Northeast Utilities moving HQ Downtown

[Luca Brasi]

I guess they are keeping the building on the Berlin Turnpike, but their headquarters and their corporate execs are moving adjacent to Constitution Plaza..

Thats another Fortune 500 company headquartered downtown.

http://www.courant.com/business/hc-numove0...0,7886025.story

[HartfordTycoon]

Just wanted to comment that this move by NU is another piece of progress for the Adriaen's Landing area. This area is really becoming home to a diverse grouping of corporations and institutions with Phoenix, Travelers, Northeast Utilities, AI Engineers, The CT Science Center, Wadworth Atheneum, CT Convention Center, Marriott, and Front Street. Things actually look really really good right now for the future of Adriaens Landing in my opinion. I am now more confident that Phase I of Front Street will at least be successful in what it aims to do and that with the continued investment in this part of Downtown there will be a demand for high quality housing in Phase II.

The Berlin Citizen

[Published on Berlin Citizen (http://berlin.ctcitizens.com)

Mayor says NU move will not hurt Berlin

Posted Tuesday, September 23, 2008 - 11:54am

Byline:

Olivia L. Lawrence

Town officials learned that Northeast Utilities was moving its corporate headquarters from Berlin to Hartford just hours before a press release went out to the media Sept. 16. The company says the move will give them better access to the capital city. State and local officials say the move does not come at the expense of the Berlin campus and that the end results will be "a win-win" for everyone involved.

Mayor Adam Salina said he got a call from NU just a few hours before a press release was sent out to the media. "The first I knew of it was the day of," he said. After the initial shock of hearing "we're moving our headquarters to Hartford," Salina discussed the transition with NU government relations staff. His assessment is that the change will have no net effect on Berlin. "None, it will have no direct correlation," he said, to the tax base. Furthermore, "There's going to be some good coming out of this."

Rocky River Realty Company, affiliated with Northeast Utilities and Connecticut Light and Power, is the town's No. 1 taxpayer with an assessed valuation of about $113 million.

Salina said only staff is being relocated and that none of the company's taxable property is involved.

Charles W. Shivery, Northeast Utilities chairman, president and chief executive officer said the company plans to move 180 employees from the company's executive offices, legal, financial and other corporate functions to an existing office building in downtown Hartford.

"The timing is right, as we were exploring constructing new office space on our Berlin campus to accommodate increasing business needs," Shivery said. "The opportunity to acquire an attractive property in downtown Hartford at a reasonable price in today's market provided an ideal solution to our expansion plan."

The company recently signed a purchase agreement for approximately 90,000 square feet of space located at 56 Prospect St.; a three-story office building owned by The Phoenix Companies, Inc. The relocation is expected to occur during the next 10 to 12 months.

NU will have a walk-in Customer Care Center at the Hartford location. A Customer Care Center opened last September at the Berlin location at 107 Selden St. CL&P spokesperson Mitch Gross said the Berlin location will remain open.

Shivery said NU's suburban campus, in Berlin, will remain fully occupied by more than 1,200 employees from companies and businesses of the NU System and continue to be the headquarters of CL&P, Yankee Gas and NU Transmission.

Salina said Berlin is an attractive choice for a major company as the tax rate here is approximately 22 mills compared to 68 mills in Hartford.

Salina said he understood the company's strategic need to be closer to the capital and legislators. In his discussions with Margaret Morton, vice president of governmental affairs for NU, Salina learned that there will be "some additional announcement in regards to that building." He said there is the possibility of "additional jobs in that building."

"We're in close talks with Northeast about that," Salina said. The mayor said that he and Economic Development Director Jim Mahoney will be following these developments.

"Northeast Utilities is very sensitive to the fact that Berlin is small community" and the effect that moving its operations might have, Salina said.

Gov. M. Jodi Rell said, "This is great news on so many fronts. The continued growth of Northeast Utilities bodes well for the overall strength of Connecticut's economy, and the relocation of NU's corporate headquarters to Hartford adds new luster to our capital city. I am particularly pleased that this growth is not coming at the expense of the NU campus in Berlin, making it a win-win scenario for both cities."

/i]

____________________________

Northeast Utilities

P.O. Box 270

Hartford, CT 06141-0270

(800) 286-5000

www.nu.com

News Release

Contacts: Al Lara

Office: 860-665-5527

Northeast Utilities to Relocate Corporate Headquarters to Downtown Hartford

BERLIN, Connecticut, September 16, 2008

[MadVlad]

I'm from Berlin, and if we have to sacrifice something of ourselves for the better of the Hartford region, then I'm all in. It's about time business' moved TO Hartford instead of the other way around.

[The Voice of Reason]

I read yesterday in the HBJ that NU is planning a 3 story expansion of its Berlin campus.

Apparently the companies growth has really had it bursting at the seams.

The company is still moving 180 members of its financial and executive staff to the downtown Hartford Office building. Even with making this much room in Berlin, apparently there is need for even more space.

An article about the anual meeting posted in the Register today put the size of the addition at 18,500 SF. This addition will house workers for the new and rapidly growing transmission business.

NU has spend billions on transmission projects recently and I guess this is really paying off.

I know people love to beotch about NU because they think they are being screwed on utility costs, but this is a major company and a major employer in the region, so I am thrilled at their success and honestly truely hope they can find a way to buy other nearby utilities to grow the business.

The larger utility companies do great things for their HQ cities.

The even name Arenas after them

[The Voice of Reason]

Crews are renovating the new HQ.

I saw HVAC crews for sure. not sure what else is done or will be done.

[Theophrastus Bombastus]

Crews are renovating the new HQ.

I saw HVAC crews for sure. not sure what else is done or will be done.

[HartfordTycoon]

The HQ is coming this month!

Hartford Business Journal

After some fits and starts, Northeast Utilities has scheduled the Aug. 14 weekend to move its Berlin heaquarters to 56 Prospect St. in downtown Hartford.Northeast Utilities will move its headquarters Aug. 14 weekend from Berlin to 56 Prospect St. in downtown Hartford.

Chairman Charles Shivery and about 180 more managers and support staff will occupy The Phoenix Cos.

[The Voice of Reason]

Welcome to Downtown Hartford.