Pearson Tax Breaks Lure 600 Jobs to Manhattan

By Henry Goldman - Sep 20, 2011 - Bloomberg

Pearson Plc (PSON), owner of the Financial Times, intends to add 600 media and technology jobs in offices near its current operations in Lower Manhattan’s Hudson Square, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.

The company, whose U.S. businesses also include publisher Penguin Group US, will receive at least $13.5 million in city-arranged discounted electricity bills and state tax credits over 10 years starting in 2014 when it moves into 270,000 square feet (25,000 square meters) of space at 330 Hudson Street, the mayor’s office said in a news release.
The city’s Economic Development Corp. arranged $4.5 million in “Business Incentive Rate” energy savings, and the state’s Empire State Development Corp. granted $9 million in tax credits over 10 years to counter efforts by New Jersey to keep the jobs, the news release said. Other city incentives for the company and the building’s developer may be available, the mayor’s office said.
“Pearson’s relocation to and expansion at Hudson Square and its long-term investment in New York City is the latest example of the private sector’s confidence in the direction of our city and future growth of our local economy,” Bloomberg said in a statement.
The expansion includes relocation of employees from Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, and White Plains, New York, with an average salary of $72,000 a year, the mayor’s office said. Pearson will invest an additional $21 million in the renovation.