Miami’s Big Bet on Biotech

Recognizing that a truly international city requires a diverse economy capable of riding out down cycles, Miami is now turning to the life sciences and biotechnology sector as the proverbial “third-leg” of the economic stool – with the region’s proximity to the Americas playing a key role in that plan. At the center of this ‘big bet on biotech’ is the University of Miami Life Science & Technology Park (UMLSTP), a state-of-the-art research complex underway in Miami’s Health District. A predominantly privately-funded project developed in association with the University of Miami, the park is drawing interest among knowledge-based research and product development teams seeking to advance the creation and commercialization of life science and technology products, services, and treatments. To learn more, read the below byline article by Joe Reagan, which appeared in the October issue of Real Estate Forum magazine.

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Miami Bets Big on Biotech

By Joe Reagan

For years, South Florida’s business and civic leaders have been promoting Miami as a “gateway city.” But the region’s economic reliance on the tourism and residential real estate industries has meant that when the economy recedes – as was the case over the past two years – Miami finds itself waiting out the downturn until the next boom. Recognizing that a truly international city requires a diverse economy capable of riding out down cycles, Miami is now turning to the life sciences and biotechnology sector as the proverbial “third-leg” of the economic stool – with the region’s proximity to the Americas playing a key role in that plan.

 At the center of this ‘big bet on biotech’ is the University of Miami Life Science & Technology Park (UMLSTP), a state-of-the-art research complex underway in Miami’s Health District. A predominantly privately-funded project developed in association with the University of Miami, the park is drawing interest among knowledge-based research and product development teams seeking to advance the creation and commercialization of life science and technology products, services, and treatments. The park’s first phase is a 252,000 square-foot, LEED® Gold pre-certified building that will house wet and dry labs, offices, retail, and lab-ready suites ideal for research-based tenants seeking turnkey workspace.

The building topped-off construction in mid-September and is now 40% leased, with completion scheduled for mid-2011. The project’s current master plan calls for five buildings totaling roughly 1.6 to 2 million square-feet, which would make it the largest facility of its kind in South Florida.

Our firm set its sights on Miami after finding success building similar research parks with universities in Baltimore, Philadelphia, Chicago, and other U.S. cities in large part because of the University of Miami’s rapidly growing sponsored research activity and faculty recruitments. An added advantage is Miami’s existing business infrastructure and potential as a global center for scientific innovation. In contrast with other life science clusters across the nation, the UMLSTP is just minutes away from an international airport and Downtown Miami, one of the country’s largest centers of global banking and commerce.

For foreign companies seeking to break into the U.S. market, this project serves as a ‘soft landing’ spot given Miami’s diverse community and the large contingent of multilingual faculty members at UM. For domestic and multinational firms with an existing U.S. presence, the UMLSTP will be a gateway to lucrative markets across Latin America and the Caribbean, where spending as a portion of GDP has grown by 51% in recent years.

Beyond raising Miami’s profile as a scientific research hub, the UMLSTP will stimulate much-needed economic growth in a city whose unemployment rate has crept to 13%, beginning with new business opportunities for area construction companies and resulting job creation.

Ongoing operations at the park’s first building are projected to create 2,700-plus direct and indirect jobs, with more than 1,150 quality positions created during the development phase, indicating that Miami’s investment in the life sciences is paying dividends even before the first tenants move in.

 

Joe Reagan is vice president of national developer Wexford Science & Technology, LLC. Learn more about the University of Miami Life Science & Technology Park at www.umlstp.com.

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