Lincoln Equities Group and H.I.G. Realty Partners announced the acquisition of the former Bristol-Myers Squibb property in Hopewell. The 1.2 million-square-foot campus will be marketed as the 433-acre “Princeton West Innovation Campus” to life sciences companies. The secure, multipurpose research and development and biologic/pharmaceutical manufacturing campus includes build-to-suit opportunities. BMS first acquired the site in 1997.
The BMS campus is located along the Boston-Washington, D.C. life sciences corridor in central New Jersey’s research technology region, home to emerging and established Fortune 500 life sciences companies. Current tenants include PTC Therapeutics Inc., which occupies over 200,000 square feet, including a biologics production facility and R&D buildings.
The site is also zoned for commercial manufacturing and features 35 acres of additional development opportunity; it can expand to approximately 2.8 million square feet. The development parcel offers Class-A infrastructure with fully stubbed utilities allowing for a compressed development timeline.
“This campus presents an opportunity to capitalize on the growing demand for pharmaceutical-grade lab space both locally and nationally,” said Ira Weidhorn, co-head of H.I.G. Realty Partners. “We look forward to building around the strong in-place anchor tenancy of PTC and leveraging H.I.G.’s real estate expertise and bio-health experience to enhance the execution of the value-add business plan.”
The Princeton West Innovation Campus features nine principal buildings consisting of state-of-the-art clinical manufacturing, plug-and-play biological laboratories and office space, plus freestanding R&D support space, storage facilities and a global data and command center.
It is supported by a central utility complex, which provides wastewater management, generator-backed electricity, chilled water and steam. Onsite amenities include a full-service cafeteria, an 8,000-square-foot fitness center and a freestanding, 28,000-square-foot child development center; plus, multiple conference areas, including a 9,000-square-foot mansion, the campus’ original building.
LEG will manage the property through its life sciences division.
BMS announced in 2016 a “phased multi-year closure” by mid-2020 in 2016.
