When Nokia Bell Labs introduced in 2023 that it could relocate its R&D operations to a sprawling new innovation middle in New Brunswick, New Jersey, the worldwide tech firm was wanting towards the long run. “Finally, we wish a facility that feels proper for the subsequent 100 years of Nokia Bell Labs,” mentioned Nishant Batra, Nokia’s chief technique and know-how officer.
It helps that the mission was authorised for a significant tax credit score program referred to as Aspire, which was created below New Jersey’s 2020 Financial Restoration Act. In consequence, Nokia may obtain as much as $103.9 million in tax credit. However Nokia was drawn to the center of Middlesex County for causes that mirror what many companies are actually discovering: a uncommon convergence of good infrastructure, workforce pipelines and cultural vibrancy—all underpinned by fiscal energy.
“Greater than 10 years in the past, we took a cautious evaluation of our operations and monetary place,” remembers County Administrator John Pulomena. The county could have held a AAA bond score for twenty-four years, however in 2010, it was saddled with near $900 million in debt, a surplus too skinny for financial volatility and an outsized workforce. “When the economic system went sideways, we needed to make some strategic enterprise selections on how we clear up our inside home first earlier than transferring ahead with creating sustainable financial options.”
That technique labored. At the moment, Middlesex County has greater than $110 million in surplus. Extra importantly, it hasn’t issued new bonds in practically a decade, as an alternative embedding practically $100 million in capital enhancements straight into the annual working finances. “That enables us to proceed to enhance with out ever going to finance,” Pulomena explains. “And the cash now we have earns curiosity that may be reinvested in our system.”
From Schools to Careers: A Pipeline with Goal
Middlesex County’s true long-term funding isn’t simply monetary—it’s additionally academic. From Rutgers and Princeton to Middlesex School, the area has centered on creating seamless academic-to-career pathways that serve each residents and employers. “The must-haves [for CEOs] is a pipeline of a workforce that enables them to maintain and convey new innovation to their operations,” says Pulomena. That focus has made the county engaging to corporations in development sectors like life sciences, meals innovation and autonomous tech.
Public-private collaborations are the engine of that workforce technique. For instance, the Jack & Sheryl Morris Most cancers Heart, a part of RWJBarnabas Well being, is a $1 billion freestanding most cancers institute—New Jersey’s first—designed not solely as a state-of-the-art medical facility but additionally as a hub for profession pathway improvement. Equally, the county’s acquisition of the Heldrich Resort and Convention Heart close to the Rutgers College campus goals to assist culinary and hospitality packages at Middlesex School and Middlesex County Magnet Faculties by providing college students hands-on coaching and potential job placement.
The rising listing of companies selecting Middlesex for development or relocation are the “proof factors,” as Pulomena calls them, that the county’s lengthy recreation is paying off: DSM Dietary Merchandise opened a brand new facility in Plainsboro; Solar Pharma is increasing its presence and including 220 new jobs; and Hotpack Packaging, based mostly within the UAE, is investing $100 million to construct a brand new manufacturing and distribution facility that may add 200 jobs.
A Place to Work, Stay—and Keep
Whereas many counties focus solely on tax incentives or enterprise parks, Middlesex has taken a extra holistic method. “We need to make Middlesex County a vacation spot,” Pulomena says. That features a sweeping $350 million redevelopment of the Middlesex School campus to incorporate a multi-use 5,000-person capability venue for sports activities, leisure and the humanities. Rutgers’ NCAA Division I Baseball crew will play there, and 14 new event fields are anticipated to draw regional and nationwide youth sports activities competitions.
Cultural capital is equally prioritized. “Again in 2015, we went out to the general public for a non-binding referendum,” Pulomena remembers. The query: Would voters assist a $10 million finances merchandise for arts, tradition and historical past? Almost 70 p.c mentioned sure. Since then, the county has dedicated $5 million yearly to cultural packages. The outcomes embrace the revitalized State Theatre New Jersey in New Brunswick—owned not by the state however by the county—and collaborations with cities like Metuchen, Carteret and Woodbridge, to call a number of, to broaden entry to efficiency areas.
In the meantime, transportation innovation is unfolding alongside conventional infrastructure funding. A brand new on-demand rideshare pilot lets New Brunswick residents journey anyplace on the town for simply $3, addressing “final mile” points that conventional transit can’t repair. And DataCity, a partnership with Rutgers College, is popping New Brunswick, New Jersey, right into a dwelling testing floor for good mobility and autonomous car know-how.
Finally, the imaginative and prescient for Middlesex County is rooted in alignment: schooling tailor-made to workforce demand, infrastructure that serves enterprise and neighborhood alike and partnerships that make the entire higher than the sum of its components. For corporations looking for a future-focused house, Middlesex County is prepared—and it has the steadiness sheet, workforce and observe document to show it.
