Conceptual Plans for the Life Sciences Campus on the Burlington Landlocked Parcel

Patriot Partners' conceptual development plans for Burlington's Landlocked Parcel provide for a world-class life science campus, and subject to site conditions and federal, state and local permitting, could include up to two million square feet of premier biotechnology and office space. The new life science campus will emphasize New England's suburban charm, but provide the vibrancy of a modern technology and science center.

Massachusetts is considered one of the most prestigious biotechnology clusters in the nation, and the State Legislature recently passed an extensive $1 billion life sciences bill that is designed to establish the state as a global powerhouse in the field. Introduced by Governor Deval Patrick at the BIO International Convention in May 2007, the bill, which was signed on June 16, 2008, takes a targeted approach to funding research, constructing new facilities, attracting biotech companies to the region, and retaining talented scientists and researchers at state institutions. Located just 15 miles from downtown Boston and Cambridge, the proposed Burlington Landlocked Parcel campus will attract world-class life sciences companies, which will retain a highly trained and professional workforce and create hundreds of new jobs for the region.

Biotech Boom in the Greater Boston Suburbs:

According to the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, there are more than 400 biotech companies presently located in the state, taking advantage of the area's highly-educated workforce and abundance of collaborative research opportunities.
Since 2001, 27 biotech companies, totaling 1.69 million square-feet, have relocated from the Boston and Cambridge areas to the western suburbs.
This growing trend of companies expanding and relocating into the suburban market has created a blossoming cluster of biotech facilities along the Route 128 corridor that is now considered to be the premier R&D district in the region.

Landlocked Parcel and the Route 128 Northwest Market:

Companies interested in Burlington are also looking at the available office/laboratory space within the greater Northwest Route 128 market, including Bedford, Lexington, Waltham and Woburn.
Because of this, when we consider adding 2 million SF of office/laboratory space at the landlocked parcel, we must do so in the context of the Route 128 market overall - not just within Burlington.
The landlocked parcel's potential 2 million SF will be phased in over an estimated 10-year period based on the market conditions and on average 200,000 SF/year would be absorbed into the marketplace.
Currently, there is a combined approximate 27.5 million SF of office/laboratory space (approximately 24 million SF of office and 3.5 million SF of laboratory) in the Northwest market including Bedford, Burlington, Lexington, Waltham and Woburn. The landlocked parcel development would represent approximately eight percent of the overall Northwest market if it were in place today, but with the project's proposed phasing plan, the market would be impacted less than one percent per year.
However, the majority of the office space in the market wouldn't conform due to zoning and building-type restrictions as noted below.
Today, there is limited laboratory space available in the Northwest Route 128 market - despite the high demand. Since 2001, there have been 27 companies totaling 1.69 million SF, including 19 Cambridge companies totaling 1.34 million SF, which have relocated into Waltham and Lexington alone.
Biotechnology companies looking to expand in Massachusetts are seeking campus-like settings with contiguous land areas. Shire Pharmaceuticals' expansion to Lexington Technology Park is a model example of this concept. Biotechnology firms like Shire prefer to locate in clusters of other life sciences companies for optimal collaboration, sharing of ideas and close proximity to one another.

Landlocked Parcel's Potential Impact on Burlington's Existing/Proposed Space:

While a portion of the space to be constructed by the Gutierrez Company on South Avenue may be developed as laboratory space, it is a relatively small amount when compared to Lexington and Waltham.
Although Burlington has approximately 1.1 million SF of available office space and another approximately 4 million SF of office space permitted and waiting to come online, a majority of existing buildings could not be conformed nor could they accommodate life science users due to zoning requirements and building-type restrictions.

Laboratory Space Requires Unique Building Characteristics:

Biotechnology facilities typically combine sustainable architectural design with sophisticated and high-capacity systems to support the requirements of the life science industry.
Generally, the requirements must include the following (in comparison to a traditional office building):
- Higher floor-to-floor dimensions, which are typically 15' for distribution of internal mechanical equipment (versus the 11' to 12' heights of traditional office buildings)
- Higher density floor slab live load capacity for interior equipment requirements
- More intensive climate control system to optimize building operations
- Higher capacity requirements for mechanical ventilation and electrical power to meet laboratory needs
- Sufficiently sized, centrally controlled loading dock area
- Suitable systems for electrical service that provides a dual-feed power supply and redundancy should any power system failure occur
Depending on the user, biotechnology buildings generally have a mix of approximately 50 percent laboratory use and 50 percent office and support use.

Recent Life Sciences News:

Burlington Landlocked Parcel Life Sciences Center