NewHavenBIZ

New Haven Biz-Janaury 4, 2021

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14 n e w h a v e n B I Z | J a n u a r y 2 0 2 1 | n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m "I constantly move the goal line for what I think success is," says Winstanley, who leads Massachusetts-based Winstanley Enterprises with his father, David, and brother, Adam. "Today my definition of success is creating a sustainable life science community in Connecticut," he says. "I would say we're not done yet, and that's really why we are investing so heavily in Connecticut and New Haven." Winstanley draws his inspiration from Cambridge's Kendall Square, where he lived during the late 1980s and early 1990s. He watched the area near MIT and Harvard evolve from a collection of old warehouses and industrial buildings into one of the biggest and most highly concentrated life sciences markets in the world. "You had great educational institutions, you had great hospitals, you had great private- sector partners and you had a state that was very actively promoting [the bioscience industry]," he says. "We have most if not all of those same ingredients in New Haven. So I look at that and say: Why can't we create that?" He pointed to pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca's recent deal to acquire New Haven-born biotech powerhouse Alexion for $39 billion as a "clear validation of the quality of science" being produced in the state. Although Alexion is now headquartered in Boston, it still has W I N S T A N L E Y Dawn Hocevar D eveloper Carter Winstanley has spent the last 22 years working to build up a life science hub in New Haven. In the beginning, he set a modest benchmark for success. "My original goal was to get 300 George St. leased," Winstanley says, referencing his transformation of a vacant Southern New England Telephone company building into a high-tech home for Elm City biotechs. Two decades later, 300 George is at capacity, and two subsequent Winstanley bioscience buildings — 25 Science Park and 100 College St., home of Alexion Pharmaceuticals — are also full. This spring, he plans to kick off construction on a second, $100 million bioscience tower at 101 College St., set to open in 2023, and he is finalizing deals with major tenants. And last September, he added Temple Medical Center to his holdings in the city's Route 34 bioscience corridor, prompting the New Haven Independent to give the two-block stretch near Yale School of Medicine and Yale New Haven Hospital a new nickname: "Winstanleyville." But the 51-year-old real estate developer isn't declaring victory. Developer Winstanley bets big on New Haven as a bioscience hub Grand Vision By Natalie Missakian some 500 employees working at its New Haven research facility. While it's too early to know what impact the deal will have locally, Winstanley says he is hopeful AstraZeneca will see the value in the New Haven operation and continue to invest in it. Lab space crunch Winstanley's latest project at 101 College tackles what city officials and local bioscience leaders identify as the single biggest challenge for the industry here: a severe shortage of lab space. Area realtors have reported difficulties finding adequate space in the New Haven region for long-term tenants who are looking to grow, leading to concerns that they might move their startups out of the state. "There's a lot of organic growth happening in New Haven because it has everything it takes to create a bioscience cluster," says Dawn Hocevar, CEO of BioCT, an organization that advocates for the state's bioscience industry. "The biggest obstacle we have right now is a lack of lab space." Winstanley's 101 College St. would add another 500,000 square feet of bioscience space to his existing 1.5 million-square- foot footprint in the city. The 10-story building, to be built opposite Alexion tower over the existing Route 34 connector, will offer a range A rendering of the outside patio planned for Winstanley's $100 million bioscience tower at 101 College St. Developer Carter Winstanley stands in front of New Haven's 100 College St. office building, home to Alexion Pharmaceuticals and Yale University, which his family's real estate development firm built. PHOTO | STEVE LASCHEVER RENDERING | CONTRIBUTED

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