Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1496515
8 Central MA Life Sciences Report in Worcester growing. His company in February purchased the final lots at The Reactory, a site purchased by the nonprofit Worcester Business Development Corp. to develop into a biomanufacturing park. Chinese manufacturer WuXi Biologics is investing $300 million in a 190,000-square-foot biomanufacturing site at The Reactory, making it an anchor tenant on the campus and the only company to have publicly committed to the property. Its facility is under construction. At The Reactory, Galaxy had been building a 90,000-square-foot facility on spec called the Galaxy Life Sciences Building. A client, who O'Brien would not name, took interest in the building, and now Galaxy is adding up to 50,000 square feet to the project to accommodate the client's needs. Galaxy has one remaining pad at the site, though O'Brien is waiting to finalize a lease deal to build a facility, because of the expense of construction. Construction costs have not come down at all since the spike in 2022, O'Brien said. "It's crazy to put up the steel if it's not going to fit tenant demand," he said. Tyson Reynoso, managing director at King Street Properties, has a different approach. In order to respond to the potential tenant volatility among life science companies, his Boston-based development company builds for the industry, not for the tenant, Reynoso said at the WBJ Central Massachusetts Life Sciences Forum on March 7. "Obviously, each tenant has its own specific needs and you have to be able to accommodate that," said Reynoso. King Street works with tenants to get the right mix of office, lab, and manufacturing space they need, but Reynoso said he wants to build a space to appeal to the broader market if things don't work out for that tenant. Revenue for life sciences companies is notoriously volatile, as early stage companies rely on grants and investors to fund research, development, Tyson Reynoso, managing director of King Street Properties The Worcester biomanufacturing campus The Reactory is being developed out of the former site of the Worcester State Hospital. P H O T O / W B J F I L E "Obviously, each tenant has its own specific needs and you have to be able to accommodate that." Tyson Reynoso, King Street Properties Continued on page 10 Continued from page 7 Mike O'Brien, principal of Galaxy Life Sciences