CA Technologies quietly moves headquarters to Manhattan

Software giant CA Technologies, which for decades has been one of Long Island's largest companies, has quietly moved its headquarters to Manhattan.

After 22 years of calling Islandia home, the company filed paperwork last month with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission listing a new address: 520 Madison Ave.

In many ways, the move is a formality. CA's top executives have been based in Manhattan for years. And the company says it has no plans to reduce operations at its sprawling glass-and-steel facility in Islandia, where it employs nearly 1,400 people.

"The change simply reflects the current location of our CEO and executive team and nothing more," said Jennifer Hallahan, a CA spokeswoman.

Yet, however subtle, the move adds finality to an evolution that's been long in the making, officially shifting CA's center of gravity off Long Island. And that's a blow to the local corporate landscape.

CA, which makes software for companies and large institutions, was the Island's biggest company by stock market value, now worth $12.54 billion. It is the region's most prominent homegrown tech success. And officials hoped CA would be a key player in the effort to nurture local startups.

"They are a huge part of the business community and a huge part of the technology community," said Mark Lesko, executive director of Accelerate Long Island, which promotes local startups. "Hopefully they remain a big part of Long Island. Hopefully this move is just symbolic."

SEE PHOTOSSee who got hired, promoted on LI

CA joins a parade of once-local companies that have moved their headquarters or folded, including Arrow Electronics, Gentiva Health Services Inc., and American Home Mortgage Investment Corp. All told, more than 30 Long Island companies that were traded on major exchanges have either moved, failed or been bought since 2007.

Not all those have led to big job losses. Arrow, for instance, still employs more than 500 people here after moving its headquarters to Denver in 2011.

Yet jobs are not the only measure of loss, said Kevin Law, president of the Long Island Association. When a headquarters leaves, top executives follow -- leaving them less likely to volunteer at local nonprofits. And, Law said, once an office loses its "headquarters" status, it becomes dispensable.

"When the CEO lives here on the Island, you feel secure that the company is anchored here. That changes if they leave," said Law, who has urged state officials to offer CA incentives to stay in Islandia.

For its part, CA says it remains committed to Long Island. Islandia is a key research and development hub and CA's second-largest location, behind a 2,000-worker facility in Hyderabad, India.

News of the new headquarters wasn't entirely a surprise.

For years, local leaders have braced themselves for CA's departure. The company sold the Islandia property in 2006 but has continued to lease the space. Neither of the past two chief executives live on Long Island. And they both opted to work primarily in Manhattan, where CA has space for about 100 employees.

Now the move there is official.

LEAVING LI ROOTS

Other major changes among local companies disclosed this year:

Adecco, a global staffing company, is moving its North American headquarters from Melville to Jacksonville, Florida.

Sbarro LLC, a pizza chain, is leaving its Melville headquarters for Columbus, Ohio.

Aeroflex Holding Corp., the Plainview aerospace manufacturer, is being bought by a British company.

Bovie Medical Corp. has left its Melville headquarters for Westchester County.