Biotech

[Kerry]

 

[Lil B]

Re: Impact fees
« Posted by Lil B on: October 12, 2009, 08:03:13 PM »  
PSL Council Agrees To Waive $307,840 In Impact Fees For AIDS Research Company  

By Alexi Howk
October 12, 2009

PORT ST. LUCIE In a unanimous vote, the City Council Monday night agreed to a request from Oregon-based Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute-Florida to waive $307,840 in impact fees.

The impact fees are associated with paying for roads, parks, public buildings, law enforcement and administrative costs areas impacted by growth.

VGTI’s initial request was for the city to waive $702,722 in fees. However, City Manager Don Cooper said that wouldn’t be possible because some city departments are funded by impact fees, and it would affect bond covenants. He told the council VGTI was also getting a rebate from St. Lucie County on what it charges in impact fees.

The company, which conducts AIDS research and is working rent-free on the third-floor of the $40 million Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, is building its own facility next door. In a letter to Cooper, VGTI’s Chief Operating Officer Mark Williams said designs for the project were recently completed and “after aggressive value engineering exercises” the project remains over budget.

Cooper said if the company is able to complete the build out of the institute VGTI officials said they would immediately hire an additional 50 employees to conduct AIDS research. Cooper told the council the company had not received any cash incentives from the city at this point. He said the city has only provided the paperwork for VGTI to apply for state grant money.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/oct/12/psl-council-agrees-to-waive-307840-in-impact-for/?partner=RSS

FLORIDA'S LIFE SCIENCES SECTOR GETS ANOTHER BOOST WITH ADDITION OF OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY'S VACCINE AND GENE THERAPY INSTITUTE

VGTI Florida to Occupy a 130,000-Square-Foot Facility In Port St. Lucie's Florida Center for Innovation at Tradition

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (January 8, 2008) -- The State of Florida further solidified its position as a growing center of life sciences research today with the announcement that the Oregon Health & Science University's Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute (VGTI) will expand into a 130,000-square-foot facility in the Florida Center for Innovation at Tradition (FCI), a 120-acre research park in Port St. Lucie.

VGTI Florida will be adjacent to the headquarters for the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies (TPIMS), which just 18 months ago announced its intention to locate in this fast-growing community. The facility is expected to create 200 high-value jobs over the next 10 years.

Speaking via video to a host of community leaders gathered in Tradition for a meeting of the EDC of St. Lucie County, Inc., Governor Charlie Crist said, “Quote from Governor Crist.”

Gov. Crist has asked the Florida Legislature to allocate $60 million in incentive funding from the Florida Innovation Fund to create the facility, and the City of Port St. Lucie has committed to providing $53 million in infrastructure improvements in FCI. The City and St. Lucie County are being asked to provide $1.5 million and $2.9 million in property tax abatements, respectively, in addition to $400,000 in impact fee rebates from the County.

VGTI will operate out of temporary facilities at TPIMS Florida for up to three years as its facility is constructed.

“Our institute in Florida will allow for unique regional partnerships while expanding our reach nationally,” said Jay Nelson, Ph.D., director of the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute in Beaverton, Oregon, who will also oversee the staffing of the new Florida Facility. “Port St. Lucie is an outstanding location, and we look forward to collaborating with the increasing number of life sciences organizations that are calling the Research Coast home.”

Established in March 2001, VGTI has assembled a multidisciplinary team of scientists to respond to increasingly serious infectious disease threats, including AIDS, chronic viral infection-associated diseases, newly emerging viral diseases and infectious diseases of the elderly. Major priorities of VGTI faculty include vaccine development as well as the development of novel immune and gene therapy approaches.

VGTI Florida expects to collaborate heavily with the Torrey Pines Institute, which has developed an extensive library of chemical compounds that will assist VGTI's scientific assays. In fact, it was TPIMS founder and president Dr. Richard Houghten that first approached VGTI and brokered a meeting with the EDC of St. Lucie County, Inc.

“When Dr. Houghten first announced his intention to build headquarters in Port St. Lucie, he made it clear that he felt a responsibility to help us build a true research cluster here,” said EDC Executive Director Larry Pelton. “Little did we know he planned to move this fast, and this entire community owes him a debt of gratitude.”
About OHSU:
Oregon Health & Science University is Oregon's only health and research university, and only academic health center. As Portland's largest employer, OHSU provides many services and community support activities not found elsewhere in the state. It serves more than 184,000 patients and is a conduit for learning for more than 3,900 students and trainees.

About the EDC of St. Lucie County, Inc.

About FCI at Tradition:
The Florida Center for Innovation at Tradition is a 120-acre research park under development in the 8,300-acre master-planned community of Tradition. The park is anchored by new headquarters for the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, set to open by early 2009. In addition to TPIMS and VGTI Florida, the park will be home to the Mann Research Center, a six-building life sciences complex adjacent to both facilities, along with a new medical campus for Martin Memorial Health Systems. A Homewood Suites hotel along with additional hotel, restaurants and support retail are also planned. For more information, visit www.innovationflorida.com.

About Tradition:
Already home to more than 800 occupied homes with another 1,600 under contract, the Town of Tradition in western Port St. Lucie has established a reputation as one of the nation's most popular master-planned communities. In addition to a wide variety of housing styles from eight prominent homebuilders, Tradition offers abundant retail and dining options in the Tradition Square and Landing at Tradition retail centers, as well as regular concerts and festivals that draw thousands from throughout Florida's Treasure Coast. The community is being developed by Core Communities, LLC to serve not only as a leading housing and entertainment destination, but also as the region's leading driver of job creation. It's FCI at Tradition research park is just one part of a 4.5-mile-long employment corridor being developed by Core along Interstate 95.

http://www.traditioncommercial.com/Press/Releases/010808.html

Why did the city of Port St Lucie agree to waive these impact fees? It clearly states that this was the intention of the County in the agreement, why does the article make it appear as if the County is doing a good deed by following the City's footsteps? Why is the city always willing to give away the farm?

‘Strong’ Demand Spurs Fla. Developer to Triple Life Science Space in Port St. Lucie
http://www.genomeweb.com/bioregionnews/%E2%80%98strong%E2%80%99-demand-spurs-fla-developer-triple-life-science-space-port-st-lucie

City, Once Ignored, Envied For Biotechs
http://www.soflo.org/media/article.asp?articleID=310

[Carl]

Speaking via video to a host of community leaders gathered in Tradition for a meeting of the EDC of St. Lucie County, Inc., Governor Charlie Crist said, “Quote from Governor Crist.”

That can't be right.

[Huggs]

It wasn't right then, and it still isn't right! 

Whomever was typing that, was going to have the transcriptionist put in the quote from Charlie Crist.

[Carl]

You know, I pretty much had that part already figured out.
And I'm not even a research scientist.









Yet.

[Huggs]

AH - those nasty operative words!

Like YET!   

[Lil B]

Clock Ticks on Biotech Campus

Palm Beach Post
By Eve Samples
Published: November 1, 2006 
 
PORT ST. LUCIE — The city has just two years to transform 20 acres west of Interstate 95 into a high-tech medical research campus - an aggressive timetable that project managers say will require juggling the interests of several major players.

The city and Suffolk Construction Co., the West Palm Beach firm overseeing the work, will kick off the $40'million project today, when they send a team to La Jolla, Calif., to start hashing out plans with Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies.


With the clock ticking, Torrey Pines leaders will need to decide details such as how tall their 100,000-square-foot building in Port St. Lucie should be, how much laboratory space they will need, and whether they foresee any expansion.

The building and its parking will occupy only about 30 percent of the site, Suffolk Project Executive John Planz said, leaving ample space for more development.

"We'll get a good feel for what they're accustomed to working in, and what works for them - and maybe even what doesn't work for them," Planz said of the trip.

Torrey Pines is moving its headquarters to Port St. Lucie to seize on a $100 million incentive package offered in September by the city and the state. As part of that deal, Port St. Lucie must complete Torrey Pines' new facility by fall 2008.

Construction won't be the most difficult part of meeting the deadline, Planz said.

"The problem is, actually, we're starting with nothing more than a piece of terrain and an idea, so that's what's going to make it interesting," he said. "And we need total cooperation and total teamwork from everybody involved."

Port St. Lucie controls the budget for the project. Core Communities is donating the 20-acre parcel, which will be a centerpiece of its 8,000-acre Tradition development west of I-95.

And, of course, Torrey Pines has a huge stake as the building's occupant.

"One of the big things to accomplish is to try and get everybody on the same page," Planz said.

Suffolk is overseeing the construction, and the architect is the Coral Gables firm Perkins + Will, which designed Florida Atlantic University's new science building at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution north of Fort Pierce.

Assistant City Manager Jerry Bentrott, who will join the group for three days in La Jolla, said construction on the Torrey Pines facility is scheduled to start by the end of March. A Core Communities representative also will make the trip to California.

"This is the really the start of the first step of the design process for the building," Bentrott said.

Torrey Pines' roughly 75 employees now do their research on cancer, multiple sclerosis and other diseases in laboratories on the sprawling La Jolla campus of defense contractor General Atomics. There, staffers can eat lunch on the spacious lawns or take a dip in the campus pool.

It's important for research facilities to be designed with places where scientists can exchange ideas, both in and out of the lab, said Steve Taylor, director of education for the Carlsbad, Calif.-based firm BioTech Primer Inc., which is devoted to educating the public about the biotech industry.

"I think it is important how the lab space is organized, for the comfort of researchers and their ability to cross-communicate," Taylor said. "Certainly, engendering communication between labs is very important."

http://74.125.95.132/search?q=cache:1vZaEOVhwNAJ:www.schroderpr.com/perkins/pdfs/palmbeach_11_01_06.doc+%22jerry+bentrott%22&cd=48&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

[Lil B]

December 7, 2009 Regular City Council Meeting
7) Approval of Consent Agenda
k) MAJOR SITE PLAN, EAST OF VILLAGE PARKWAY AND NORTH OF THE PROPOSED DISCOVERY WAY, A FOUR-STORY 98,000 SQ FT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT BUILDING, P09-069, OREGON HEALTH AND SCIENCE UNIVERSITY VACCINE AND GENE THERAPY INSTITUTE OF FLORIDA CORP.
View Supporting Documentation
http://psl.granicus.com/MetaViewer.php?view_id=6&event_id=234&meta_id=45355
(25 pages)
VGTI Clears Hurdles, to Start Building in Tradition Research Park

By Alexi Howk
December 10, 2009

TRADITION — Oregon Health & Science University’s Florida Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute got the green light to start building its $42 million laboratory — a project anticipated to help boost the local economy by generating an estimated 530 construction jobs.

The City Council this week gave the OK for VGTI Florida to build a 98,000-square-foot, four-story building on 8 acres within Tradition’s Florida Center for Innovation, a research park already home to biotech company Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies. The company has been leasing space on the third floor of Torrey Pines while it awaits completion of its building.

The institute has hired Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. of Tampa as the project’s general contractor.

Mark Williams, the institute’s chief operating officer, said construction should begin in February and be completed in the fall of 2011.

He said Whiting-Turner would be in charge of hiring subcontractors to do the work, but the number of jobs created would be about 530.

“There will certainly be local subs involved in the project,” he said.

In the Torrey Pines building, VGTI researchers have been studying how the human body’s immune system reacts to influenza and are working on a cure for HIV/AIDS.

John Schatzle, VGTI Florida’s manager of scientific affairs, said when the institute moves into its new building, it will be recruiting different research groups and the focus, which has been on human immunology, will change a little.

“We’ll be recruiting people for immune response to aging and cancer and other infectious diseases besides the HIV and flu studies we’re doing,” Schatzle said. “We’ll be expanding the scope.”

The company already employs 26 people, which includes administrative personnel and scientists.

Several of the company’s administrative employees were recruited locally, and there are entry-level scientist positions that also are local, Schatzle said. VGTI must create at least 200 jobs by 2018, according to a contract it has with the state.

Specifically, scientists will collaborate with other researchers internationally to study the immune system’s response to tuberculosis infection and some of the rare viruses more prevalent in Third World countries and less familiar in the United States, such as mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue and yellow fever.

“There are some West Nile studies that are going on as well in collaboration with our sister organization in Oregon,” Schatzle said.

The difference between the branch in Oregon and the one in Tradition is that Oregon focuses more on the animal testing model, using rodents and non-human primates for research, and the Florida branch will focus more on modern testing using human patients, Schatzle said.

“Our focus is strictly studying the human immune response by taking samples from patients,” he said. “We’ll have a small amount of animal testing.”

The Florida operation would be comprehensively looking at how the immune systems in elderly people respond to viruses and bacteria versus younger people, as well as how the body reacts to vaccines and cancer, he said.

“Through our studies and the patients we enroll, we’re going to determine vaccines and how effective they are,” Schatzle said.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/dec/10/vgti-clears-hurdles-to-start-building-in-park/

[Lil B]

Fulfill the Scripps Potential

Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009

If Scripps Florida is going to grow into the economic powerhouse promised in 2003 by then-Gov. Jeb Bush, that growth will begin on the Briger property in Palm Beach Gardens. On Thursday, the Palm Beach Gardens City Council needs to take the first step in turning the 682-acre parcel into a potential biotech hub.

The biggest problem, opposition from neighboring Jupiter, was resolved this week through a compromise among various interests — including Palm Beach County — involved in the complicated land deal. Officials in low-rise-friendly Jupiter worried about the prospect of tall buildings lining the south side of Donald Ross Road east of Interstate 95. Donald Ross forms the border between Jupiter and Palm Beach Gardens. The town argued that on its side of the road there are no high-rises. On the Gardens side, the compromise would stagger building height. No building taller than 75 feet would be allowed within 100 feet of the property line. The tallest buildings, up to 150 feet, would have to be at least 150 feet away.

Scripps opened in February on the Jupiter side of Donald Ross Road. The county paid $187 million to erect Scripps' three buildings. The state offered $310 million for salaries and equipment, in return for a certain number of jobs. Drawn by Scripps, the Max Planck Society of Germany is operating its first U.S. satellite in a temporary home on the site and plans a permanent structure.

The county's deal to draw Scripps to the Jupiter site, however, promised an additional 70 acres for expansion. That's where the Briger land comes in. The county is the applicant for zoning changes on the 70 acres, with Scripps holding final say on the site layout. A private landowner, the Lester family, controls the rest of the site and has agreed to dedicate 100 acres to biotechnology office and research space. The family also wants 2,700 homes, a 300-room hotel and a large retail center on the rest of the site.

The bulk of the rezoning request for the Briger property will go before the Gardens council next month. But Thursday's first step is critical, not only to this land deal, but to the greater promise that is Scripps.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/opinion/editorials/fulfill-the-scripps-potential-122984.html

[Lil B]

Formula for Success: Biotech + Higher Education

By: Jim Turner
March 14, 2007

If we're going to be a biotech hub, we can't have long-standing research outfits going under before the new anchors take hold.
It's not that the loss of the struggling Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution would scuttle the successes of luring Scripps Research Institute and Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies to our area. But it wouldn't help our reputation or the educational foundation that needs to be in place if others are to follow Scripps Florida and Torrey Pines.

Our upper-eductation schools are where the local research future will take off. Their partnerships with Harbor Branch are needed to show prospective students they can have a uniquely Florida place where they can get hands-on experience.
Harbor Branch is also where we're going to more closely begin to replicate what it has taken the La Jolla-San Diego biotech cluster decades to accomplish.

The century-old Scripps Institution of Oceanography — not affiliated with the E.W. Scripps Co. that owns Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers — had been part of the University of California since 1912. But it wasn't until the University of California-San Diego was founded in 1960 around the institution that one of the region's economic legs started to be built upon research.

Today, the school has 26,000 students and is broken into six colleges. More importantly, the Tritons now annually attract $600 million in research funding.

U.S. News and World Report has ranked the medical school 14th in the nation for research. Meanwhile, A PricewaterhouseCoopers, MoneyTree survey indicated about 200 San Diego companies have been founded by university faculty and alumni, with more than 40 percent of San Diego's biotechnology workers employed in those spinoffs.

Larry Pelton, president of the Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County, said that if the state Legislature can arrange a deal that gives Florida Atlantic University a large part of the 530-acre Harbor Branch campus, he will use the merger as part of national efforts to draw other scientists and research companies to the area.

"I'm going to say science community, 'Look at this. We're not only bringing in new stuff, but we're keeping what we have viable,'" Pelton said. "It's retaining science, it's retaining world-class learning."

Florida Atlantic University has Honors College students at its Jupiter campus working with scientists from the non-profit institute. FAU president Frank Brogan, who set up partnerships with Torrey Pines and Scripps Florida, intends to emphasize Harbor Branch as a place to expand the university's science program.

Indian River Community College President Ed Massey came to IRCC in 1973 to set up a marine science program in collaboration with Harbor Branch and used the Kight Center for Emerging Technologies helped attract Torrey Pines. He sums up local efforts this way: "Nobody knows what the future may hold, but you've got to prepare for the future," he said. "I feel like we're really well positioned to do what needs to be done."

The Research Coast is racing other regions of the country, but areas within Florida for federal funding of scientific research. If the ship is going to set full sail, we need the to bring the kids into our port.

http://cache.zoominfo.com/CachedPage/?archive_id=0&page_id=1919016676&page_url=%2f%2fwww1.tcpalm.com%2ftcp%2fbusiness_columnists%2farticle%2f0%2c2541%2cTCP_1143_5415695%2c00.html&page_last_updated=3%2f14%2f2007+4%3a25%3a41+PM&firstName=Larry&lastName=Pelton

[Lil B]

Editorial: Jobs Front Gives Hope

December 30, 2009

Port St. Lucie City Council this month gave the green light to the Florida Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute to build a $42 million laboratory in Tradition’s Florida Center for Innovation.

The biotech research company is now leasing space in the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, also in Tradition.

Construction is expected to begin in February with the facility opening in the fall of 2011. Construction alone is forecast to create about 530 much-needed jobs.

The project provides optimism for a 2010 that follows a dismal 2009 in which the Treasure Coast saw continued home foreclosures, skyrocketing unemployment rates and local governments straining under smaller budgets.

Larry Pelton, president of the Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County, recently noting the VGTI project, the plans of Digital Domain, a video production company, to start work on a 150,000-square-foot studio, also in Tradition, and plans for a 200,000-square-foot pharmaceutical company’s manufacturing and warehouse facility, said, “I think we’ll get out of the doldrums ahead of everybody in the state because we’ll have construction going on.”

And that is certainly a sign of better times.

Rather than seeing major employers closing their doors as has occurred too much in the past year or two, the Treasure Coast is seeing activity from employers looking to create new jobs, expand facilities and to be at the forefront when the economy begins to shift toward a more positive future.

And, be sure, as businesses such as VGTI and Digital Domain build facilities and make plans for hiring, their peers elsewhere in the nation will be taking notice, potentially giving the Treasure Coast an advantage in recruiting to the area as it transitions to the Research Coast with biotech and high tech industries.

And, while the known major projects may be centered in St. Lucie County, their effect on employment and the economy will be felt throughout all the counties of the Treasure Coast.

The new entities should have significant regional impact.

The picture is not all rosy here.

In the coming few months, there will still be too many people out of jobs, home values still low, and governments still struggling with too little revenue for the jobs their constituents might want.

This has been one year that most Treasure Coast residents would like to forget. It’s been miserable. But, as a new year begins, there is new hope ... and this hope seems to be firmly founded on some very positive realities.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2009/dec/30/jobs-front-gives-hope/

[Lil B]

Report: Biotech Jobs Slow to Materialize

By Jim Turner
January 20, 2010

TALLAHASSEE — The state has pumped $759 million into eight biotechnology companies, half in the northern Palm Beach County and Treasure Coast region, and the results so far have been 1,100 jobs, according to the state’s group of fiscal watchdogs.

In the report released this week, the state Legislature’s Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability said the envisioned biotech clusters, filled up by businesses spun-off and drawn to the eight research firms, have yet to bloom. Meanwhile, the money to keep such efforts growing is limited and should be refocused to startup companies.

“This investment has not yet resulted in the growth of technology clusters in the counties where program grantees have established facilities,” stated the report that looks at the impact of the eight firms, including Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies and the Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute in Port St. Lucie.

Biotech boosters say they never expected the clusters to blossom overnight and have already shifted their financial focus.

“The growth isn’t going to occur until these institutes get totally ramped up, we’ve always known that. This is a 10-year development process,” said Larry Pelton, president of the Economic Development Council of St. Lucie County.

Kelly Smallridge, head of the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County, said other noted life science meccas needed decades.

“This is definitely not a sprint; it’s a marathon,” Smallridge said. “Boston and San Diego were not built in two years ...”

The watchdog report, titled “Biotechnology Clusters Developing Slowly; Startup Assistance May Encourage Growth,” states the factors remain in place for the clusters to appear, including a skilled-workforce, business friendly economy and existing state university research programs. However, it suggests legislators shift the focus from these research centers, instead providing money for startup biotechnology companies.

“The Legislature could consider options to strengthen the program, including shifting its focus from attracting research institutes to providing early stage money for startup biotechnology companies,” they wrote. “The Legislature could do so by authorizing grants to startup companies or by providing matching funds to companies that also receive grants from the federal Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Programs.”

Pelton said a proposal to shift the focus might be to allow an investment tax credit program where early stage companies in a cluster are able to exchange their losses until they generate enough business.

Following the state’s $310 million grant to California-based Scripps Research Institute to open in northern Palm Beach County in 2003, the Legislature appropriated $450 million for the Innovation Incentive Program, but halted putting money into the program in 2008.

Both Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies and Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute were drawn to Port St. Lucie with a combined $84.728 million from the Innovation program and the state’s Quick Action Closing Fund. The local governments chipped in $131.52 million in incentives.

From when Torrey Pines agreed to come to the Treasure Coast in November 2006 until the end of 2008, the number of biotechnology businesses in the county grew from four to seven, according to the report.

The Palm Beach Post contributed to this report.

The commitment to attract biotechnology research institutes to Florida

Scripps Florida

Jupiter/Palm Beach County

Contract Date: 1/30/04

Major Activities: Studies several areas, including immunology, molecular and cellular biology, and synthetic vaccine development

State Funding: $310 million

Local Match: $269 million

Burnham Institute for Medical Research

Orlando/Orange County

Contract Date: 10/30/06

Major Activities: Studies the fundamental molecular mechanisms of diseases

State Funding: $155,272,000 (Innovation Incentive Grant)

Local Match: $155.5 million

Max Planck Florida Corporation

Jupiter/Palm Beach County

Contract Date: 3/12/08

Major Activities: Uses bio-imaging to study microscopic molecular processes

State Funding: $94,090,000 (Innovation Incentive Grant)

Local Match: $93,460,000

Miami Institute for Human Genomics

Miami/Miami-Dade County

Contract Date: 1/9/08

Major Activities: Explores genetic influences on human health

State Funding: $80 million

Local Match: At least $100 million in private funds

Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute Florida

Port St. Lucie/St. Lucie County

Contract Date: 4/17/08

Major Activities: Develops vaccines and therapeutics for diseases afflicting the elderly

State Funding: $60 million (Innovation Incentive Grant)

Local Match: At least $60 million

Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies1

Port St. Lucie/St. Lucie County

Contract Date: 11/16/06

Major Activities: Conducts basic biomedical research related to disease treatment

State Funding: $24,728,000 (Innovation Incentive Grant and Quick Action Closing Fund)

Local Match: $71,520,000

SRI International

St. Petersburg/Pinellas County

Contract Date: 11/22/06

Major Activities: Studies surface and subsurface marine environments

State Funding: $20 million (Innovation Incentive Grant)

Local Match: At least $30 million

Charles Stark Draper Laboratory Inc.

St. Petersburg/Pinellas County and Tampa/Hillsborough County

Contract Date: 6/30/08

Major Activities: Develops miniature medical technologies and military guidance systems

State Funding: $15 million (Innovation Incentive Grant)

Local Match: $15.3 million

Source: Florida Office of Tourism, Trade and Economic Development

Biotechnology employees average annual wages

Statewide

Average Total Wage: $40,569

Average Biotechnology Wage: $55,853

Percentage Difference: 37.7 percent

Orange County

Average Total Wage: $41,056

Average Biotechnology Wage: $62,481

Percentage Difference: 52.2 percent

Palm Beach County

Average Total Wage: $44,488

Average Biotechnology Wage: $49,849

Percentage Difference: 12.1 percent

St. Lucie County

Average Total Wage: $34,833

Average Biotechnology Wage: $42,648

Percentage Difference: 22.4 percent

Source: Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation

Biotech companies and employees

Hillsborough County

Biotechnology Businesses Before Program Awards: 37

Biotechnology Businesses as of December 2008: 49

Biotech employees as of December 2008: 1,257

Percent of workforce: 0.56

Miami-Dade County

Biotechnology Businesses Before Program Awards: 83

Biotechnology Businesses as of December 2008: 96

Biotech employees as of December 2008: 6,191

Percent of workforce: 1.70

Orange County

Biotechnology Businesses Before Program Awards: 53

Biotechnology Businesses as of December 2008: 46

Biotech employees as of December 2008: 1,213

Percent of workforce: 0.48

Palm Beach County

Biotechnology Businesses Before Program Awards: 46

Biotechnology Businesses as of December 2008: 54

Biotech employees as of December 2008: 1,573

Percent of workforce: 0.82

Pinellas County

Biotechnology Businesses Before Program Awards: 64

Biotechnology Businesses as of December 2008: 72

Biotech employees as of December 2008: 5,388

Percent of workforce: 3.54

St. Lucie County

Biotechnology Businesses Before Program Awards: 4

Biotechnology Businesses as of December 2008: 7

Biotech employees as of December 2008: 100

Percent of workforce: 0.39

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/jan/20/report-money-for-biotech-spins-offs-at-research/

[Lil B]

Tradition Biotech Firm Looks at Collaboration With Others

By Jim Turner
January 25, 2010

PORT ST. LUCIE — Scientists from a California-based biopharmaceutical company — founded by the same person who founded the company building 400,000 square feet of lab space and other medically related facilities in the city — will meet with local scientists and life science leaders Friday.

But officials representing MannKind Corp. say the public shouldn’t read too much into this meeting of the minds in terms of a new company being announced for the Florida Center for Innovation, the 150-acre research park south of Tradition’s downtown.

A release from MannKind says the visit is strictly to explore scientific partnerships to help the company’s anti-cancer drugs and other projects through the discovery and development process.

MannKind scientists Adrian Bot and Mihail Obrocea, who are to present a update on the company’s anti-cancer drugs that might eventually be used to treat melanoma, prostate and other carcinomas, are also to meet with the heads of VGTI Florida, Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies and Martin Memorial Health Systems in the research park in Tradition.

“We need to complement our internal expertise with collaborative efforts to discover, advance and develop innovative drugs,” stated Dr. Bot. ”Coming here to the Florida Center for Innovation is a golden opportunity to interact firsthand with several thought leaders in research and development.”

The meeting was set up by the John DelRusso, the president of the Mann Research Center, which has proposed building on 22 acres in the Florida Center for Innovation at Tradition, alongside the Torrey Pines’ headquarters.

“Bringing together like-minded people is what moves life science forward and one of the primary benefits of our research park,” DelRusso said.

Both MannKind and Mann Research Center were founded by billionaire Alfred E. Mann.

Other than the founder, MannKind and Mann Research are not directly related.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/jan/25/tradition-biotech-firm-looks-at-collaboration/

[Lil B]

California Biotech Scientists Visit to Look Over Treasure Coast Offerings

By Jim Turner
January 29, 2010
 
PORT ST. LUCIE — Scientists from the California-based MannKind Corp. spent Friday discussing how they could team with Research Coast scientists to get their potential anti-cancer drugs on the market.

Meanwhile, those behind the local research firm have been trying to get MannKind to join the Port St. Lucie research cluster.

“The more we talk, the more we have a common interest,” said Jay Nelson, director of VGTI Florida. “We could really help them and they can help us.”

Backers of the region’s growing life science cluster say such collaborative efforts will become more common as the focus has shifted from the $1 billion that the state has pumped into attracting biotech businesses to Florida into the actual lab work that will attract other business to the area and spur job growth.

“We expect more collaborations like this in the future,” said Andrew Favata, vice president of the Mann Research Center. “In fact, our anchor institutions recently formed an organization called Florida Innovation Partners. The partnership will help commercialize new ideas and cultivate new companies, which will help create new jobs and grow the local economy.”

Mihail Obrocea, vice president of Clinical Development-Oncology for MannKind, said they made the visit to the Treasure Coast because of the local cluster — Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, VGTI Florida and eventually a clinical trial wing at Martin Memorial Health Systems’ 300-bed hospital all in the Florida Center for Innovation in Tradition, along with Max Planck Florida Institute and Scripps Florida in Jupiter.

“I’m not saying you can’t find this in other places, but I don’t think you can get everything you want,” Obrocea said. “You have a very strong cluster of the clinical and the sciences and that can translate, hopefully very quickly, that you can get the drugs out onto the market.”

During initial testing of their drugs on patients in California, Obrocea said one patient told them the most painful aspects of the therapy was “the traffic in Los Angeles.”

Both MannKind and Mann Research Center were founded by billionaire Alfred E. Mann, but are not directly related.

John DelRusso, president of Mann Research Center, said MannKind is one of three companies affiliated with the California-based Alfred E. Mann Institute for Biomedical Engineering that have visited the area to look at potential expansion into the six-building, 410,000-square-foot research, medical and retail complex planned in the Tradition center by Mann Research Center.

“We’re not better than Orlando or what is going on in Scripps (in Jupiter). We’re smaller, but we’re more diverse,” DelRusso said.

The Mann center would be located between the existing 103,000-square-foot Torrey Pines building and the recently opened Homewood Suites by Hilton. VGTI Florida is expected to break ground on its own 130,000-square-foot facility by the second quarter of this year.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/jan/29/california-biotech-scientists-visit-to-look-over/

[Carl]

Parasites always look for a new host when they've sucked
all the blood out of the existing one. Speaking of which, is
California totally broke yet, or just very nearly so?

Get yer wallets out folks, we're next.

[Lil B]

Tradition Center For Innovation Members Form Partnership To Direct Growth And Promote Commercialization


Tradition Center for Innovation (TCI) announces formation of Florida Innovation Partners (FIP)

Tradition, Fla. (PRWEB) May 5, 2010 -- Members of the Tradition Center for Innovation (TCI) announced the formation of Florida Innovation Partners (FIP), an organization that will direct TCI’s growth into a world-class research park and promote the commercialization of new discoveries made within the park.

“The purpose of the Florida Innovation Partners is to promote and grow the Tradition Center for Innovation through an active, strategic marketing and awareness program,” said Andy Favata, FIP’s director and vice president of the Mann Research Center. FIP is directed by a council of leaders from TCI’s anchor institutions—Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, Oregon Health and Science University’s Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute in Florida, Martin Memorial Health Systems and Mann Research Center—which will funnel financial resources into FIP to drive TCI’s growth.

FIP’s first initiative, launching an active economic development campaign to attract additional high-caliber institutions to TCI, is already underway.

“We are seeking institutions with research programs synergistic with our scientific community,” said Richard A. Houghten, Ph.D., founder and president of Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies and a member of FIP’s leadership council. “The expertise and research programs of TCI’s current tenants complement each other well. New institutions will not only be able to access our resources, such as direct access to clinical trials and samples, but also strengthen those resources as well.”

“We have a highly interactive, multidisciplinary group of scientists each focused on human health. We’re reaching a critical mass in Tradition that other scientists can feed off of to establish their own institutes,” said Jay Nelson, Ph.D., who founded Oregon Health and Science University’s Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute and decided to establish a second branch of the institute at TCI.

A recent survey commissioned by FIP indicated that TCI is ready for such growth. Even at this early stage in TCI’s development, more than 70 percent of respondents rated TCI as a well-established or cutting-edge location for immunology or medical device institutions.

Drug company MannKind Corporation (MKC) recently sent top scientific management to a summit with TCI’s members and representatives of other Treasure Coast biotech institutions. One of the primary reasons MKC scientists came to Tradition was the ability to meet, in one place, companies that could help them along the entire drug discovery and development process, from drug candidate screening to clinical trials.

“Thanks to the entrepreneurial spirit of our scientific community and the strong support of the local government, the Tradition Center for Innovation has rapidly developed into a research community with expertise, resources, and funding necessary for attracting top-notch institutions,” said Favata. “FIP’s campaign to attract more institutions will multiply the return on Floridians’ investment in this research park and contribute to a sustainable, high-paying, knowledge-based economy.”

“Since we’re privately owned and possess strong relationships with the local community, we can work faster than other research parks,” said John DelRusso, president of the Mann Research Center, about TCI. “For instance, in the case of Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, we moved from permitting to completing construction in 18 months. They didn’t move in until six months after the facilities were completed because the process rarely happens that quickly!”

As TCI expands, FIP will shift more resources to support spin-offs and commercialization of discoveries.

FIP has entered into agreement with Mann Research Center for all marketing and public relations. Mann has enlisted Jones Lang LaSalle, a full service brokerage company, to help market nationally and internationally the research space available at TCI. A life sciences marketing firm, Chempetitive Group, has also been contracted to broaden awareness of TCI with life science companies.

Members of the FIP leadership council include: - Rafick-Pierre Sékaly, Ph.D., Scientific Director and Co-Director of the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute Florida - Jay Nelson, Ph.D., Founder and Co-Director of the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute - Mark Williams, Chief Interim Operating Officer at Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute Florida - Richard A. Houghten, Ph.D., Founder and President of the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies - Pam Houghten, Education and Community Outreach Director at Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies - Mark Robitaille, President and CEO of Martin Memorial Health Systems - John DelRusso, President of Mann Research Center LLC, the development partner of TCI - Andy Favata, Vice President of Mann Research Center LLC, the development partner of TCI - Pete Hegener, Former President of Core Communities

About Tradition Center for Innovation Located in the heart of Florida's Research Coast, the Tradition Center for Innovation (TCI) is a 150-acre research park within the planned community of Tradition in Port St. Lucie. Formerly known as the Florida Center for Innovation, TCI features a fast-growing roster of innovative, world-class biotech, life science, and research organizations. For more information, visit www.tciflorida.com and www.twitter.com/ResearchParkFL.

About Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies is a 501(c)(3) research center dedicated to conducting basic research to advance the understanding of human disease and the improvement of human health. Torrey Pines Institute’s headquarters is located in the Tradition Center for Innovation a 150-acre research park under development in the 8,300-acre master-planned community of Tradition, in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Torrey Pines Institute also has a site in San Diego, CA. For more information, please visit www.tpims.org.

About Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute VGTI-Florida is the Florida-funded expansion of Oregon Health & Science University’s highly successful Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute. The Institute was created through a $60 million investment by the State of Florida in January 2008 and by $53 million in matching funds provided by the City of Port St. Lucie. Research at the facility will focus on vaccine development with a special focus on vaccines and therapeutics that protect the aging population, which is most vulnerable to the disease. For more information, visit www.ohsu.edu/vgti/.

About Martin Memorial Hospital Systems Martin Memorial Health Systems is a not-for-profit, community-based health care organization that has served the region for more than 70 years. It offers a continuum of care including preventative, primary and acute hospital care, as well as cancer and cardiac care, wellness and rehabilitation services. Its approximately 2,900 Associates, 375 affiliated physicians and 850 volunteers provide care at 12 different locations serving Martin and St. Lucie counties. To learn more, visit www.mmhs.com.

About Jones Lang LaSalle Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE:JLL) is a financial and professional services firm specializing in real estate. The firm offers integrated services delivered by expert teams worldwide to clients seeking increased value by owning, occupying or investing in real estate. With 2009 global revenue of $2.5 billion, Jones Lang LaSalle serves clients in 60 countries from 750 locations worldwide, including 180 corporate offices. The firm is an industry leader in property and corporate facility management services, with a portfolio of approximately 1.4 billion square feet worldwide. LaSalle Investment Management, the company’s investment management business, is one of the world’s largest and most diverse in real estate with more than $40 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit our Web site, www.joneslanglasalle.com.

About Chempetitive Group Chempetitive Group is a full service marketing communication agency focused on the life science industry. We work with companies small and large to help build strong brands, generate awareness, and drive revenues. Our integrated team of brand strategists, public relations specialists, online marketing managers and creative directors serve as extensions to our client's marketing department. We add life to life science marketing by developing highly differentiated campaigns that lead to measurable results. To get to know us, visit www.chempetitive.com.

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/tradition-center-for-innovation-members,1282545.shtml

[Carl]

Tradition, Fla. (PRWEB) May 5, 2010

So are they on their own now?

[Huggs]

Wishful thinking again Carl? 

 

[Rod Bender]

Tradition, Fla. (PRWEB) May 5, 2010

So are they on their own now?

Not until they have a city council.
I know of a few that have experience making a big city.
They can make a sows ear out of a silk purse.

[Lil B]

Florida Biotech Research Money in Jeopardy

April 16, 2010

Lawmakers may divert $50M, harming local efforts

Orlando Business Journal - by Melanie Stawicki Azam Staff Writer
Florida researchers could lose $50 million in biomedical research funding due to the state’s $3 billion budget deficit.

It’s a blow that could delay future scientific discoveries, eliminate high-wage research jobs, and stifle the growth and economic impact of the area’s fledgling biotech industry.

The money funds young scientists with innovative ideas whose efforts often lead to commercialization of new medications and treatments, which can spur entrepreneurship. Plus, the research grants help the region by attracting existing and startup biotech firms, which also helps diversify the area’s economy.

“This gives Florida research a competitive edge,” said Dr. Robert Holloway, a researcher at Florida Hospital’s Cancer Institute. “The $50 million really goes back into the economy.”

Further, “the loss of these funds could delay important new discoveries,” said Chad Binette, University of Central Florida spokesman.

The state Senate’s proposed budget includes $52.2 million for two research grant organizations: The James and Esther King Biomedical Research Program and the Bankhead-Coley Cancer Research Program.

But the House’s proposed budget has just $2.2 million for the King Biomedical Research Program and nothing for the other one.
The competitive grants, administered by the Florida Department of Health, fund Florida scientists’ work on cancer and tobacco-related diseases.

Opponents said raiding the research funding now breaks the state’s commitment to building the biotech industry in Florida and will deter its growth. Plus, they said the funds are from a state settlement with tobacco companies and a $1-a-pack cigarette surcharge enacted in 2009 that are supposed to be used for such research.

Central Florida has a number of fund recipients that would be affected by the cuts:

• Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute at Lake Nona got nearly $618,000 through the two state programs, and seven of its 15 professors have applied for nearly $2.6 million in research dollars for fiscal year 2010-2011.

The work funded by the grants allowed Sanford-Burnham scientists to apply for more than $3 million in National Institutes of Health federal research dollars, said Elizabeth Gianini, Sanford-Burnham’s vice president of external relations.

• Layton Smith, Sanford-Burnham’s director of pharmacology, got a $286,000 King Biomedical Research grant for his research and said the grant programs are essential to the ongoing success of the state’s billion-dollar investment in attracting the life sciences industry. “To reduce the funding now would jeopardize the investment already made.”

• M.D. Anderson-Orlando Cancer Research Institute researchers have gotten more than $3.2 million in grants through the two state programs in the past year and a half. Director Cheryl Baker estimated the funds helped employ about 20 new investigators during the last two years. One research grant related to a treatment for pancreatic cancer led to M.D. Anderson-Orlando getting Food and Drug Administration approval for a clinical trial. M.D. Anderson-Orlando has applied for 12 grants worth $5.5 million in the coming year.

• Nine University of Central Florida researchers got nearly $2 million since 2005 in grants, ranging from $57,000 to $429,000, from the two state programs.

• Florida Hospital’s Cancer Institute gynecologic oncology program got a $374,000 Bankhead-Coley grant for research on using white blood cells harvested from banked cord blood for a new ovarian cancer treatment. Researchers hope to reach the clinical trial stage in the next year or two.

Key to saving the state research dollars is passage of Senate Bill 620/House Bill 861. The legislation — proposed by Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, and Rep. Marti Coley, R-Mariana, would save the King and Bankhead-Coley programs from expiring on Jan. 1, 2011, and reserves $50 million from the Health Care Trust Fund in the Agency for Health Care Administration to fund them.

If the money earmarked for research isn’t transferred to the Department of Health for research, it will remain in the trust fund to cover Medicaid costs.

The American Cancer Society held a press conference April 14 with Gaetz and Coley in Tallahassee to oppose the cuts. Said Burnham’s Gianini, “It’s about recruiting scientists and keeping intellectual capital in Florida.”

http://www.bioflorida.com/web/module/press/pressid/270/interior.asp

[Lil B]

Biotech Employment in Florida Up 18 Percent, Report Says

Jeff Ostrowski
May 03, 2010

CHICAGO — Florida's biotech industry is thriving, although the wisdom of the state's $1.5 billion bet on research labs remains unclear, a prominent industry expert said today.

Battelle, an independent research firm based in Cleveland, and the Biotechnology Industry Organization kicked off the annual BIO conference in Chicago with a report showing that the biotech industry has flourished even as the economy has struggled.

Biotech employment in Florida rose 18 percent from 2001 to 2008, the report said, while the state's total private-sector jobs grew by only 7 percent. Battelle counted positions in agriculture, pharmaceuticals, medical devices and research.

Battelle Vice President Mitch Horowitz called the job growth a promising sign. What's more, biotech jobs pay well -- an average of $55,264 a year in Florida, well above the typical private-sector pay of $39,596.

But Horowitz also warned it'll take years for Florida's billion-dollar bet on such labs as Scripps Florida and Max Planck Florida to pay off.

"The jury on the big investments is still out, which is fine," Horowitz said. "Biotech is a marathon, not a sprint. It's going to take a long time."

Horowitz wondered whether elected officials will have the patience to wait for results. And with nearly every state in the nation and nearly every nation in the developed world wooing scientists and biotech entrepreneurs, he said it won't be enough for Palm Beach County simply to mimic biotech hubs like San Diego and Boston.

Horowitz said the region must offer such support as wet-lab incubators for start-up companies. And he suggested that Florida try to carve out a niche in the life sciences. Horowitz said Memphis, Tenn., for example, has built a biotech industry by focusing on medical devices and the shipping and distribution of drugs and devices.

Florida trails biotech leaders California and Massachusetts in many measures, but it has shown promise in some areas. How Florida ranked in a variety of indicators:

No. 4 among the 50 states in clinical trials in 2009 with 895.

No. 6 in bioscience jobs in 2008 with 27,960.

No. 6 in bioscience college degrees in 2008 with 6,886.

No. 8 in bioscience patents 2004-09 with 3,141.

No. 11 in research and development spending in 2008 with $902 million.

No. 14 in bioscience venture capital 2004-09 with $810 million.

No. 17 in National Institutes of Health grants in 2009 with $466 million.

Spurred by then-Gov. Jeb Bush's courting of The Scripps Research Institute, Florida taxpayers have invested $1.55 billion in biotech institutes, including Scripps Florida and Max Planck Florida in Jupiter and VGTI Florida and the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies in Port St. Lucie.

Yet the high-paying research jobs politicians hoped to reap have yet to materialize, according to a January study by the Florida Legislature's Office of Program Policy Analysis & Government Accountability.

http://www.bioflorida.com/web/module/press/pressid/272/interior.asp

[Lil B]

Calendar Listing: Tour Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies

What:  The Southeast Chapter of BioFlorida, the statewide trade association for the bioscience industry, will host a tour of Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies on May 20, followed by a networking reception and presentations by leaders in the biotech industry. 
Presenters include:
• Christopher Armishaw, PhD, Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, “Cone Snail Venoms as a Source of Drug Leads for Treating Pain and Tobacco Addiction”
• Ray Johnson, Cytonics, “Diagnostics and Treatment for Back and Joint Pain”
• Brad Gould, Dean Mead, “Federal Tax Benefits for Life Science Employers”

When:   Thursday, May 20
4:00 – 8:00 p.m.

Where:   Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies
11350 SW Village Parkway
Port St. Lucie, FL 34987

Cost:  $15 for BioFlorida members; $25 for Non-Members; Free for students.

Contact:  For more information, the public should visit www.bioflorida.com.
 
http://www.bioflorida.com/web/module/press/pressid/276/interior.asp

[Lil B]

Port St. Lucie Center Plans Construction Information Session on Biomedical Research Facility

By staff report
May 19, 2010

TRADITION — The Mann Research Center plans an information session from 5 to 6:30 p.m. May 27 at Tradition Town Hall, 10799 S.W. Civic Lane in Port St. Lucie about the Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute.

The institute plans to build a 100,000-square-foot biomedical research facility in the Tradition Center for Innovation, a 150-acre, privately owned research park.

Groundbreaking on VGTI’s 8-acre site is planned for the summer.

Mann Research Center, the research developer for the park, and the project’s general contractor, Whiting Turner Contracting of Tampa, will provide details on how subcontractors, vendors and suppliers can become involved in the construction of VGTI’s biotech laboratory.

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/may/19/port-st-lucie-center-plans-construction-session/

[Kerry]

$1.5 billion in public money for biotech hasn't paid off yet
File photo at The Scripps Research Institute in Jupiter.
Brandon Kruse/The Palm Beach Post

By Jeff Ostrowski

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

Updated: 6:48 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010

Posted: 4:45 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2010

Florida taxpayers have spent more than $1.5 billion to turn the state into a biotech hub, but the payoff remains elusive, according to a new report by a legislative research group.

The study by the Florida Legislature's Office of Program Policy Analysis & Government Accountability looked at investments of state and county money in eight research institutes, including Scripps Florida and Max Planck Florida in Jupiter.

"This investment has not yet resulted in the growth of technology clusters in the counties where program grantees have established facilities," the report said.

Titled "Biotechnology Clusters Developing Slowly; Startup Assistance May Encourage Growth," the study acknowledged that biotech clusters can take decades to flower. But the report also said taxpayers so far have received little return on their investment.

When Jeb Bush in 2003 offered hundreds of millions of dollars to lure the San Diego-based Scripps Research Institute here, he hoped to create a bustling hub filled with private companies paying generous wages to workers turning research into drugs.

But only a handful of biotech firms have opened shop in Florida since the state and county began doling out money, the report said. Before Scripps, there were 46 biotech companies in Palm Beach County. As of the end of 2008, that number had increased to 54.

St. Lucie County — home of Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute Florida and Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies — counted only seven private biotech firms at the end of 2008, up from four before Torrey Pines was wooed in 2006.

Biotech boosters urge patience. Boston and San Diego needed decades to transform into life sciences meccas, said Kelly Smallridge, head of the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County.

"This is definitely not a sprint; it's a marathon," Smallridge said. "Boston and San Diego were not built in two years, and we certainly don't think Palm Beach County will be built in two years."

The legislative report pointed to an oft-mentioned challenge: Florida's lack of venture capital.

"I wish we didn't have to fly to Boston and San Francisco for capital," said Joe Collard, chief executive of Jupiter biotech firm CURNA.

To make up for the dearth of venture capital, the study suggested lawmakers redirect grants from large research institutes to small start-up firms.

That's the idea being pushed by Ray Johnson, president of Cytonics, a Jupiter biotech firm, and head of the 20-member Early Stage Biotech Coalition. Johnson said other states give grants and loans to help start-ups through their difficult early years.

"In Florida, these early-stage companies have been given no opportunity like they have in other states," Johnson said.

But, the legislative report warned, new money for biotech firms "may not be possible until the state's economy improves."

The biotech bill

Florida taxpayers have spent more than $1.5 billion in state and local money to bring eight biotech institutes to the state.

Scripps Florida (Jupiter): $579 million

Burnham Institute (Orlando): $311 million

Max Planck Florida (Jupiter): $188 million

Miami Institute for Human Genomics (Miami): $180 million

Vaccine & Gene Therapy Institute Florida (Port St. Lucie): $120 million

Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies (Port St. Lucie): $96 million

SRI International (St. Petersburg): $50 million

Charles Stark Draper Laboratory (St. Petersburg): $30 million

Total: $1.55 billion

Source: Florida Office of Program Policy Analysis & Government Accountability

[Carl]

Any time you spend $1.5 BILLION of taxpayer's money, you
can be absolutely positive that SOMEONE got a great return
on our investment. This is called getting rich on OPM --
Other People's Money.

Then they have the balls to go live in the next county, since
"we're not good enough for them". Good enough for them to
be a parasitical leech of our money though.

[Rod Bender]

I think someone refers to them as 'Carpet baggers'. 

[Carl]

Biotech.

Find a cure for stupidity,
and there goes your funding....

[Kerry]

I'm fascinated by the stupidity.  They'll cry about pennies and ignore the dollars being given away!  Raise the water bill a nickel and scream bloody murder but pay $55,000,000 @ $4.1 million a year for Torrey Pines and they say nothing.

[Carl]

Maybe that's because the average person can relate to a
nickel, whereas fifty five million dollars is a theoretical thing,
certainly not real money. Not in my sphere of reality.

The U.S. debt went up by 1.7 BILLION dollars during that
marathon tennis match the other day. How many people
can relate to that sort of spending? Nobody.

[Lil B]

Port St. Lucie Paying Bigger Portion of Torrey Pines Bond Debt Because of Stalled Housing Market

By Alexi Howk
TCPalm
July 30, 2010
 
PORT ST. LUCIE — The city is picking up unexpected costs to help repay a $40 million bond used to build the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies because money from impact fees is down and some developers required to contribute toward the debt are struggling financially.

The city made agreements with 10 developers in the southwest annexation area and required them to pay the city a set number of impact fees each year — whether they build or not — to pay back the Torrey Pines debt.

The 10 developers account for half of the $40 million debt and the city picks up the remaining half through impact fee collections on new construction, said city spokesman Ed Cunningham. Those impact fees aren’t coming in as expected, so the city is paying its share from the general fund.

Meanwhile one of the 10 developers — Centex Homes, which has since been acquired by Pulte Homes but still operates under the Centex brand — is about $300,000 behind on its payments to the city, City Manager Jerry Bentrott said.

And an executive with Core Communities, the parent company of Tradition, an 8,200-acre community that includes the Florida Center for Innovation where the Torrey Pines building is situated, isn’t saying whether the company can make its $133,500 annual payment due in October.

According to a first-quarter filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Core Communities has defaulted on all of its $139 million debt and creditors have begun foreclosure proceedings on mortgage loans totaling about $113.7 million.

Meanwhile, Core is selling off some of its assets, including shopping centers The Landing at Tradition and Tradition Village Center, to settle millions it owes in debt.

Centex is obligated to pay the city a total of $3.1 million toward the Torrey Pines debt and has annual payments totaling $156,000. Core’s total share is $2.7 million. Representatives from Pulte couldn’t be reached for comment Friday.

“I really can’t tell you anything right now because of the situation we’re in and what we’re going through,” Tradition President Wes McCurry said.

Cunningham said the city is confident Core will make its October payment.

“The fact that they are selling off assets is a good thing in that it means they are raising revenues to pay their debts,” Cunningham said.

If the developers don’t make their payments, the city won’t allow them or any other company who takes over to build on the properties until the debt is paid, Cunningham said.

“It would make no business sense, therefore, for them not to pay because then they would own property that no one can build on, and they would lose any potential income from sales,” Cunningham said. “If they ultimately default, however, and no one buys them out and pays the debt, then the city would have to pay the bonds from its general fund, or possibly another source such as contingency funds.”

The city is obligated to pay about half of the $40 million annual debt on the 20-year Torrey Pines bond, which with principal and interest totals $76 million over the 20-year period. Cunningham said the city’s portion, about $2 million annually, was to be paid by impact fees from new construction.

However, because of the woeful housing and commercial markets, the fees haven’t been coming in as expected, he said. So the city is making its payments using money from the general fund, including from the sales and communication service taxes.

Resident Kerry Cochell, who’s been critical of the city providing corporations with millions in incentives to attract them to Port St. Lucie, said the residents are going to eventually end up on the hook for the bond bill.

“...Housing has died, and all of this debt is going to be passed on to the residents in the form of taxes,” Cochell said. “They still used our homes as collateral to borrow these millions for these biotech companies.”

Bentrott said he met with executives from Core but couldn’t speculate whether the company would make its October payment. He said all of the 10 developers are current on their payments except for Centex. He said most of the 10 developers are going through the planning process and preparing their building site plans, and it doesn’t appear they are abandoning ship.

“Most of them, I think, are taking this time to get prepared and ready to go in case the market turns around and they will be able to start building again,” Bentrott said.

The following 10 developers have agreements with the city to repay the $40 million bond debt used to build the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies in exchange for being able to build a certain amount of homes.

Below is what each developer owes the city to pay back the Torrey Pines debt:

Southern Grove DRI

Total number of homes: 4,340

Total obligation: $6.5 million

Annual payment: $325,500

Western Grove DRI

Total number of homes: 2,380

Total obligation: $3.6 million

Annual payment: $178,500

Kenco Communities

Total number of homes: 440

Total obligation: $660,000

Annual payment: $33,000

Riverland and Kennedy LLP/Minto Townpark LLC

Total number of homes: 6,540

Total obligation: $9.8 million

Annual payment: $490,500

ACR Properties LLC/Wilson

Total number of homes: 3,980

Total obligation: $6 million

Annual payment: $298,500

St. Lucie Land LTD

Total number of homes: 1,900

Total obligation: $2.8 million

Annual payment: $142,500

Centex Homes

Total number of homes: 2,080

Total obligation: $3.1 million

Annual payment: $156,000

KC Vizcaya Falls LLC

Total number of homes: 244

Total obligation: $366,000

Annual payment: $18,000

Tradition DRI

Total number of homes: 1,780

Total obligation: $2.7 million

Annual payment: $133,500

Verano DRI/Montage DRI

Total number of homes: 3,100

Total obligation: $4.6 million

Annual payment: $232,500

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2010/jul/30/port-st-lucie-paying-bigger-portion-of-torrey-of/

[Carl]

PORT ST. LUCIE — The city is taxpayers are picking up unexpected costs to help repay a $40 million bond used to build the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies because money from impact fees is down and some developers required to contribute toward the debt are struggling financially.

Let's at least get the victims into the act, OK?

[Rod Bender]

The Taxpayers are struggling too.
Struggling to make mortgage payments or rent, medical, food, taxes, utilities and on and on.
You can bet the people over at Torrey Pines and Molecular Studies are NOT.

Lets put this in the right perspective. While they are deciding what restaurant to go to the taxpayers are deciding whether to have hamburger or hash.

[Huggs]

While they are deciding what restaurant to go to the taxpayers are deciding whether to have hamburger or hash.

Fried spam sandwiches with glazed onions and lots of mustard!   (and YES, I like the mysterious meat in a can!)

[Sage1949]

Good God almighty...i have not even thought of that in ages...SPAM...My mother when I was a Kid could make that sound like Porter House Steak to us kids!!!!  LOL   why on Saturday's for lunch...it was spam sandwiches or boston baked beans w/black bread(out of the can) and sometimes we would get weiners cut up in the beans!!  Us kids were in heaven. 

[wander]

If the council finds out we all like Spam,we will probably soon have a 10% tax on that also. We should keep Spam our little secret.

[Carl]

Too late. We are already paying out the wazoo for plenty of pork.