Payment firm Billtrust moving to Lawrenceville, adding 200 jobs

Payment-cycle software company Billtrust is moving to Lawrenceville.

Billtrust expects to create 200 new jobs and retain 228 employees in connection with Grow New Jersey tax credits awarded by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

Vision Real Estate Partners arranged a 90,000-square-foot lease with the company at 1009 Lenox Drive in the Princeton Pike Corporate Center.

Mountain Lakes’ VREP has done a multimillion-dollar revitalization of the eight-building, 817,000-square-foot campus, which is focused on fostering productive workplaces and personal fulfillment in a distinctive work/play environment.

VREP was represented by Steve Tolkach, executive managing director with Newmark Knight Frank. Bradford Fenlon, executive managing director with Colliers International, represented Billtrust.

“Our site search for Billtrust involved more than 80 properties in a 30-mile radius,” Fenlon said. “We looked at existing office buildings, build-to-suit opportunities, raw land and adaptive reuse sites. Ultimately, 1009 Lenox Drive was the clear top choice. This property offered signage on (Interstate) 95 and expansion potential to nearly double Billtrust’s square footage moving forward. Additionally, the amenity package at Princeton Pike is unsurpassed by any of its regional competitors, providing Billtrust with the ability to offer its employees an environment that promotes work/life balance.”

Billtrust, based in Hamilton Township, Mercer County, will establish its new 88,759-square-foot headquarters at the Class A office campus. The firm chose to remain in Mercer County over a competing location in Warminster, Pennsylvania, and it will consolidate from two leased facilities.

“Billtrust is a forward-thinking company focused on its employees, and they recognized the value and quality of this location,” said Sam Morreale, VREP’s founder and managing partner. “We embraced their corporate culture and integrated it with cutting-edge real estate design, providing a functional space VREP provides asset management and operational support for Princeton Pike, whose high-profile tenants include Sirius XM Radio, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo Advisors, Stark & Stark, Princeton Healthcare Services, Fox Rothschild LLP and MetLife Solutions Group.”

The capital improvements made there include newly renovated lobbies and common areas, outdoor seating, substantially upgraded landscaping and rebranded signage and way-finding throughout the park. A network of pedestrian walkways provides connectivity to the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail, and a dedicated recreation area features a professional volleyball court with electronic scoreboard, a frisbee golf course, putting green and bocce court. An onsite Hilton Garden Inn and restaurant is currently under development.

“We are no longer in the office space business,” Morreale said. “We’re creating bright, accessible, sustainable workplaces where inside and outside spaces blend seamlessly into a single environment.”

Princeton Pike is just minutes from downtown Princeton and equal distance from both Manhattan and Philadelphia. It is close proximity to the active I-95 corridor.

“It is critical for us to be in the Central New Jersey/Philadelphia corridor, and this property, along with the incentives from the state, made it an easy decision to stay in Mercer County,” Billtrust Chief Financial Officer Ed Jordan said. “Our new location and building has everything we need to attract new employees from a deep talent pool while giving our current employees exciting new amenities.”