HOLMDEL - The developer of Bell Works received $70 million in financing from Investors Bank and OceanFirst Bank, officials said, in a sign that the project is being embraced by lenders as something more than just a pipe dream.
Somerset Development plans to use the money to continue to upgrade the infrastructure and improve tenant spaces, officials said.
"Somerset plans to create a unique asset that will serve as a benchmark for developers around the country," said Shaya Ackerman, managing director of Meridian Capital Group, which negotiated the deal.
Somerset is redeveloping what was once known as Bell Labs, a 2-million-square-foot building on 475 acres that was the site of some of the world's most important inventions.
Its task hasn't been easy. Times have changed since the building's lone tenant, AT&T, had a monopoly and workers flocked to the suburbs. Now, the giant millennial generation is returning to cities, where they can walk to work, bars and restaurants.
Somerset President Ralph Zucker has billed his project as a "metroburb," and it appears to be paying off. The building is 75 percent leased with tenants including fast-growing technology companies iCIMS and WorkWave.
One new addition: The Design Lab at Bell Works opened Thursday, providing co-working space to workers in the design and architect field.
Paola Zamudio, creative director for Bell Works, said she modeled the idea after NeueHouse, an office in New York City that brings together creative talent to work for the day or month.
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The Design Lab is 2,600 square feet, and the cost ranges from $25 a day to $399 a month for a dedicated desk.
"I think it adds to the cool factor," Zamudio said. Watch the video at the top of the story to learn about Zamudio's job at Bell Works.
Investors and OceanFirst join a private investor in the redevelopment project, estimated to cost upwards of $200 million.
When it is done, the building will house companies, retailers, a hotel, a financial planner, a salon, a dentist's office, restaurants and a library — possibly replacing the 5,000 or more Bell Labs workers who labored here during its heyday.
Will it be cool enough to attract designers from New York or Philadelphia?
Stacie Bernhaut, 19, of Watchung has an internship with Zamudio this summer. She recently completed her freshman year at Drexel University in Philadelphia, studying design and merchandising.
She has fallen for Philadelphia. But graduation is still a few years away, so who knows, maybe by then, Holmdel will be calling her.
"I think a lot of people can get their fill of a city by being here," she said.
Michael L. Diamond; 732-643-4038; mdiamond@gannettnj.com