9. Property and Equipment

Property and equipment, net, consist of the following:

	July 28, 2012			July 30, 2011
Property and Equipment:	(millions)
Land	$	29.4		$	16.5
Buildings and improvements		53.1			78.0
Leasehold improvements		453.0			332.0
Furniture, fixtures and equipment		335.1			271.3
Information technology		182.7			148.8
Construction in progress		72.0			36.6
		1,125.3			883.2
Less accumulated depreciation		(451.1	)		(394.2	)
Property and equipment, net	$	674.2		$	489.0

The increase in property and equipment is partially due to the Charming Shoppes Acquisition, which was consummated on June 14, 2012. See Note 5 for further reference.

Buildings

Sale of New York Facility

In May 2012, the Company sold its 900,000 square-foot building and 16 acres of adjacent land (the “New York Facility”) in Suffern, NY, which contains Ascena and dressbarn’s administrative offices and the former warehouse space of dressbarn, for approximately $40.0 million. Simultaneously, the Company entered into a two-year leaseback for a minor portion of the building of approximately 124,000 square-feet of office space, which is cancelable at any time subject to a 10-day notice period. The transaction resulted in a pretax gain of approximately $6.9 million, which has been classified in SG&A expenses, within operating income, in the accompanying consolidated statement of operations for Fiscal 2012.

Purchase of New Jersey Office Building

In April 2012, the Company purchased a 137,000 square-foot building in Mahwah, NJ, for $14.6 million. Upon completion of the Company’s planned renovations and expansion, which are anticipated to be completed by the end of calendar 2013, the building will become the new administrative offices for Ascena and the dressbarn brand.

As an incentive for the Company to relocate its offices to New Jersey, the Company was approved, under the Grow New Jersey Assistance Program, for up to an annual $3.2 million tax credit for ten years, aggregating to an amount no greater than $32.4 million. The tax credits are subject to certain requirements including: (i) a required capital expenditure spending threshold for qualified improvements to the facility, (ii) the continued maintenance of certain employee levels for ten years in the new facility and in the State of New Jersey, and (iii) certain average employee compensation thresholds, as well as other stated requirements. In the event the Company fails to comply with the program rules, the credit will be suspended starting in the year when the Company fails to comply and until the Company is deemed again to be in compliance by the State of New Jersey, at which time it will be reinstated. The credits obtained from the program will be used by the Company to reduce its annual New Jersey corporate income tax liability and tax provision and, to the extent not used, carried forward or sold to a third party for an amount not less than 75% of face value.

In addition to the incentives described above to relocate its offices to New Jersey, the Company was approved, under the Business Employment Incentive Program, to receive an annual cash grant for up to ten years based on the number of new jobs created in New Jersey. The grant is available up to a maximum of $50 thousand per employee over the course of the grant, subject to certain restrictions. In particular, the grant is subject to certain limits based on the amount of employee income taxes withheld and the number of new positions created, and is also subject to certain claw back provisions based on the length of time employment is sustained in New Jersey. These cash grants are expected to total between $4 and $6 million over the ten-year grant period.