General Electric has begun marketing its Fairfield campus for sale through real estate broker CBRE.
The broker has “reached out to potential buyers and shared some basic information about the campus and its buildings,” said GE spokesperson Susan Bishop.
There is no price listed in conjunction with the marketing and GE is not providing a price range, although the two office buildings and the hotel on the property are assessed at approximately $59 million.
GE announced in January its plans to abandon what had been its corporate home since 1974, and is in the process of relocating its headquarters to Boston.
The 66.8-acre property at 3135 Easton Tpke. includes two Class A office buildings totaling just under 500,000 square feet, a 28-room full service hotel and meeting facility, two fitness centers, a medical center and walking trails. Bishop said the campus is being sold “”˜as is, where is”™  ̶  meaning in its current condition with its existing R-3 zoning, any zoning or physical modifications will be the responsibility of the buyer.”
GE declined to identify the potential buyers that have been contacted, while CBRE brokers Jeffrey Dunne, Gene Pride and Steven Bardsley did not return calls for comment.
One party that will be active in the bidding is Fairfield”™s Kleban Properties, which in March announced an exclusive agreement with Fairfield University to renovate and develop the property as a high-tech hub that would encompass health care-related technology, an executive education center, and additional features aimed at drawing big-name corporations to Fairfield.
“I”™m prepared to offer whatever it takes ”” within reason ”” to buy it,” chairman Albert Kleban said at that time.
A Kleban Properties spokesperson said that the company has signed a confidentiality agreement and plans to visit the property with its engineers and architects over the next few weeks to evaluate the structures. She confirmed that, if successful, Kleban plans to “actively pursue” the aforementioned redevelopment plan.
