By Ron Leir <\/p>\n
Observer Correspondent <\/p>\n
NUTLEY <\/p>\n
Roche USA, the Swiss-basedpharmaceutical companythat is marketing its118-acre property straddlingNutley and Clifton, continuesto seek a buyer for the sitebut has inked a tenant for partof the site. <\/p>\n
Roche spokeswomanDarien Wilson said last weekthat the Tom Lyon, vicepresident of Roche Nutley (asthe property is designated),has signed a letter of intentwith Robert C. Garrett, president\/CEO of HackensackUniversity Health Network,for the leasing of one ofRoches former researchbuildings for the operation ofa medical school. <\/p>\n
Terms of the lease remainto be negotiated, Wilson said. <\/p>\n
At the same time, Wilsonsaid, Roche which last yearpaid $7.1 million in taxes toNutley (supplemented by$2.7 million in special statetransitional aid) is stillin the process of identifyinga buyer for the [entire]site. Asked when Rocheanticipated a sale, Wilsonsaid: Were very close . We expect to identify a newowner by middle of the year. <\/p>\n
Asked why the company wasentering into an lease agreementfor just a small part ofits property (about 13 acres)before disposing of the wholesite, Wilson acknowledged itcould be considered an atypicalapproach, but that all ofthe potential buyers were fullyaware, along with the Nutley-Clifton Joint RepurposingCommittee, that this was anopportunity that Roche wantedto pursue. <\/p>\n
Wilson said that talks withHackensackUHN have beengoing on for a year and ahalf. She added that the leasebetween the parties would beassigned to whoever the newowner is. <\/p>\n
The new four-year medicalschool, according to a statementposted on the HackensackUniversity MedicalSchool website, will be a jointventure by HackensackUHNand Seton Hall University andwill be the only private schoolof medicine currently in thestate. <\/p>\n
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Medical school will be Roche tenant<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Ron Leir Observer Correspondent NUTLEY Roche USA, the Swiss-basedpharmaceutical companythat is marketing its118-acre property straddlingNutley and Clifton, continuesto seek a buyer for the sitebut has inked a tenant for partof the site. Continue reading