BioMed Realty Trust Continues $725 Million North American Life Science Construction Spree

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Reported by Annette Kreuger, Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas) -- San Diego’s BioMed Realty Trust (NYSE:BMR ) has started construction on yet another impressive life science property. Construction has begun on an 84,000 square foot building located on the Town Centre Drive Campus in San Diego, California. When complete, the entire facility will be leased by genotyping and analytical company Illumina (NYSE:ILMN ) (San Diego, California) and used for R&D and production.

BioMed, which is a real estate investment trust (REIT), has been steadily growing its portfolio across North America. As reported within the Pharmaceutical Tracker - Online Database, the company currently has five new construction projects in various stages of development. The projects represent a cumulative total investment value (TIV) of $725 million. When complete, these sites will add to the company’s interest in nearly 8 million square feet of rentable space on 68 properties.

The life science industry is attracted to REITs for the financial flexibility they can provide. Funds can be freed up for increased research and other needs, as discussed in greater detail within the New 2007 Pharmaceutical-Biotech Forecast. While the majority of BioMed’s space is located within the more established U.S. life science hubs of Boston, San Diego and New York, there are plans in the works for a new site in Seattle, Washington. The 5-story, 100,000 square foot building will be located on Fairview Avenue and is being developed with EDG Commercial Real Estate of Seattle.

When Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NYSE:REGN ) (Tarrytown, New York) decided to expand, the company looked to Biomed and signed a 15-year lease for 200,000 square feet of space to house research and development operations as well as its new headquarters. That project is currently under construction and is expected to be complete in 2009. Regeneron, a biopharmaceutical company with a focus on the developing therapeutics for the treatment of a variety of serious health conditions, will consolidate its 400-plus area employees into what will be a three building complex at the Landmark at Eastview in Greenburgh, New York.

BioMed scored two major life science projects that are currently under construction in Boston when it acquired the Longwood Medical Research Center and the Center for Life Sciences from fellow developer, Lyme Properties (Lyme, Connecticut). The two buildings represent nearly $500 million in TIV and will house both academic and commercial research operations when construction is complete.

Last year, BioMed paid out $147 million to purchase Human Genome Sciences’ (headquarters and manufacturing facility in Rockville, Maryland. That deal follows two other acquisitions BioMed made in Colorado. The company purchased Array BioPharma’s (NYSE:ARRY ) manufacturing and research facilities in Longmont and Boulder. Array received $32 million in net additional cash from these transactions. In all of the above-mentioned cases, the properties were subsequently leased back to their original owners.

The Illumina building was designed by Ferguson Pape Baldwin (San Diego, California). Reno Contracting, also based in San Diego, is handling the construction of the project.

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