Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) broke ground on June 27, 2005 on a life sciences and bioengineering center in Worcester, Mass. Sited on a former industrial brownfield, the 14-story center is the first facility in a planned 11-acre life sciences development called Gateway Parklife sciences park. WPI's 124,600-sf center is slated for completion in early 2007 and will accommodate laboratories, support facilities, and a renovated industrial building housing meeting rooms and offices. Programs to be located in the center include the school's Bioengineering Institute as well as graduate research in life sciences, biology, biotechnology, biomedical engineering, chemistry, and biochemistry. WPI will occupy 75 percent of the new center with the remaining space to be leased to commercial organizations. Over $35 million will be invested in the project by WPI and the Worcester Business Development Corp.
