Nokia to take over Motorola's Arlington Hts campus

Nokia Siemens Networks is expected to fully own and occupy Motorola Inc.'s campus in Arlington Heights by early 2011 after Nokia's acquisition of Motorola's wireless network infrastructure assets are completed, a Motorola chief said Thursday.

“They'll take all the buildings,” Motorola co-CEO Greg Brown told the Daily Herald during a phone interview. Brown will lead Motorola Solutions after its spinoff at that same time.

In early 2009, Motorola had hired Jones Lang LaSalle to marketing the buildings on Shure Drive near Dundee Road and Route 53, but the real estate market was depressed and few prospects jumped at the offer.

Then last July, Nokia Siemens and Motorola said they had signed a $1.2 billion deal where Nokia would take over the wireless network infrastructure part of the business.

This leaves Schaumburg to become Motorola Solutions' business headquarters and Libertyville to house operations for Motorola Mobility. A downtown Chicago office also will remain in use.

Brown also said further “modest cost reductions” will be necessary after that Nokia acquisition, which are now happening. Some work force reductions may be necessary, but he declined to be more specific.

“Some costs will need to be absorbed as a result,” Brown said of the Nokia deal. “But it will have a minimal impact on Chicago.”

On the Motorola Mobility side, CEO Sanjay Jha said Libertyville “with 100 percent certainty” will remain a part of the phone business, but he still is mulling the relocation of the headquarters with about 100 to 200 workers.

He continues to consider San Diego or San Jose, Calif., Austin, Texas and Chicago. He declined to say which may be selected until a firm decision is made closer to the spinoff.

In the meantime, both businesses are preparing for next-generation products. Motorola Solutions sees a higher-speed broadband service that provides full motion video and other features for fire and police officers, while Motorola Mobility will continue its Android handsets and deliver its tablet next year.