PHILADELPHIA — February 26, 2019 — uCity Square’s newest building, 3675 Market Street, has been selected by global biotechnology leader Amicus Therapeutics (Nasdaq: FOLD) for its newly-announced Global Research and Gene Therapy Center of Excellence. With the Amicus announcement, 3675 Market is now 90% leased only 90 days after opening in November. Amicus’s commitment in the building totals 75,000 square feet of office and lab space over three floors and is expected to be open in the second half of 2019 and will eventually hold up to 200 employees. A group of Amicus researchers is already occupying space in the building as a client of BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia, a state-of-the art co-working wet lab and office facility.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Amicus Therapeutics to 3675 Market,” said Science Center President & CEO Steve Zarrilli. “The establishment of the Global Research and Gene Therapy Center of Excellence is a testament to the vitality of the vibrant community here at uCity Square and Philadelphia as a leader in biotechnology and gene therapy research.”
The establishment of the Global Research and Gene Therapy Center of Excellence is a testament to the vitality of the vibrant community here at uCity Square and Philadelphia as a leader in biotechnology and gene therapy research.
Developed by Wexford Science & Technology, LLC in partnership with the University City Science Center and real estate investment trust Ventas, Inc. (NYSE: VTR), 3675 Market Street is a 14-story, 345,000-square-foot building that combines a number of unique but complementary innovation assets including CIC Philadelphia, BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia, Science Center commercialization programs, Quorum, Venture Café Philadelphia, and FirstHand. It is the latest addition to uCity Square, a 6.5 million square-foot mixed-use knowledge community consisting of office, laboratory, clinical, residential, and retail space to enable university and corporate research, entrepreneurial activity, and community engagement.
“Attracting biotechnology industry leaders like Amicus to uCity Square validates the power of the knowledge community business model in developing a platform that encourages innovation through collaboration with leading research universities. The decision to come to 3675 is a testament to the diverse combination of partners and offerings within our ecosystem that provide flexibility and scalability for organizations like Amicus,” said Joe Reagan, Senior Vice President at Wexford Science & Technology.
Amicus Therapeutics Chairman and CEO John F. Crowley acknowledged the proximity to collaborators at the University of Pennsylvania and other major academic centers and hospitals in the area as a tremendous opportunity to advance their commitment to gene therapies and novel high-quality medicines for people living with rare metabolic diseases as part of their announcement.
Amicus’s gene therapy team is already working out of laboratory and office space in 3675 Market Street as a client of BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia. BioLabs@CIC offers fully-equipped coworking laboratory space designed to enable biotech companies to operate seamlessly on limited capital investment, and it is embedded within CIC Philadelphia’s office and shared-amenity space.
“Like all of our facilities, the BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia site is designed to stimulate exciting science and creative collaboration,” said BioLabs Vice President of Strategic Partnerships Dr. Laura Holberger. “Amicus brings valuable real-life experience and world-class science to our Philadelphia community and our national network.”
About the University City Science Center
Located in the heart of uCity Square, the Science Center is a mission-driven nonprofit organization that catalyzes and connects innovation to entrepreneurship and technology commercialization. For 50+ years, the Science Center has supported startups, research, and economic development in the emerging technology sectors. As a result, companies supported by the Science Center represent one out of every 100 jobs in the Greater Philadelphia region and drive $13 billion in economic activity in the region annually. By providing resources and programming for any stage of a business’s lifecycle, the Science Center helps scientists, entrepreneurs and innovators take their concepts from idea to IPO – and beyond. www.sciencecenter.org
CONTACT: Kristen Fitch, 215-966-6156, kfitch@sciencecenter.org
About Wexford Science & Technology
Wexford Science + Technology is a real estate company exclusively focused on partnering with universities, academic medical centers and research companies to develop vibrant, mixed-use communities. Wexford’s communities are built on a foundation of discovery, innovation and entrepreneurial activity that creates visible outcomes in the form of substantial economic growth, new and diverse jobs and community transformation. Wexford targets strategic opportunities with top-tier research universities that are directly on or contiguous to dense, urban campuses. Presently Wexford has developed twelve Knowledge Communities across the United States. For more information about Wexford, visit www.wexfordscitech.com.
CONTACT: Joe Reagan, 215-590-5023, joseph.reagan@wexfordscitech.com
About BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia and CIC Philadelphia
BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia is a premium biotechnology wet lab facility strategically located in uCity Square. The site is a partnership between BioLabs, a national membership-based network of shared laboratory facilities located in key geographies with proven biotech innovation clusters, and CIC (Cambridge Innovation Center) a leading builder and operator of innovation communities around the world. BioLabs's fertile, supportive ecosystems allow young companies to shift their focus from startup operations to experimentation and innovation, so they can reach their scientific potential quickly and achieve business success. CIC and its family of affiliated organizations, including LabCentral, MassRobotics, and Venture Café provide innovators with high-end technology, infrastructure, and resources to grow and collaborate. BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia features 150 ready-to-use lab benches in two coworking labs and 13 private lab suites. Companies can start with a single bench and scale up as they grow, with full access to operational support and shared equipment, relevant programming, and unparalleled access to capital and industry partners. The BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia facilities are embedded within CIC Philadelphia’s six-floor campus of private and coworking offices, cafés, event spaces, and conference rooms. Industry sponsors to date for BioLabs@CIC Philadelphia include Platinum-level sponsor ThermoFisher Scientific, Gold-level sponsors Gunderson Dettmer, Eppendorf, MilliporeSigma, and Miltenyi Biotec, and General-level sponsor ChemoMetec. For more information about BioLabs or to apply for admission, please visit biolabs.io. For more information about CIC visit cic.com.
CONTACT: Melina Blees, 530-848-6288, melina@biolabs.io; Sally Guzik, 267-253-2207, guzik@cic.com
About Amicus Therapeutics
Amicus Therapeutics (Nasdaq: FOLD) is a global, patient-dedicated biotechnology company focused on discovering, developing and delivering novel high-quality medicines for people living with rare metabolic diseases. With extraordinary patient focus, Amicus Therapeutics is committed to advancing and expanding a robust pipeline of cutting-edge, first- or best-in-class medicines for rare metabolic diseases. For more information please visit the company’s website at www.amicusrx.com, and follow on Twitter and LinkedIn.
CONTACT: Sara Pellegrino, 609-662-5044, spellegrino@amicusrx.com; Marco Winkler, (609) 662-2798, mwinkler@amicusrx.com
