Failed Bridgewater Associates Relocation to Stamford Cost State $16 Million

Despite two years of courtship and promises of financial aid and tax incentives, the world's largest hedge fund — Bridgewater Associates in Westport, has rebuffed state and local efforts to move its headquarters to Stamford.

The hedge fund, founded by Greenwich resident Ray Dalio, manages $150 billion in assets from its Westport headquarters. On June 27, the firm announced it wouldn't build a new $750 million headquarters on developer Building Land Technology's (BLT) site in Stamford.

A Bridgewater spokesman told the Fairfield County Business Journal that time constraints and the cost of completing the project at Harbor Point factored into the decision.

The state spent $16 million in taxpayer money to clean up the contaminated land on Stamford' waterfront — money that neither the developer nor Bridgewater is obligated to repay, according to The Hartford Courant.

Department of Economic and Community Development Spokesman Jim Watson told The Courant, "DECD funded $16 million in environmental remediation activities and bulkhead replacement. There is no obligation for repayment, but BLT cannot sell, lease or transfer the property without DECD's written consent."

Meanwhile, Bridgewater reportedly received approval from the Westport Planning and Zoning Board to make improvements to its space there, according to The Advocate. Bridgewater has about 1,400 employees and would have been required to add 1,000 more positions if it accepted the state financial package to move to Stamford.