By Javon Roach CoStar Research
Looking to capitalize on Philadelphia’s emergence as a national hub for cell and gene therapy, Gattuso Development and project partner Vigilant Holdings of New York have secured a $290 million construction loan to build an 11-story life science research and lab facility at 3201 Cuthbert Street in the center of Philadelphia’s University City submarket.
SmartLabs, a Boston-based Laboratory-as-a-Service (LaaS) firm, had previously committed to occupy a portion of the new facility for its first location outside of San Francisco or Boston, demonstrating the strength of the Philadelphia life sciences market, which JLL ranked fifth in the nation in its 2022 Life Sciences Lab Real Estate Outlook.
Corebridge Financial is financing the deal, with an additional equity commitment through The Baupost Group. SmartLabs and Drexel University have pre-leased a combined 45% of the lab space in the new building set for completion in 2025.
3201 Cuthbert Street is located at the center of Drexel University’s campus. Drexel leased the site to the developers under a long-term agreement. The new facility will include R&D, vivarium, and manufacturing suites with SmartLabs occupying two floors in the building.
Designed by Robert A.M. Stern Architects to achieve LEED® Gold-certification, the building will encompass nearly 520,000 square feet of wet lab and dry space, 11,908 square feet of street-level retail space, and 137 underground parking stalls, making it the largest life sciences research and lab facility in the city.
Additional lab-friendly design elements include expanded floor-to-floor heights, an HVAC system designed specifically for lab research, dedicated chemical storage space and ph-neutralization capability, six enclosed loading docks, and additional storage for tenant equipment and vertical shaft infrastructure.
University City has emerged as a center of Philadelphia’s life sciences market, becoming a global hub for specialized gene and cell therapy, the 2.4 square-mile University City neighborhood is home to one of the largest concentrations of health systems, teaching institutions, life sciences, biotech and pharmaceutical companies in the world.
“We appreciate the chance to work with the great team at JLL to complete the capital stack for this important project,” said John Gattuso, Gattuso’s president, and co-founder said in a statement. “We believe the project validates Philadelphia’s emergence as a global hub for life sciences research, and we are excited to begin construction.”
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.