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 White Plains, NY - Thanks in part to some incentives from the Westchester County Industrial Development Agency, a biopharmaceutical company will relocate its Long Island and out-of-state operations to Ardsley, bringing with it 200 employees.
The company expects to hire another 350 people over the next five years.
The IDA today approved the application of OSI Pharmaceuticals Inc. following a presentation by Pierre Legault, executive vice president and chief financial officer of OSI Pharmaceuticals to relocate to 400,000 square feet of space the Ardsley Park Science and Technology Center at Saw Mill River Road. This is property at one time occupied by Purdue Pharma. OSI is a biopharmaceutical company that focuses on molecular-targeted therapies in the areas of cancer, diabetes and obesity.
“This is a perfect fit for OSI and great coup for Westchester County, as this was a highly competitive process,” said County Executive Andy Spano. “Two other municipalities – outside of New York – were actively lobbying for this relocation, and I am so pleased that the company recognized everything our county has to offer. This will save New York State jobs and create new jobs in the area over the next several years. In addition, it reinforces the county’s reputation as a prime location for biotech companies.”
The IDA approved $3 million in sales tax exemptions. The company is also negotiating with the Town of Greenburgh for a partial abatement of real estate taxes and Con Edison for its Business Incentive Rate.
OSI currently has four main offices: Boulder, CO; Cedar Knolls, NJ and Farmingdale and Meville, NY and had announced its intentions to consolidate its operations. All of these locations will eventually be consolidated into the Ardsley location and the company expects significant growth and investment over the next five years.
The effort to get OSI to relocate to the county was spearheaded by the county’s Office of Economic Development and the Westchester County Industrial Development Agency in conjunction with Empire State Development. Spano commended the many organizations that “worked together quickly and efficiently to make this project happen.”
OSI said its decision to relocate was made after determining that its business will flourish if its domestic locations are unified, creating an energy and synergy among scientists, particularly if it is among a cluster of biotech firms. There are more than 200 academic research organizations, medical centers and laboratories located within the Hudson Valley.
“The past ten years have been a remarkable journey as the company has successfully brought its first oncology product, Tarceva®, to market and taken the business profitable,” stated Colin Goddard, Ph.D., chief executive officer of OSI Pharmaceuticals. “None-the-less, we have recognized that we will only truly capture the full strategic value of our oncology franchise if we simplify our business by bringing together all the elements of our U.S. operations onto a single site. After an extensive and highly competitive process involving the exploration of options in multiple different states, we have identified a campus that will represent a first-rate facility for our company and provide for all foreseeable expansion needs over the next several years.
“We are delighted that OSI will remain in New York State and we look forward to being an integral part of a growing cluster of quality biotech companies in Westchester County,” stated OSI’s Legault.
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