Foil: Your right to Know.
“Avon’s former research and development site in Rockland has been purchased by Regeneron, a Westchester County-based powerhouse biotech pharmaceutical firm.
According to a deed filed with the Rockland County Clerk’s Office on Dec. 20, the $38.875 million sale of the site at 1 Avon Place in Suffern includes nearly 10 acres.
Regeneron plans to invest another $100 million in renovations at the location, according to Rockland County Industrial Development Agency documents.
“They are one of the best companies we have here in New York State,” said Rockland Business Association CEO Al Samuels of Regeneron. “This is just tremendous for western Rockland County.”
Avon in village since 1897
Avon announced its plans to close the Suffern site in 2022, with an 18-month timetable laid out then. Layoffs of its Rockland team started this year.
With a presence in the village since 1897, Avon once employed as many as 1,500 at the site. The current employment numbers for the site are estimated below 150.
The Suffern facility was among Avon’s last in the U.S. and the work done at the site was being relocated to Brazil and Poland. “Avon didn’t leave the Hudson Valley or New York,” Samuels said. “Avon left this country.”
Avon:Cosmetics giant closing Suffern facility, moving to Brazil, Poland after 125 years
The Regeneron project is expected to create approximately 230 new full-time jobs by 2026, when extensive renovations are finished.
Suffern Mayor Michael Curley said Regeneron told him the jobs would pay around $125,000 to $175,000 a year. “There’s a lot of good things happening in downtown Suffern.”
Curley said his village has negotiated a community benefit worth $100,000 a year for the next four years, on top of the property taxes that will be paid. The expansion at Regeneron and planned development at the former Novartis property, Curley said, will facilitate the need for at least one new firetruck and may add needs for first responder services.
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