Stamford-based research and advisory firm Gartner Inc. repaid $5.6 million to the state of Connecticut earlier this year, closing out a 2019 economic development loan without seeking millions of dollars in potential loan forgiveness tied to job-retention and hiring goals.
The company borrowed $5 million from the state Department of Economic and Community Development under a Manufacturing Assistance Act agreement signed in February 2019. The financing supported an expansion of Gartner’s global headquarters in Stamford that state officials originally announced in 2018 as a project expected to accommodate 400 new jobs over five years.
At the time, Gartner said it employed more than 15,000 people globally, including more than 1,300 in Connecticut, and had leased additional space at 700 Fairfield Ave. for the expansion. The state said the $5 million loan would help pay for leasehold improvements and other expenses.
Under the final loan agreement, Gartner committed to retaining 1,385 full-time jobs and creating 300 additional positions by February 2026, according to DECD.
If Gartner met those employment requirements, it could have applied to have $3.75 million of the loan forgiven. The company could have qualified for forgiveness of the full $5 million principal if it created 100 jobs beyond the required 300, according to DECD.
Gartner did not apply for either level of forgiveness and instead repaid $5.6 million in April, satisfying the loan, DECD said. It is unclear why Gartner chose to repay the loan rather than seek forgiveness. The company did not respond to Hartford Business Journal requests for comment.
The repayment comes as Gartner has been reducing its global workforce. The company reported 19,285 employees as of June 30, down 8% from a year earlier, according to its most recent quarterly filing.
