Business & Tech

DRS Technologies Moving out of Parsippany

Par-Troy-based defense contractor took the initiative to relocate its operations to Virginia.

Parsippany is losing another major ratable.

Seven months after it was announced that , , a defense contractor that saw about $3.2 billion in revenue last year, is moving its headquarters from 5 Sylvan Way to Crystal City in Virginia.

"We just needed to be closer to our customer," DRS spokesperson Brian Gallagher told Patch to explain its planned move. "We need to keep our finger on the pulse down in that area."

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DRS already has signed a seven-year lease for nearly 93,000 square feet of expanded space in Crystal City, which sits just outside Washington, D.C.

The company, headed by former U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Bill Lynn, is in line to receive a $1 million Virginia incentive through the Governor's Opportunity Fund.

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That grant, which would flow through Arlington County, Va., stipulates that the company add 125 new jobs over the next five years to the 26 it already has in Crystal City, and that DRS invest $12.8 million in renovations, furniture and equipment in the Old Dominion state.

The average salary of the new jobs is about $165,000, according to an Arlington County Board report.

Thirty-eight employees from New Jersey will move to Crystal City as part of DRS' overall consolidation of operations.

The company initiated talks with Virginia, which later brought in Arlington Economic Development. Arlington County sent a formal letter requesting the $1 million grant once negotiations were complete, according to Sindy Yeh, AED's business development manager.

DRS develops, manufactures and supports "a broad range of systems for mission critical and military sustainment requirements, as well as homeland security," the county board report states.

Parsippany's loss is a big gain for Virginia and Arlington County.

The county expects to see a 10-year commercial real estate tax benefit of about $693,000, plus $759,500 in personal property taxes, according to the board report.

The commonwealth of Virginia should see an $18 million benefit from the relocation, mostly from income and sales tax paid by the new workers.

The Arlington County Board is slated to approve final housekeeping measures for the state incentive on Saturday.

Patch awaits a response from Mayor James Barberio regarding the loss of another major Parsippany ratable and what effect DRS' move may have on the township.


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