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Chrisproulx98 t1_jbdawxc wrote

Besides what the others have said, they made a deal with the city 40 years ago to stay if the city improved transportation (Rt18) and the city in general. Since then New Brunswick Tomorrow has very effectively rebuilt much of the city, added many high rise apartments etc. There are eateries of all types, theaters, hotels, hospitals etc that are walking distance to JnJ and infrastructure. Meanwhile, Rutgers has expanded in many directions which includes a school of pharmacy.

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LilSebastainIsMyPony t1_jbdpop4 wrote

Yup! Plus they have the leeway to keep their campus exactly how they want it. If you look carefully at the curbs and sidewalks all around J&J’s headquarters, you’ll notice the curbs are Belgian block, which is difficult to maintain. They made a deal with the city that they could have it there if they maintained it. The headquarters was designed by I.M. Pei (or more accurately his colleague Henry M Cobb, chairman of the Harvard University Graduate School of Design), and Pei contributed significantly to a fresh master plan for the city in 1974. To my knowledge, J&J has been a pretty solid partner to the city for decades now and encourages its employees to spend time volunteering in the local community. I’m guessing they probably like being a big deal in New Brunswick. (I don’t have any particular knowledge on the J&J side, just family in urban planning in New Brunswick.)

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