O'Neill Property Group has GSK campus in Upper Merion under agreement

by Natalie Kostelnie, Staff writer Philadelphia Business Journal

O’Neill Properties Group has put GlaxoSmithKline’s “West Campus” in Upper Merion, Pa., under agreement, according to sources. And, if a deal is completed, it will for the first time in three decades free up the property to be marketed to multiple tenants.

The property at 709 Swedeland Road consists of 43 buildings totaling about 2.2 million square feet of office, lab and warehouse space. In 2014, GSK announced it planned to sell its West Campus and lease back a portion of the site that consisted of its sterile clinical manufacturing pilot plant.

Frances DeFranco, a GSK spokeswoman, declined to comment on whether the sprawling campus was under agreement. A representative from O’Neill Properties also declined comment.

Undertaking the repositioning of 2 million square feet of space would be a daunting task for any developer. There is demand for lab space in the region, which has an abundance of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies. Such specialized space is expensive to build and fit out. In light of that, its ready-made, move-in condition might be appealing to prospective tenants.

There is also demand for office space. Large blocks of well-located office space in the suburbs is becoming scarcer and may present O’Neill Properties or any buyer with an opportunity to renovate the space and create an amenity-rich environment that would appeal to tenants.

O’Neill has completed office and multifamily projects throughout the region but is familiar with the area where the GSK property is located. The real estate company developed projects in Conshohocken, Pa., and maintains its headquarters off Renaissance Boulevard, just a stones throw away from the GSK campus.
Full story: https://www.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/news/2017/04/21/developer-has-gsk-campus-in-upper-merion-under.html

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