No vacancy at the Research Park

[Patrick]

Looks like we may be seeing the next wave of buildings go up at the Research park soon. All of the existing space is now full, filling 6 buildings.

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http://newsok.com/article/1807249/?t...=business/main
Research park fills last available space

By Jim Stafford
The Oklahoman

24 tenants added in past 20 months

The "no vacancy" sign has gone up on the Presbyterian Health Foundation Research Park.
The last 1,800 square feet of space in the park -- out of almost 600,000 square feet -- has been committed, Mike Anderson, president of the foundation, said Tuesday.
"In the last 20 months, 24 new tenants have been added to the Research Park," Anderson told an audience of about 150 people attending a health research conference at the park's Conference Center. "There are now 44 tenants here."
The latest tenant is a company created by University of Oklahoma researcher Dr. Jian-Xing "Jay" Ma, called Charlesson LLC and its subsidiary, Lifetrees LLC.
Both companies were formed in 2005, said Mike Moradi, a partner in the companies through his Venture Development Associates.
Charlesson is an analytical research lab performing research for big pharmaceutical companies on a contract basis, while Lifetrees is working to develop products to battle eye disease, Moradi said.
Two patents have been filed based on Jian-Xing's research, and he has won six National Institutes of Health Phase I Small Business Innovation Research grants to support his work, Moradi said.
Jian-Xing's companies are in the same Research Park building where Oklahoma's biggest biotech success story, Novazyme Pharmaceuticals, began. Its successor, pharmaceutical Genzyme Corp. operates its Oklahoma City laboratories there.
Genzyme bought Novazyme in 2001 for $229.1 million.
"A lot of big success stories and serial entrepreneurs are located there, and we're happy to be part of that," Moradi said.
Anderson said the foundation plans up to 10 buildings on the Research Park campus, with planning already under way for a second parking garage and a seventh building. No definitive dates for construction have been established, Anderson said.
The sixth building, which is the location for the Cytovance Biologics biopharmaceutical plant, is complete and awaiting FDA approval to begin operations.
"The FDA is over there right now," Anderson said. "It has begun validation of the Cytovance bioreactors, which have been installed. We look toward manufacturing protein therapeutic biologics within this year."
A local partnership that includes Chesapeake Energy Corp. founders Aubrey McClendon and Tom Ward took over the completion and operation of the Cytovance plant earlier this year after the original group failed to obtain financing.
Meanwhile, the Research Park won't be finished when the 10th building has been built. The foundation has obtained land across Lincoln Boulevard on the south side of NE 8 Street that will allow more development, he said.
The value of the Research Park's six buildings and parking garage approach $100 million, Anderson said.

[Patrick]

I particularly like this statement:

Meanwhile, the Research Park won't be finished when the 10th building has been built. The foundation has obtained land across Lincoln Boulevard on the south side of NE 8 Street that will allow more development, he said.

[Pete]

That area has quietly become the source of some of the best high-paid jobs in the state.

Dell may get all the headlines with it's $20K jobs, but to me this sort of thing is much more promising.

[Patrick]

Absolutely. I feel our future as a city is in the biotech industry. That's where the money is to be made. No offense to the people that work at Dell, but those simply aren't high paying white collar jobs.

[jbrown84]

They need to build a highrise.

[brianinok]

While this is good news, why have they allowed it to get to 100% capacity? If someone wanted to move now, we have no room until another building is built.

[jbrown84]

Yeah, it seems like they should have stayed ahead of the vacancy a little better.

It's stilll nice to hear the words "No vacancy".

[Patrick]

I think space is filling up much quicker than those folks ever imagined.

[BDP]

Dell may get all the headlines with it's $20K jobs, but to me this sort of thing is much more promising.

I agree. Some good quality jobs to add to Dell's quantity. In the end, it's always good to have both.\

I feel our future as a city is in the biotech industry.

Which could be the best part of this trend. Diversification into an industry that will always be in demand and growing is good for local economy stability. Maybe it will eventually attract some of the manufacturing associated with the results of research done at the park. We could play up the synergy of Oklahoma City's availability of both an educated work force and an inexpensive labor market.

[HOT ROD]

And those manufacturing jobs attracted to an inexpensive labour market would in itself build OKC's labour market and per capita income; which is why they need to keep building buildings at the research park.

They passed the first milestone with the no vacancy in "the inn". Now the inn needs to be upscaled a bit to that of a major facility so we can go after Research Triangle and Boston Or at least encourage more European developers into the market.