MONMOUTH COUNTY – Netflix is officially coming to New Jersey, as it recently announced its plan after purchasing Fort Monmouth.
The entertainment company will develop a state-of-the-art east coast production facility on the decade-long vacant site.
According to a Governor Phil Murphy, the project will create more than 1,500 permanent production jobs and more than 3,500 construction-related jobs in New Jersey.
“This transformative investment will serve as a cornerstone in our efforts to create a thriving industry from whole cloth,” Governor Murphy said. “As a result of nearly a billion dollars in film production spending, New Jersey will further solidify its status as an emerging national leader in the television and film industries. Additionally, Netflix’s substantial direct investment will stimulate job creation and spark an entirely new ecosystem of housing, hotels, and ancillary businesses and services, bringing with it countless additional jobs and boosting the regional economy.”
The project will be completed in two phases over the course of several years. Phase one will consist of building 12 soundstages adjacent to Route 35 in Eatontown and Oceanport. They will range in size from 15,000 square feet to 40,000 square feet – each with a minimum total buildout of 180,000 square feet and a maximum buildout of 480,000 square feet.
The Fort Monmouth Economic Revitalization Authority (FMERA) voted to authorize Netflix’s plan when it met on December 21. The deal now enters a due diligence period and local approvals process before being finalized.
Netflix will pay $55 million for the parcel, including a utility contribution of $5 million and the FMERA office relocation fee of $3 million, per the terms of the Request for Offers to Purchase.
“When the Fort shut down, jobs disappeared, families moved away, and an empty, barren, Fort Monmouth served as a constant reminder of what we had lost,” Oceanport Mayor Jay Coffey said. “Netflix’s arrival allows for an incredibly advantageous and creative re-use of this property and will serve to restore a great deal of economic vitality and social energy to Oceanport and Monmouth County at large.”
