BOSTON — Vertex Pharmaceuticals Inc. has renewed its lease for approximately 1.1 million square feet of office and life sciences space at 50 Northern Avenue and 11 Fan Pier Boulevard in Boston. According to Loopnet Inc., both buildings were constructed in 2013 and total 587,374 and 543,098 square feet, respectively. Vertex’s existing lease, which expires in December 2028, was extended for approximately 15 years through June 2044. A joint venture that includes locally based REIT Diversified Healthcare Trust (NASDAQ: DHC) owns both buildings. The RMR Group provides property and asset management services for the joint venture.
NATICK, MASS. — Design-build firm Dacon Corp. has completed a 7,400-square-foot industrial and life sciences expansion project in Natick, a western suburb of Boston. The project is a build-to-suit for Kula Bio, which specializes in the production of agricultural products that serve as replacements to synthetic fertilizers. The facility includes manufacturing, office and research-and-development space. Kula Bio initially opened its 7,500-square-foot headquarters in Natick in late 2021 with the expectation of expanding.
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — IAVI has signed a 29,782-square-foot life sciences lease in Jersey City. The nonprofit scientific research organization will relocate its vaccine design and development operations from the Brooklyn Army Terminal to the 350,000-square-foot building at 95 Greene St., which was originally built as a manufacturing facility for Colgate Palmolive. John Isaacs, Joseph DeRosa and Conor Dolan led the CBRE team that represented the tenant in the lease negotiations. RegenLab USA did the same relocation earlier this year.
CAMBRDIGE, MASS. — Locally based investment and development firm The Davis Cos. has completed a 161,616-square-foot life sciences facility in Cambridge. The facility at 101 Smith Place is one of four buildings within The Quad, a life sciences campus that is home to tenants such as Ginko Bioworks, Civetta Therapeutics, Invaio Sciences, Hyperion and Samsung Electronics. The facility features high-efficiency HVAC systems, surface and below-grade parking, a fitness center and indoor bike storage space. Davis developed 101 Smith Place in partnership with Invesco Real Estate. CBRE is marketing the property for lease.
PRINCETON, N.J. — Galapagos, an international biotechnology company, has signed a 15,000-square-foot lease in Princeton. Galapagos will take space at Princeton Point, an office and life sciences complex located at 600 and 650 College Road E. Todd Elfand and Kevin Carton of Cushman & Wakefield represented the landlord, Nuveen Real Estate, in the lease negotiations. CBRE represented the tenant.
ANN ARBOR, MICH. — The life sciences group of Sartorius has opened its new Center of Excellence for bioanalytics in Ann Arbor. Sartorius invested about $100 million for the state-of-the-art facility, consolidating existing sites and functions in Ann Arbor. The number of employees at the 130,000-square-foot property is expected to double over time. The facility houses a modern manufacturing and services area, biology labs, a warehouse, office and training spaces and a Customer Interaction Center. Sartorius will develop and manufacture a range of bioanalytical instruments at the site. Sartorius provides bioanalytical solutions that are used in the discovery and development of biopharmaceutical drugs. The company employs about 2,600 people at 12 sites in North America.
BEDFORD, MASS. — Persimmon Technologies has signed a 142,224-square-foot life sciences lease in the northeastern Boston suburb of Bedford. The property at 35 Crosby Drive, which is a redevelopment of a former industrial flex property, will serve as the robotics and electric motor manufacturer’s new North American headquarters. Richard Ruggiero, Torin Taylor, Matthew Adams and Rory Walsh of Newmark represented the landlord, New York City-based REIT, W. P. Carey, in the lease negotiations. Colliers represented the tenant. The redevelopment is expected to be complete late next year.
EAST CAMBRIDGE, MASS. — Three tenants have signed leases totaling approximately 35,000 square feet at One Canal, a 112,000-square-foot life sciences property located across the Charles River from Boston in East Cambridge. The tenants are Larkspur Biosciences, Incendia Therapeutics and Deep Genomics. The square footages of the spaces were not disclosed. Breakthrough Properties, a joint venture between global real estate owner Tishman Speyer and biotechnology investment firm Bellco Capital, owns One Canal.
DEVENS, MASS. — Locally based developer King Street Properties has received an undisclosed amount of construction financing for a 210,000-square-foot advanced manufacturing project that will be located in the northwestern Boston suburb of Devens. The building at 75 Jackson Road will be the fourth such structure on the 700,000-square-foot Pathway Devens campus. Preliminary sitework is underway, and completion is slated for the third quarter of 2025. First Citizens Bank and Berkshire Bank provided the financing. The project team includes general contractor BW Kennedy, Vivo Architecture and Highpoint Engineering.
BEDMINSTER, N.J. — MetLife Investment Management has unveiled plans to reposition its 197-acre office campus in Bedminster, about 45 miles west of New York City, into a life sciences development named Bedminster Technology Center. MetLife has retained JLL to lead the repositioning of the property. Formerly home of AT&T and long known as One AT&T Way, the property consists of four interconnected buildings totaling 939,795 square feet. The campus includes a global network operations center, heliport and 15 acres of covered and surface parking. AT&T built the campus for its own use in 1975. MetLife acquired the property, which is now fully vacant, in 2006. The Township of Bedminster has rezoned the property to accommodate up to 2 million square feet of total development targeted toward biotech research and development and advanced manufacturing uses. Additionally, about 300,000 square feet is available for a conference center, hotel and amenities that could include a fitness center, restaurants and/or retail. Dan Loughlin is leading a JLL team that will market the property for single or multi-tenant lease, sale or site redevelopment with acreage for sale. According to JLL, Bedminster Technology Center presents an opportunity to create the first life sciences development in the …