The University of Pennsylvania (Penn) will partner with Longfellow Real Estate partners to develop a new 455,000-square-foot life sciences research, development, and manufacturing facility, the organizations announced Thursday.
The facility will be a state-of-the-art life sciences facility inside the Pennovation Works ecosystem, the university said. Pennovation Works is a 23-acre innovation incubator adjacent to the university’s Philadelphia campus.
“The pace of innovation coming out of Penn is astounding. We have brilliant scientists generating a record number of new FDA approvals in the life sciences,” Craig R. Carnaroli, Penn’s senior executive vice president, said. “We also have the policies in technology transfer to align with industry to bring new life-saving therapies and treatments to market. And, with Pennovation Works, we operate a campus where these ideas can be nurtured into companies. Attracting Longfellow to Philadelphia and Pennovation is a vote of confidence in Penn’s efforts to grow Philadelphia’s innovation ecosystem and enable the Lower Schuylkill master plan to flourish.”
The partnership marks the first development in the Philadelphia market for Longfellow Real Estate, a privately-owned commercial developer of life science buildings.
The new building features two six-story buildings and will be segmented into 387,000 square feet of research and development space and 68,000 square feet of biomanufacturing space, with rooftop terraces affording views of the Philadelphia skyline and Penn’s campus. Inside, the building will house flexible lab/office space that allows tenants to customize as needed. The project is scheduled to open in the fourth quarter of 2025.
“Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania have a long history of academic excellence and fostering innovation. Longfellow is thrilled to provide world-class space for the market’s leading institutions, companies, and incubators as they continue their life-changing work,” said Longfellow Partner, Real Estate Operations Jessica Brock. “As the region continues to be a leader in Cell and Gene Therapy, Longfellow looks forward to delivering the infrastructure the life science industry needs to thrive.”