Worcester’s Tim Murray: City should benefit from GE’s Boston move

Another 600 digital industrial product managers, designers and developers in GE’s digital, current, robotics and life sciences divisions will also move to Boston.

Following media reports Wednesday morning, GE later confirmed it will be moving its headquarters from Fairfield, Connecticut, to Boston’s Seaport District.

State Representative John Frey of Ridgefield, the Republican House Minority Whip, said he fought to keep GE in CT, and he believes GE’s departure will be “cataclysmic”.

In part in a statement, Malloy said “today’s decision is a clear signal that ct must continue to adapt to a changing business climate”.

Several states, including NY, have been competing to lure the company from Fairfield, Conn., since GE announced in June that it was unhappy about legislative tax proposals and thinking about a move. “They had nothing but praise about the governor and his staff”. The planned move is a blow to CT, which in December reduced corporate taxes to thwart criticism that the state is unfriendly to business.

The affect GE’s relocation will have on Connecticut’s economy and real estate properties, Hwang said, “are hard to calculate”. “Losing an internationally renowned company like GE is a big hit to the state”. Connecticut’s business community has expressed concern that the state would raise taxes to solve the pension issue.

Dannel Malloy expressed disappointment Wednesday that General Electric Co. would depart for Boston, but defended his administration’s record on jobs. In addition to focusing on investments in infrastructure and and higher-education to provide the talent necessary to meet the needs of high-tech employers, Malloy said the state will make an effort to focus on the needs of high-tech start-ups, small businesses and major employers in the state such as United Technologies. The state’s codes have become more complex and are particularly unfavorable for large corporations as CT has imposed a surtax on some businesses, said Jared Walczak, a policy analyst at the Washington-based research group.

“Boston is not a cheaper place to do business… and certainly it’s not a cheaper place form a cost-of-living standpoint for their employees to live”, Tetreau said. The CEO mentioned in particular the help received from the city of Boston and the state of MA, and the decision to sell the offices in Fairfield and NY.

“We want to be at the centre of an ecosystem that shares our aspirations” as a leader in digital-industrial activities, GE Chief Executive Jeffrey Immelt said in a statement. Boston is home to booming tech center as well as a wealth of universities in the city proper and surrounding areas.

GE workers build mainstay military and commercial jet engines and helicopter engines at the River Works complex wedged between the commuter rail tracks and Western Avenue.

In September, the Business Journal reported four potential sites in Westchester were being pitched to GE, all within 40 miles of its Fairfield campus.

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The $130 billion global industrial giant said it has been weighing a headquarters move for more than three years. About 800 people work at the headquarters.

“It seems to be a very much incentive-driven situation so I hope that works out well for the Commonwealth”, he said.