Chiropractor in Plainsboro, NJ

PLAINSBORO – The site of the nation's first privately owned nuclear reactor at 31 Schalks Crossing Road has sold for $7.7 million.

The 31-acre property, recently used as a state-of-the-art drug manufacturing facility, was sold by Turkey Island Corporation to Princeton Life Science Park, according to Jerry Fennelly, president of Fennelly Associates, which arranged the transaction.

31 Schalks Crossing Road was originally constructed in 1957 as one of several similar buildings designed to commercialize isotopes across the country. Columbia University and The Institute of Advanced Study jointly operated the Princeton reactor, the nation’s first privately owned nuclear reactor.

Utilized as a research reactor by a variety of public and private research institutions including nearby Princeton University, 31 Schalks Crossing Road played an integral role in the U.S. nuclear power research program for more than five decades.

In the late 1970s, however, local population growth and ongoing funding concerns forced the reactor to be permanently shut down.

Following its closure as a nuclear research facility, 31 Schalks Crossing Road took on a second life as a state-of-the-art pharmaceutical research and manufacturing facility operated by its tenant Jacobus Pharmaceutical.

The building’s owners then decided to tap Fennelly Associates to market the building for sale.

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Princeton Life Science Park also purchased the patents on the prior owner’s pharmaceutical products and its pharmaceutical manufacturing equipment, as well as retaining its previous employees.

“While 31 Schalks Crossing Road’s historical value and recognizable features stand out in the local area, they also made attracting prospective buyers more difficult,” said Fennelly in a news release.

Fennelly said it was a nuclear reactor-shaped building.

"It could be difficult because the people that are buying it are making pharmaceutical drugs that people take," Fennelly said.

But the building had features perfect for a pharmaceutical company, he said.

Fennelly said there were five ISO-8 clean rooms in the building. ISO-8 cleanrooms are required to have 20 air changes per hour of HEPA-filtered.

Brad Wadlow is a staff writer for MyCentralJersey.com

Greenskies Clean Focus has completed seven rooftop solar systems totaling 3.31 MW for the West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District in New Jersey. The projects are expected to save the district about $240,000 per year in energy costs.

Greenskies partnered with Pfister Energy, a top commercial solar developer and engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor based in Hawthorne, New Jersey, which installed more than 8,600 solar panels on the roofs at:

“Pfister Energy is thrilled to have been involved with installing over 3 MW of solar energy onto the rooftops of the schools in the West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District,” said Sean Quin, senior VP of strategy and business development of Pfister. “These projects allow the township and school district to save on energy and spend more on educational programs that will directly benefit the students.”

The seven solar projects were made possible through a 15-year solar power purchase agreement (PPA) with Greenskies. The PPAs enable the school district to install solar at no cost and purchase the electricity generated by the systems at a reduced rate, compared to traditional utility rates.

“Greenskies is pleased to provide the West Windsor-Plainsboro RSD with a low, fixed-rate PPA,” said Stanley Chin, president and CEO of Greenskies. “Protecting the district’s budget from unpredictable utility rate hikes for the next 15 years creates beneficial stability that will benefit students while advancing access to renewable energy and sustainability goals.”

According to Schneider Electric, the district’s energy services company, the solar arrays will produce enough clean, renewable energy to offset approximately 21% of the school’s annual electricity use, resulting in more than $3.5 million in savings over the life of the systems.

“These solar PV systems will not only reduce costs now but will protect the district from future electricity price increases,” said Dan Riggle, program manager at Schneider Electric. “Having a PPA electric rate that is fixed for the next 15 years provides budgetary certainty for West Windsor-Plainsboro RSD, which is especially important considering the escalating prices we see in so many aspects of current life.”

The solar PPAs are part of a larger Energy Savings Improvement Program (ESIP) developed by Schneider Electric. This ESIP has allowed West Windsor-Plainsboro to realize more than $30 million in school facility improvements such as new LED lighting and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems through cost savings, financing and grants/rebates. Solar consultant Talva Energy assisted with the development of the solar PPA RFP and coordination from pre-construction to successful competition.

“These solar projects provide our district and community with significant cost savings and improve our schools’ environmental impact,” said Dr. David Aderhold, superintendent of the West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School District. “We are doing our part to educate and model environmentally conscious behaviors for our students while contributing to creating a better world for their future.”

Tags: commercial and industrial, Greenskies Clean Focus, Pfister Energy, Schneider Electric

Plainsboro voters apparently have rejected a $1.58 million fire tax increase that would have allowed the district to hire eight full-time firefighters over the next five years, according to the unofficial results of the referendum.

Preliminary numbers from Middlesex County before mail-in and provisional ballots were tallied showed the measure was defeated 646-110, according to the township clerk who said certified results would be available Wednesday.

Bob Corriveau, chairman of the Board of Fire Commissioners, said Monday, "the district did not have final numbers, but if we were running for office we would have conceded based on preliminary numbers."

If approved, an average township home valued at $451,100 would have seen an increase of about $151.94 a year or about $13 per month in the fire district's portion of property taxes.

"We do have a budget in place for next year," Corriveau said last week. "We'll be able to cover what we had last year, but moving forward it's going to get a little sketchy."

Corriveau said fire officials were at odds with township officials leading up to the vote. He said township officials made it a last-minute public battle instead of reaching out in a timely manner, since discussions of a tax increase began in January 2023.

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"It's disheartening," he said. "We're working on some things, including the issue with communication with the township."

Township officials claimed the defeated budget was an "exceptionally high" budget increase, with future significant increases in future years.

"Elected officials found that the budget, which had been shared with them only ten days prior to the meeting, was vague and left many questions unanswered," the township said.

The township said the fire district wanted to increase its budget 58% by approximately 33 times more than the state allows.

The fire district is an independent taxing authority, separate from the township, that is overseen by an independent board of commissioners. The township has one fire department, which serves the 12-square-mile municipality.

The department is staffed by 13 paid firefighters, including Chief Matthew Collins, and about eight volunteers, who are active and respond to calls.

"Right now, we have a full career staff on during the day, but at night we don't have a full staff on," Corriveau said previously. "They are hoping for more volunteers, but like many towns, they are having a hard time getting them. The number of volunteers has been greatly reduced over the years. We saw this happening; we just didn't realize it would happen as fast as it did."

Email: sloyer@gannettnj.com

Susan Loyer covers Middlesex County and more for MyCentralJersey.com. To get unlimited access to her work, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

New facility is dedicated to Dr. Richard E. Caruso, late company founder

By

Linda Lindner(Plainsboro)

-

May 12, 2023

The Dr. Richard E. Caruso Center of Innovation in Plainsboro. - Integra Life Sciences

Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corp. hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday to celebrate the grand opening and dedication of its new center of innovation and learning to Dr. Richard E. Caruso, late founder of the company, in Plainsboro.

The new state-of-the-art 14,000-square-foot research & development facility is dedicated to pioneering new advances in treatment pathways and setting new standards of care to restore patient’s lives.

Guests included staff members from the offices of U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-12th Dist.) and U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), as well as Plainsboro Mayor Peter Cantu. Guests were given a tour of the new R&D facility following the dedication ceremony.

“We are proud to honor Dr. Caruso’s legacy and contributions to regenerative medicine by naming our new facility the Dr. Richard E. Caruso Center of Innovation and Learning,” Jan De Witte, Princeton-based Integra’s CEO and president, said.

As Robert T. Davis Jr., executive vice president and president of Integra’s Tissue Technologies global product division shared during the ceremony: “This new facility reinforces our commitment to deliver cutting-edge regenerative technologies to address unmet clinical needs. In addition, it will be an important site for learning, as we plan to host many educational programs for our customers and colleagues worldwide, which is an important part of our mission.”

Caruso, the former chairman of the board and CEO, founded Integra in 1989 with a vision that the human body could be enabled to regenerate many of its own damaged or diseased tissues. Through his vision, Integra became the first company to develop and bring to market a tissue regeneration product, Integra Dermal Regeneration Template, which was approved by the FDA in 1996 as a skin replacement system with a claim for regeneration of dermal tissue in the treatment of life-threatening burns and repair of scar contractures.

Integra is a $1.5 billion global company with 3,700 employees worldwide, 800 of which are based at one of its New Jersey facilities.

GFI Realty Services, LLC announced the $115-million sale of Addison at Princeton Meadows, a 440-unit garden apartment complex, located at 2821 Pheasant Hollow Drive in Plainsboro, NJ. The GFI team of Allan Szlafrok, Eli Maryl, Ohad Babo, and Michael Weiser advised the buyer, Colony Hills Capital, in this transaction. The seller is KRE, a Jersey City based real estate investment, development, and property management firm.

“The asset was widely marketed for some time due to the difficult capital markets environment. GFI Realty came in and successfully identified a buyer and brought the deal to a close despite the roller coaster interest rate environment,“ said Michael Weiser, President of GFI Realty.

“The buyer intends to continue with capital improvements to the property’s community spaces and build upon the existing renovations to the units completed by the previous owner,” said Allan Szlafrok.

“The asset is situated in a highly desirable submarket with strong retail and employment metrics. Additionally, the property benefits from its proximity to Princeton University,” said Eli Maryl. “Similarly situated assets in the Central New Jersey multifamily market with this large unit count are in high demand by investors looking for assets in the Northeast and the buyer immediately recognized its value.”

The Class B asset consists of two-story buildings and numerous amenities including a swimming pool, tennis and basketball courts, and a fitness center.

Plainsboro is considered one of the best communities to live in New Jersey. It benefits from its proximity to Princeton, NJ and Route 1.

The Job Openings and Labor Turnover (JOLT) report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said that the number of job openings in June was 9.58 million, down 34,000 openings month-over-month. In addition, last month’s job openings figure was revised downward by 208,000 jobs. Job openings were down 1.38 million from the year-ago level.

Hiring was down from last month’s revised figure for the economy as a whole, falling 326,000 to a level of 5.90 million hires. Total separations fell 288,000 to a level of 5.64 million, although May’s separations total was revised upward by 101,000. Within total separations, quits fell 7.3 percent while layoffs fell 1.2 percent. Quits represented 66.9 percent of total separations for the month.

Employment rises again

For a discussion of the JOLT report and how it relates to the Employment Situation Report, please see the paragraph at the end of this article.

The June job openings figure represents 5.8 percent of total employment plus job openings. For comparison, the unemployment rate in June was reported to be 3.6 percent and 6.0 million people were unemployed. Another 5.4 million people said that they would like a job but were not counted as being in the labor force since they were not actively seeking employment.

The excess of hiring over separations in the June JOLT report implies an employment increase of 268,000 jobs for the month. Last month’s employment increase was revised to 306,000 jobs, down by 31,000 jobs from the gain reported last month.

Of those leaving their jobs in June, 3.77 million quit voluntarily, while 1.53 million people were involuntarily separated from their jobs. The remainder of people leaving their jobs left for other reasons, such as retirements or transfers. The portion of people quitting their jobs was down from last month’s figure at 2.4 percent of the labor force. The involuntary separations rate was unchanged from last month’s figure at 1.0 percent.

Construction employment sees gains

The first chart, below, shows the employment situation for the construction jobs market over the last 37 months. It shows that June saw a net gain of 41,000 construction jobs. However, revisions to May’s results lowered the construction jobs gains for that month by 5,000 jobs to 20,000 jobs.

Construction jobs openings in June were reported to be 374,000 jobs, 2.4 percent lower than the year-earlier level. On a month-over-month basis, openings for construction jobs were reported to rise by 5,000 openings from May’s revised (+13,000) job openings figure. Job openings in the construction category represent 4.5 percent of total employment plus job openings, up from the 4.4 percent level reported last month.

Hiring was reported to be down by 15,000 jobs in June from the prior month’s revised (-18,000) jobs figure at 346,000 new hires. The number of construction jobs that were filled in June was reported to be down 4.2 percent year-over-year.

Construction jobs total separations were reported to fall by 36,000 jobs from the prior month’s revised (-13,000) figure to 305,000 jobs. Quits were reported to fall by 51,000 jobs from May’s revised (-20,000) figure to a level of 156,000 jobs. Layoffs were reported to rise by 13,000 from May’s revised (+4,000) figure to 140,000 jobs. “Other separations” which includes retirements and transfers, were reported to be down 2,000 at 9,000 jobs. Quits represented 51 percent of separations for the month, down from the revised level of 61 percent reported for May.

RERL job openings higher

The last chart, below, shows the employment situation for the real estate and rental and leasing (RERL) jobs category. Employment in this jobs category was reported to rise by 12,000 jobs in June.

Note that revisions to last month’s data for the RERL jobs category in this month’s report were unusually large.

The number of job openings in the RERL category was reported to be 129,000 jobs at the end of June. This was up 5,000 job openings from the revised (+22,000) level of the month before. Job openings in June were 5.2 percent lower than their year-earlier level. Job openings in the RERL category represent 5.1 percent of total employment plus job openings.

Hiring in June was up by 10,000 jobs from May’s revised (-20,000) level at 72,000 jobs. The hiring figure was 16 percent above the year-earlier level.

Total separations in the RERL jobs category in June were up by 2,000 from May’s revised (-16,000) figure at 60,000 jobs. Quits were up by 7,000 jobs from May’s revised (-16,000) figure at 48,000 jobs. Quits represented 80 percent of total separations in June, up from the revised level of 71 percent in May. Layoffs were reported to fall by 3,000 from May’s revised (-3,000) figure to 10,000 jobs.

The numbers given in the JOLT report are seasonally adjusted and are subject to revision. It is common for small adjustments to be made in subsequent reports, particularly to the data for the most recent month. The full current JOLT report can be found here.

Comparing the reports

The US labor market is very dynamic with many people changing jobs in any given month. The JOLT report documents this dynamism by providing details about job openings, hiring and separations. However, it does not break down the jobs market into as fine categories as does the Employment Situation Report, which provides data on total employment and unemployment. For example, while the Employment Situation Report separates residential construction from other construction employment, the JOLT report does not. The Employment Situation Report separates residential property managers from other types of real estate and rental and leasing professionals, but the JOLT report does not. However, the JOLT report provides a look at what is driving the employment gains (or losses) in broad employment categories.