Industry News

Comcast Corp. opened its 86,000-sf call center in Irving, Texas in early June 2004. The facility will accommodate 450 employees, including local technical operations teams, managers, and customer service workers.

Cryo-Cell, a stem cell banking firm offering cord blood preservation, will occupy an 18,000-sf plant in Oldsmar, Fla. Developed by Harrod Properties, the facility will reach completion by late summer of 2004. Built to comply with federal regulations for good manufacturing practices for human cellular and tissue-based products, the facility will include a cleanroom and space for clinical services, administration, marketing, and processing of cord blood stem cells. The plant will be sited less than five miles from Cryo-Cell’s Clearwater, Fla., headquarters.

Arizona State University is planning to develop the 1.2 million-sf  Scottsdale R&D Center on the 42-acre Los Arcos Mall parcel in Scottsdale, Ariz. To be constructed over the next 5 to 8 years, the $385-million center will focus on biosciences, engineering, and the arts.

Edison Community College is planning an $85-million facility on its Piqua, Fla., campus. Designed to accommodate “Regional Centers of Excellence,” the facility will house the Center for Business and Technology Innovation and Training, the Fine and Performing Arts Center, a library, and a learning center. Completion is expected in early 2007.

Electronics Boutique , the world’s largest retailer of electronic games, broke ground on a $13-million distribution center in Coatesville, Sadsbury Township, Pa. in early May 2004. The 315,000-sf facility will house 500 employees, with operations consolidated from two other sites. An additional 337 jobs will be added at the site over the next three years. Electronics Boutique is headquartered in West Chester, Pa.