Philidor's closure to hit Horsham office market hard

An eventual closure of a Montgomery County specialty pharmaceutical distributor will create a significant vacancy in the suburban community's office submarket.

Philidor Rx Services leases more than 232,000 square feet of space in four buildings between Hatboro, Pa., and Horsham, Pa.

Of that space, 200,000 square feet are in 400 Lakeside Drive, 300-309 Lakeside Drive and 507 Prudential Road; all buildings that are owned by Liberty Property Trust (NYSE: LPT), according to a company spokeswoman. Philidor leases another 32,500 square feet at Station Park at 330 Warminster Road in Hatboro, where it opened its headquarters in September 2013.

Philidor Rx Services announced Nov. 2 that it would wind down its operations amid allegations of financial and business improprieties. The specialty pharmaceutical distributor was involved with Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, which had purchased an option to acquire Philidor Rx late last year. Valeant decided this fall to sever all ties with Philidor.

Real estate observers expect all of Philidor’s space to come back on the Horsham submarket.

And more is on the way.

Another 125,000 square feet of space will be vacated at 720 Blairmill Road and 602 Office Center Drive when AmeriHealth Administrators relocates its 476 employees to Center City in January. The Independence Blue Cross affiliate filed with the Pennsylvania Department of Industry and Labor that it would be moving those employees.

The vacancies come at a time when some inroads were being made in Horsham, which took some hits during the recession. It’s also at a time when Liberty Property has reportedly entered into a deal to sell its Horsham office portfolio in a transaction valued at more than $100 million.

It couldn’t be determined what affect, if any, the Philidor exposure could have on that deal since some of the buildings leased to Philidor are part of the sale.

Philidor was formed in 2013 and grew at a fast pace. Based on the space it was leasing, the specialty pharma company was expecting to continue on that trajectory. Sources said it had not moved into some of the space it had leased.

Though it tried to keep a low profile, it became a familiar name when its involvement with Valeant Pharmaceuticals was disclosed and prompted the pharmaceutical benefit management divisions at CVS Health Corp. and Express Scripts to remove Philidor from its network of pharmacies after audits of the company’s practices. The company couldn’t be reached for comment.

Source: Philadelphia Business Journal