Merrill Lynch was here and fired a huge chunk of the JC crew, so now they want to come back?

Posturing with landlords (renovation incentives) and NYC (tax incentives). They're not going anywhere.

I don't see them really leaving Manhattan but it would be great for Jersey City if they move all or some of their offices here.

http://www.curbed.com/ -- See the first link on Curbed entitled:

"Merrill Lynch may leave NYC for 'hot to trot' NJ"

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Merrill Lynch may leave NYC

Merrill Lynch & Co. may decide within six months whether to remain in lower Manhattan, relocate to midtown or even New Jersey.
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Julie Satow -- Crains' Business -- Nov. 10, 2006

Merrill Lynch & Co. may decide within six months whether to remain in lower Manhattan?where it has been based since its founding in 1914?or relocate to midtown or even to the suburbs.

The giant securities firm has hired a broker, and Chief Executive E. Stanley O?Neal has met with New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine, who is expected to make a strong effort to lure the company to his state.

?We are in the midst of evaluating our options, given that we have impending lease expiration,? says a Merrill spokeswoman.

At stake is the headquarters of a firm with $48 billion in revenues and with more than 9,000 highly paid staffers downtown, who are spread out across 3 million square feet of space. Merrill?s lease at the World Financial Center, where it occupies all of Tower 4 and a portion of Tower 2, will expire in 2013. Merrill also owns its former headquarters building at 222 Broadway, on the other side of Ground Zero, where it occupies 660,000 square feet.

Remaining at the World Financial Center is a possibility, but a problematic one. Merrill has occupied the bulk of that space for nearly 20 years, and while there have been updates to the company?s cavernous trading floor?a key part of the headquarters operation?it is no longer state-of-the-art. Undertaking the necessary renovations would be expensive and disruptive.

Merrill has hired brokerage firm Jones Lang LaSalle and begun the search so early because its space requirements are so large that no single existing building in the city would fill the bill. Complicating matters, the investment bank needs a huge open floorplate able to accommodate its trading floor.

Merrill could possibly move to one of the four buildings expected to rise at the World Trade Center over the next few years. However, brokers say that the company has already ruled out a move to the Freedom Tower, the site?s centerpiece.

Midtown options include a new building that could be developed on the site of the Hotel Pennsylvania. The property, on Seventh Avenue across from Madison Square Garden, is owned by Vornado Realty Trust. There is also the possibility of a long-discussed new building above the Port Authority Bus Terminal, at Eighth Avenue and West 42nd Street. Lawrence Ruben Co. began talks with the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey earlier this year about such a project.

Merrill will likely look at Hudson Yards on the far West Side, but unless the No. 7 subway line is extended, the area will continue to have inadequate access to public transportation.

What worries city and state officials is the prospect that Merrill could leave New York altogether. Brokers say the investment bank has already looked at locations in Connecticut, where there are plenty of alternatives, as is the case in New Jersey.

News of Merrill?s possible move has triggered a quiet scramble among suitors in neighboring states.

?New Jersey is hot to trot,? says one real estate industry insider familiar with the discussions. A call to Mr. Corzine?s office was not returned.

Given the flexibility of modern-day investment banking, New York City officials have reason to be concerned.

?Merrill Lynch could move its trading business from Manhattan,? says David Arena, president of the New York region for Grubb & Ellis. ?It already operates successfully in New Jersey, and other firms?like UBS and the Royal Bank of Scotland in Connecticut?have proved that you can trade in locations other than New York City.?

If Merrill departs, it would be a blow to downtown?s status as a financial hub. Lehman Brothers, Morgan Stanley and J.P. Morgan Chase moved their headquarters out of downtown long ago, but they still have huge offices there.

At this point, Merrill is likely to sit back and let various city and state governments compete for the honor of hosting a top Wall Street player?and for the huge accompanying flow of tax payments. That approach worked well for Goldman Sachs. In exchange for agreeing last year to build a $2 billion, 2-million-square-foot headquarters at the northern tip of Battery Park City, the bank is receiving $150 million in city and state tax breaks and $1.6 billion in federally subsidized Liberty Bonds.

John Cahill, Gov. George Pataki?s downtown czar, said at the time the Goldman deal was inked that he believed that Goldman?s continuing presence in lower Manhattan would help keep Merrill there.

Calls to the city about Merrill?s plans were not returned. A spokesman for Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, who represents lower Manhattan, says that Mr. Silver was unaware of Merrill?s possible departure. He adds, ?He will contact the company and do everything he can to ensure it remains in lower Manhattan.?