$900M Film, TV Campus Eyed in NJ

This project expands the pipeline of planned production facilities in the New York City area.

1888 Studios aerial view. Rendering courtesy of Turner Construction Co./Gensler

Turner Construction Co. has agreed to build a new film and television studio in Bayonne, N.J., on the site of a former Texaco refinery. The developer—Togus Urban Renewal LLC—is planning to invest as much as $900 million into the project, according to an announcement by Bayonne officials.

Dubbed 1888 Studios, after the year when the movie camera was invented, the development will encompass 60 acres, with 1.5 million square feet of production and supporting space planned.

Last year, Gensler proposed a series of designs for the upcoming project. Turner will construct a total of 17 buildings, including soundstages, support and flex office space, along with mills and workshops. The construction phase, set to begin in 2023’s first quarter, is expected to create 2,000 unionized jobs, according to the same announcement. Plans also entail the redevelopment of 6 acres into parkland and a waterfront walkway, which are set to serve public purposes.


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The upcoming 1888 Studios campus is situated on the southwest corner of Bergen Point, West of Avenue A. Togus expects to bring the campus online in the second quarter of 2025, and create between 2,100 and 3,000 permanent jobs, depending on production levels. The developer already spent $60 million on adding clean fill to the soil, which presented environmental issues due to its past usage as a refinery. Apart from permanent jobs, the studio will also offer an apprenticeship program to students at Bayonne School District, according to the Hudson Reporter.

Economic impact

Beyond the creation of new jobs, the development will also have direct economic benefits for the City of Bayonne. Under a financial agreement, the studios will make more than $200 million in payments-in-lieu of taxes (PILOTs) over a 30-year period—$130 million of which are projected to go directly to the city. The developer will spend $50 million for public-area improvements, including the waterfront park and its walkway.

PILOT agreements were calculated based on the project’s square footage, according to Mike Hanley, principal at NW Financial Group—Bayonne City’s financial advisor. Annual payments will begin at $7 million and grow to $31 million, according to the announcement made by city officials.

The Hudson Reporter reported that the current project has been in the works for the past 18 months. However, the city has been considering redevelopment plans for the site since 2004. In 2015, the City Council amended the plans to permit more uses. In 2019 and 2020, plans were amended once again, finally landing on a film studio.

Demand to outpace supply in NYC

Demand for film and television production space has increased dramatically over the past decade. During the pandemic, streaming services have increased in popularity even more, accelerating demand to record heights. Major production areas like New York and Los Angeles are seeing significant investments into the sector.

According to a recent Deloitte report, demand for production space in the New York City area is projected to outpace supply by approximately 19 percent. New York currently has roughly 1.7 million square feet of production space across 126 stages, the same report shows. Another large project was recently announced in Yonkers, as National Resources secured $230 million in refinancing to develop the 500,000-square-foot Lionsgate Studio Yonkers. Plans call for 11 soundstages across 1 million square feet, with production spaces ranging from 10,000 to 30,000 square feet.

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