The Richard King Mellon Foundation recently provided the University of Pittsburgh with a $100 million gift, the largest single-project gift in the foundation’s history.
The university will use the donation to create an anchor bioresearch and development facility on Hazelwood Green near Downtown Pittsburgh.
The site will be home to the University of Pittsburgh BioForge, a highly specialized biomanufacturing facility that will create cell and gene therapies and other novel treatments. It will offer high-tech manufacturing capabilities, wet lab and other innovation and incubation space.
Pitt BioForge, combined with the university’s own financial commitment and funding from industry partners, is expected to bring together clinical, research and academic capabilities to offer ripe opportunities for both early-stage; advance medical progress; and turn the region’s life sciences corridor into a global destination for investors and innovators.
“The Richard King Mellon Foundation’s gift is nothing short of transformative, and it paves the way for the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC to establish a world-class biomanufacturing hub at Hazelwood Green,” Chancellor Patrick Gallagher said. “I am grateful for this support and confident that we’ll succeed — together — in strengthening Southwestern Pennsylvania’s role as a leading life sciences destination.”
Earlier this year, the foundation provided funding to support the formation of the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Alliance.