By Laura D.C. Kolnoski
FORT MONMOUTH – The challenges of redeveloping a 100-year-old former military base took center stage during May’s monthly meeting of the Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA) as representatives for two major projects – Netflix at Fort Monmouth Studios and a new campus for Monmouth Medical Center – requested and received time extensions.
Both projects are in the “due diligence” phase early in the Purchase, Sale, and Redevelopment Agreement (PSARA) process before construction begins. Purchasers are given 90 days to inspect the buildings, land and infrastructure on their properties, a critical phase in determining whether the sale proceeds. Unexpected discoveries, existing structures and landfills left behind by the U.S. Army during different construction eras are common reasons projects seek and obtain extensions, delaying completion dates.
Netflix
Netflix Studios Fort Monmouth will be the entertainment firm’s second largest production facility after New Mexico, with 12 soundstages on just over 292 acres spanning Eatontown and Tinton Falls, the fort’s largest redevelopment project. The property contains former residential, administrative and research/ development buildings, warehouses, workshops and general-purpose facilities.
Netflix will pay $55 million for the site, subject to adjustments related to environmental issues. The Army is obligated to remediate environmental contamination on the fort in perpetuity. The company estimates a capital investment of $848 million. Early projections were for a 2027 opening.
In requesting its first extension, Netflix cited “the size of the transaction” and “complex nature of the property… among other things,” according to FMERA documents. The initial 90-day due diligence period was extended for two additional 30-day periods to complete tests, inspections and reviews. On May 17, FMERA approved two additional 45-day extensions if requested by Netflix, to Sept. 14.
“The additional time will be used to perform and finalize matters related to title, survey and traffic mitigation issues, environmental testing and reports, energy and power, and emergency services arrangements,” FMERA staff wrote. In recommending approval, Kara Kopach, FMERA executive director, said “the purchaser has been proceeding in good faith.”
RWJBarnabas Health’s Vogel Campus
Within the fort’s Tinton Falls section, a 31.25-acre site at Pearl Harbor Avenue and Pinebrook Road will eventually host a new healthcare facility on the site of the legendary Albert J. Myer Center, a massive white hexagonal building where military technology was developed. Deemed out- dated and too costly to renovate, the state demolished it to make the property more attractive to buyers.
During the due diligence period, environmental investigations detected the presence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), “an emerging contaminate with developing remediation standards,” FMERA staff noted, adding, “As the Army was the prior owner, it may potentially be responsible for any contamination, therefore the Army has agreed to perform a preliminary assessment and remedial investigation.”
“Army investigations will substantially delay due diligence and purchaser’s progress on the property,” staff wrote. “The parties further agree to work together in good faith to satisfy any additional obligations of the PSARA impacting adjacent parcels.”
The purchaser asked for the extension in April “to allow the Army additional time to perform its investigations and determine a course forward.”
Voting FMERA members unanimously agreed to an extension of 90 days, with the option for three more 90-day extensions if needed for the Army to complete its investigations. Previous extensions were also related to environmental concerns.
A contract for the preliminary investigation has been executed with a draft report anticipated by June. Retention of a contractor for the remedial investigation is expected by October.
The PSARA between RWJBH and FMERA, executed in October 2021, will see the health care concern pay $5.1 million for the parcel, with a capital investment estimated at $100 million. RWJBarnabas Health’s Monmouth Medical Center will develop the Vogel Medical Campus on the site, partly funded by a $50 million gift from philanthropists Sheldon and the late Anne Vogel of Colts Neck. The Vogel family has long ties to Monmouth Medical Center and have donated to the hospital previously.
The project includes construction of an approximately 121,125-square-foot, three-story medical office building, installation of a grid-supply solar energy system, active recreational facilities including two multipurpose grass or turf athletic fields, one baseball/softball field, up to five tennis courts, a field house, passive recreation including a walking/nature trail, and open space.
Additionally, RWJBH will design, fund and construct a roadway connecting Pearl Harbor Avenue and Satellite Road. RWJBH is obligated to create 300 part-time and/or full-time jobs within 12 months of the project’s completion or pay a penalty of $1,500 for each job not created. Estimated numbers of jobs and subsequent penalties are a common caveat in fort contracts.
“Monmouth Medical Center is excited to shortly begin development of a world-class outpatient center at the Vogel Medical Campus,” said Eric Carney, president and CEO of Monmouth Medical Center and Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus. “It will expand access to outstanding care, including same-day surgery, advanced diagnostic imaging, and comprehensive cancer services in partnership with Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. We appreciate our continued partnership with FMERA throughout this process and look forward to advancing our shared vision for the property.”
The article originally appeared in the June 1 – 7, 2023 print edition of The Two River Times.
