17-03-2025
NJ awards up to $104 million tax break in Nokia Bell Labs 10-story New Brunswick tower
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) Board has approved tax credits through the Aspire Program to support the second New Jersey Health + Life Science Exchange's (HELIX) building in New Brunswick, known as H-2.
Nokia Bell Labs, the industrial research arm of Nokia, will serve as the main tenant of H-2, a 10-story, nearly 370,000-square-foot building that will be an innovation hub in the city's downtown. The first phase of the HELIX was approved for Aspire tax credits in 2023.
The HELIX will bring together New Jersey's public, private and academic sectors to create a world-class hub of innovation and a strong base of support and talent pipeline for innovative companies. The HELIX campus, consisting of three separate buildings, will provide 1.5 million square feet of multifaceted, state-of-the-art environments supporting the gamut of health and life science organizations and professions.
NJEDA CEO Tim Sullivan said the Aspire Program fuels catalytic development projects that transform communities into dynamic, transit-oriented hubs, ideal for living, working, and doing business.
"With today's Aspire award, Nokia Bell Labs addition to the HELIX will further support New Brunswick's innovation ecosystem by creating cutting-edge technology, high-quality jobs, and long-term economic growth that will benefit generations of New Jerseyans,' he stated.
More: Rutgers building $567 million new medical school, research facility in New Brunswick
Last month, the NJEDA announced it will partner with Nokia Bell Labs to launch a Strategic Innovation Center (SIC) consisting of the NJ Nokia Innovation Center and Bell Labs Venture Studio, both of which will eventually be located at H-2. Both components will be focused on enabling startups to accelerate and commercialize intellectual property from Nokia Bell Labs and local universities with an emphasis in the fields of communication, artificial intelligence, cloud computing and optical and wireless networks.
H-2 will be a research and development facility comprised of chemistry and biology laboratories, data centers, 3D printing areas, machine shops, office space and conference rooms. The main lobby of H-2 will include a technology showcase and a coffee shop, which will have access to the Paseo, a public outdoor space connecting the Rutgers campus, the Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital District, the New Brunswick train station and the Government and Arts District in downtown New Brunswick.
SJP Properties is the lead developer of H-2 and was approved for Aspire tax credits of up to 80 percent of the eligible project cost, not to exceed $103.9 million.
Aspire is a place-based economic development program created under the New Jersey Economic Recovery Act of 2020 to support mixed-use, transit-oriented development with tax credits to commercial and residential real estate development projects that have financing gaps. All residential Aspire projects must include at least 20 percent affordable housing. As a performance-based program, projects must certify that all commitments established at time of approval have been met before receiving their first disbursement of tax credits.
This article originally appeared on NJ awards up to $104M tax break in downtown New Brunswick development
