Lincoln Equities Group Successfully Repositions New Jersey’s 5G Property, Attracting Allergan

On Nov 14, 2016

New Jersey was once known as “the nation’s medicine chest” but in recent years, pharmaceutical jobs have been leaving the region. The state’s pharma industry was close to taking another blow, but Madison-based Lincoln Equities Group LLC (LEG) led a team to reposition 5 Giralda Place into a property that attracted pharma giant Allergan, retaining 1,500 jobs and creating 300 more full-time positions.

The four-story, 450,000-square-foot Class A office property, formerly occupied by Pfizer and built in the 1990’s, is set on 50 acres of wooded land on the private Giralda Farms campus in Madison. The property already offered a large, beautiful campus with close proximity to highways and public transportation.

However, the building was built for a less dense corporate workforce with a number of large, private offices. LEG and architecture firm HLW International developed new design concepts to modernize the space — making it possible for tenants to create unique, personalized workspaces to appeal to millennials, as well as community lobby areas, coffee bars, shops and cafes that encourage collaboration and creativity.

“New concepts for the entry, lobby, amenities and workspace were rendered to help Allergan visualize the opportunity of the building,” said Ken Flynn, LEG’s senior director of leasing. “The new plans helped illustrate how the building could serve as a neighborhood rather than just an office space.”

Interior designer Kim Sacramone of architecture firm HLW International helped with the repositioning: “We integrated a variety of programmed communal spaces within the structure to create a buzz, allowing for quick, informal meetings that lead to greater productivity and create a sense of community,” she said.

From there, the Township of Madison approved additional parking spaces at a special planning board meeting last fall. “5 Giralda represents the largest single office building in Madison, and to have a single tenant move in with over one thousand employees is vital to the community. 5G is not only our number one taxpayer but also the top customer for the Madison Electric Company,” said Robert Conley, Mayor of Madison Township.

The size of 5G enabled Allergan to put its corporate operations under one roof, and its location in northern New Jersey provides access to a talented employee pool that will help the company remain competitive in an evolving pharmaceutical market. Allergan is expected to move into the location by mid-2017, and leased the entire property for a 13-year term.

“From the tremendous office space to the state of the art fitness center, we knew from the beginning that the property at 5 Giralda would make an incredible headquarters for a large company like Allergan,” says Joel Bergstein, President of Lincoln Equities Group. “We’re thrilled to see this all come together the way it has.”

The NJ Economic Development Authority estimates that Allergan remaining in New Jersey will yield a net benefit to the state of $385.1 million over 20 years.

“With its highly skilled pharma talent, research-focused universities, many leading health care systems, rich pool of biopharmaceutical innovators and access to capital markets, New Jersey remains a strong fit for Allergan, and we are proud to continue to be a part of New Jersey’s vibrant health care ecosystem,” said Allergan CEO and President Brent Saunders.

Related Articles: