Investment into Boston’s Seaport area has exploded in recent years and the trend is continuing, this time with implications for the state’s life sciences sector.
Eli Lilly and Company on Tuesday announced plans to establish a genetic medicine institute in the Seaport, building on its 2020 acquisition and expansion of Prevail Therapeutics, a gene therapy company based in New York City.
“Working together, researchers in both Boston and New York will leverage promising RNA and DNA-based technologies to develop therapies with the potential to treat or prevent diseases in a manner that is challenging or not possible with traditional medicines,” the company said in announcing its $700 million plan.
Eli Lilly anticipates that the Boston site will grow within five years from 120 to more than 250 research biologists, chemists, data scientists and other genetic medicine experts, while the New York site will grow to include up to 200 scientists.
The Lilly Institute for Genetic Medicine will be headquartered in 334,000 square feet of leased space in a 12-story building, developed and operated by Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc., according to Lilly.
Occupancy of the site is scheduled for 2024, and it will include space to support biotech start-ups with the potential to add 150 new jobs in the area.
“We are incredibly excited for Massachusetts to be part of Eli Lilly’s next chapter of growth which will translate into immense contributions to our vibrant life sciences ecosystem,” Massachusetts Life Sciences Center President and CEO Kenn Turner said in a statement.
Also Tuesday, the Baker administration announced that it will hold the state’s annual STEM Summit on April 28 with both virtual and in-person events for educators and employers across Massachusetts to promote science, technology, education, and math opportunities for students and to facilitate internships with business partners.
The STEM Summit is hosted jointly by the Massachusetts STEM Advisory Council, the Mass. Business Roundtable and the UMass Donahue Institute.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute President Laurie Leshin will be the keynote speaker.
Leshin, a geochemist and space scientist, plans to step down as WPI president at the end of this academic year to serve as the director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, operated by Caltech for NASA.
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