William Mullen, president of the powerful and influential New Jersey State Building and Construction Trades Council, became the latest leader to speak out against the state joining a lawsuit against the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger, saying doing so jeopardizes the creation of 1888 Studios in Bayonne — one of the more significant economic development projects in the state in some time.
In a letter sent Sept. 17 to Attorney General Jennifer Davenport, Mullen wrote that New Jersey’s film and television tax credit has helped build a globally competitive industry, attract major investments from Netflix, Lionsgate, and Paramount, and generate substantial work hours for union tradesmen and tradeswomen through the construction of studios and related facilities.
Paramount’s commitment to serve as the anchor tenant at 1888 Studios “represents precisely the kind of long-term investment and job creation the State has worked to secure,” Mullen wrote. “Projects of this scale create years of meaningful work for union members while supporting apprenticeships and career pathways for the next generation of skilled tradespeople.”
Mullen’s council coordinates activity and provides resources to 15 affiliated trades unions, representing 13 local Building Trades Councils, more than 100 local unions and over 150,000 rank-and-file members, he noted in the letter.
“Our members have a direct and substantial interest in protecting major construction projects that provide family-sustaining careers and strengthen communities throughout New Jersey,” he wrote.
The 1888 Studios/Paramount campus is expected to become one of the nation’s largest film and television production facilities.
“Paramount has committed to occupying more than 285,000 square feet for at least a decade, and the project is covered by a project labor agreement that is expected to generate more than 2,600 union construction jobs,” Mullen wrote.
That agreement, Mullen added, “ensures that this significant body of work will be performed under established standards for wages, benefits, training, and workplace safety.”
“This represents a significant amount of work for the men and women of New Jersey’s building trades that could be jeopardized by this litigation. It would be deeply troubling for one arm of State government to place at risk the jobs and economic activity that other state entities have worked — and committed substantial public resources — to bring to New Jersey.”
Mullen joins a chorus of open opposition to the state joining the suit from business groups and elected officials.
Earlier this month, the African-American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey and the Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey both called on Davenport to withdraw from the suit.
“New Jersey has worked too hard — and invested too much public policy and taxpayer resources — to establish itself as a national center for film, television and the broader creative economy to allow litigation to jeopardize an opportunity of this magnitude,” John Harmon, CEO of the African-American Chamber, wrote in an op-ed.
John Lucas, CEO of the Hispanic chamber, said: “Main Street businesses that make film production possible, like construction, transportation, hospitality, and food services, will benefit as this industry expands in New Jersey.”
A group of Hudson County legislators — State Sens. Raj Mukherji, Brian Stack and Angela McKnight, and Assembly members Jerry Walker, William Sampson, Ravi Bhalla, Katie Brennan, Larry Wainstein and Gabriel Rodriguez, along with Hudson County Executive Craig Guy and Bayonne Mayor Sharon Ashe-Nadowski — made a similar case in an Aug. 31 op-ed in the New Jersey Globe.
The group called 1888 Studios “the most consequential economic development opportunity Hudson County has seen in half a century” and warned that “New Jersey taxpayer dollars are being committed to litigation whose merits appear uncertain while its potential costs to the state and to our economy continue to escalate.”
Tom Bracken, president and CEO of the New Jersey Chamber of Commerce, raised similar concerns in a Sept. 11 op-ed in BINJE, pairing the lawsuit with Burlington Stores’ decision to move its headquarters to Philadelphia as evidence the state is “sending another troubling signal to an industry we have spent years cultivating.”
Bracken called it “a mixed message” for New Jersey to court the entertainment industry with incentives while helping challenge a major transaction involving one of the companies it recruited.
Paramount signed a 10-year lease last October to occupy more than 285,000 square feet at 1888 Studios, then still under development by Togus Urban Renewal. The 58-acre campus is set to become the largest campus-style production facility in the Northeast, with more than 1.1 million square feet of space across 23 sound stages with a minimum of 40-foot clear ceilings, along with production support space, post-production space, offices, mills, base camp and backlot, and lighting and grip facilities.
Then-Gov. Phil Murphy, who pushed hard to build up the state’s film industry and its tax credit program, called the Paramount deal a validation of that effort.
“Paramount’s expansion into New Jersey, utilizing 1888 Studios’ large-scale, full-service production campus in Bayonne, reflects the incredible momentum of our state’s creative sector, solidifying our reputation as a global powerhouse in the entertainment industry,” Murphy said at the time. “By attracting world-class studios and productions, we are not only creating high-quality jobs, promoting infrastructure, and driving economic growth, but are also investing in our communities and elevating New Jersey as a national leader in entertainment.”
Davenport, appointed by Gov. Mikie Sherrill, joined a coalition of 12 attorneys general in July in filing the lawsuit against the Paramount-Warner Bros. deal, arguing it would raise prices, lower content quality and reduce the number of movies and TV shows available to consumers. Her office did not respond to the chambers’ comments earlier this month and has not yet responded to Mullen’s letter. It is not expected to do so.
Mullen made clear the trades council sees the stakes as urgent.
“We respectfully urge you to consider whether pursuing this action conflicts with the interests of the state entities it represents and risks undermining an investment New Jersey has spent years and substantial public resources securing,” he wrote. “We respectfully urge New Jersey to withdraw from this action and work toward a reasonable resolution that protects legitimate antitrust interests without jeopardizing this significant economic opportunity or undermining the interests of the state entities the Department represents.”
“In sum, we urge you to find a resolution or to withdraw New Jersey from this litigation before the economic consequences become irreversible.”
