acorda and chair of BIO, had this to say about Regeneron's plans:
#Boston & #SF #biotech hearing NY's footsteps. Next great biotech hub. https://t.co/0Iu3NRrXEy @Regeneron @lohud @newyorkbio
— Ron Cohen Acorda CEO (@roncohenshair) January 24, 2017
Regeneron’s effort is part of a broader investment in real estate in New York state, according to the Albany Business Review. In June 2016, for example, Regeneron paid $17.75 million to buy the former MapInfo headquarters in North Greenbush from Pitney Bowes, adding office space to support its East Greenbush manufacturing facility.
More recently, Regeneron last month paid $50 million for a New York Life property in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y.
In its filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Regeneron said the property can be further developed, allowing for construction of more than 500,000 square feet of additional office and laboratory space. About 80% of the property, approximately 1.2 million square feet, is already leased by Regeneron as primary tenant. Other companies lease the remainder.