Research and Development

The California Department of Justice has opened a sophisticated new $18-million, 68,000-sf crime lab at Point Richmond to help identify suspects through their DNA for previously unsolved crimes. Housed at the new lab are 141 scientists, the Cal DNA Data Bank, the Missing Persons DNA program, and the Cold Hit program, which compares crime scene evidence with the DNA of known qualifying offenders to identify suspects in unsolved crimes. The lab’s database of 210,000 DNA samples is the country’s largest.

The International Genomics Consortium (IGC), a non-profit medical research organization, plans to decide the location of its administrative headquarters in summer 2002. Among states under consideration are Arizona, Texas, Maryland, and Georgia. The genomics consortium will house research labs, administrative offices and a center coordinating off-site research. The IGC utilizes data from the Human Genome Project to search for cures for disease.

South Texas Medical Center has planned $136 million in capital projects for the current year, with projects totalling $165 million planned for the next five years. Ground was broken on the Children's Cancer Research Center, a $50-million facility providing space for up to 18 principal researchers and their staff. The Children's Cancer Center is part of a $67-million development at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, which will also include an academic administration and student services facility.

Defense contractor Raytheon is considering the sale of its Lexington, Mass. headquarters due to the 41-year-old facility's expensive operating costs. Raytheon plans to decide by year-end whether to seek another Boston area location or to upgrade its existing headquarters, which include the commercial electronics main office, a research lab, and two buildings housing corporate staff.

Pasadena, Calif.-based Alexandria Real Estate is developing 50,000 sf in Cambridge as speculative, generic lab space. Built out to between 80 percent and 100 percent completion, 790 Memorial Drive will facilitate quick move-in of early-stage life science companies. The project site is being developed for Alexandria by Spaulding & Sly of Boston and is located behind Polaroid Corp.'s headquarters.

The Alameda Center for Environmental Technologies (ACET) is seeking U.S. Department of Commerce approval and funding for a $6-million expansion of its facilities at the former Alameda Naval Air Station. The independent incubator was founded in the early 1990's by CSU-Hayward and the U.S. Department of Commerce and currently provides below-market rents for 15,000 sf of chemistry labs and meeting facilities. ACET plans to expand its lab space from 8,800 sf to over 30,000 sf, quadrupling its lab facilities over the next two years. 

The Harvard Institutes of Medicine in collaboration with Lyme Properties LLC is proposing the construction of the Blackfan Research Center—a  400,000-sf biomedical research facility for academic research institutions in Boston’s Longwood Medical Area. The 18-story structure would accommodate 280,000 sf of lab space for research and 120,000 sf of office space, and provide below-ground parking for 300 vehicles. Pending permit approvals by the end of 2002, Lyme hopes to begin construction by mid-2003, with completion in 2005.

Food Safety Net Services Ltd. of San Antonio has purchased 10 acres in Grand Prairie, Texas, as the site of a food-testing lab to be relocated form Richardson, Texas. With construction to begin in 60 to 90 days, completion is slated for October, 2002. Fort Worth-based Dobbins & Crow Architects was selected to design the 12,000-sf lab, which is a significant expansion from Food Safety Net's 2,000 sf in Richardson.

Cerilliant Corp., a provider of chemical services and samples, is expanding its operations with a move to Round Rock, Texas, from Austin. Currently housed in a cramped 12,000 sf, Cerilliant will occupy 32,000 sf of the 40,000-sf AmorRon 3 building. Slated for late April, the move will involve substantial improvements including construction of an extensive laboratory facility. The relocation was prompted by a need for more space to accommodate current and projected company growth.

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute, based in Chevy Chase, Md., has selected Rafael Vinoly Architects of New York to design its planned $500-million Loudon County research campus at Janelia Farm. The 750,000-sf project will accommodate research labs, conference facilities, and will provide more than 100 visitors with dormitory housing. Scientific staff at the complex is expected to reach 200. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2003, with completion in early 2006.

Incyte Genomics Inc., based in Palo Alto, Calif., will move into 53,100 sf at DuPont’s Stine-Haskell Research Center in Newark while the biotech company searches for a permanent East Coast facility for its therapeutic discovery and development work. Incyte hopes to secure approximately 90,000 sf of research, lab, and office space to accommodate 140 R&D staff in the next two years, and a total of 200 employees by 2005. Biotech and pharmaceutical companies, as well as research and academic institutions, use Incyte’s genomics technologies and products.

Amgen, based in Thousand Oaks, Calif., is considering locations in Research Triangle Park for a new $500-million, 250,000-sf facility. The project would include at least 250,000 sf for biological manufacturing, clinical, and development operations. The biotech company is expanding at its other locations as well. A 92,000-sf research center opened in Cambridge, Mass., late last year; two drug R&D buildings and a parking garage are being added in Thousand Oaks; and the company plans to expand manufacturing at its 232-acre site in Longmont, Colo.

Lockheed-Martin plans to occupy at least two buildings at a new four-building office park under construction in Mount Laurel. The developer of the 400,000-sf complex is Whitesell Construction Co. Inc. of Delran, Penn.

Kosan Biosciences may lease a two-story, 85,000-sf facility in San Francisco's Mission Bay. Developed by Catellus Development, the building stands adjacent to new University of California San Francisco facilities. Kosan, a Hayward, Calif.-based biotech firm that is alternately considering remaining in Hayward, has nearly 100 employees and a cancer compound in early clinical trials. Construction on the Mission Bay facility will begin in July 2002 if the lease is signed.

The Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center is seeking up to 150,000 sf in San Francisco for its new home. The Emeryville, Calif.-based clinic has considered Catellus Development's Mission Bay and some south of Market locations. Proximity to research and funding collaborator UCSF is a factor in the possible relocation to San Francisco. The Gallo Clinic performs research in neuroscience, cell biology, molecular biology, pharmacology, and biochemistry, seeking genetic keys and therapies for alcohol and drug abuse.