LONG ISLAND—Ascent Pharmaceuticals is expanding its presence on Long Island by acquiring a 250,000-sq.-ft. facility at 550 South Research Place in Central Islip, an investment that is expected to bring 350 new jobs to the area over the next five years. Newmark Knight Frank represented Ascent in the transaction.
The drug company purchased the facility for $14.5 million after receiving nearly $5.6 million in vital state and local incentives. Ascent plans more than $20 million in infrastructure upgrades and manufacturing additions, including special labs and packaging facilities. Construction is expected to begin as soon as Ascent receives building permits from the town.
The company, owned by InvaGen Pharmaceuticals, intends to stay at its three current locations in Hauppauge, totaling 120,000 sq. ft, while also growing its business in Central Islip.
As part of the purchase, Ascent received a job program tax credit from the state worth $1.8 million and tax abatements, savings and exemptions over nine years valued at $3.8 million from the Town of Islip. The company had considered a move to New Jersey, but the incentives made the investment in Long Island financially viable.
Creativewear LLC, a maker of bath products, sold the property to Ascent. The facility offers key sewer hookups, 28-foot ceilings and a second floor for production, making it ideal for loading raw material into tableting machines, said Tom Attivissimo, CCIM of Greiner-Maltz Co., who represented Creativewear in the negotiations. The facility sits on 16 acres and can accommodate up to 450 cars.