New York readies big biotech facility for homegrown developers

Shoved off schedule by a nasty recession, New York is looking to put its huge new biotech facility for early-stage developers back on track with plans to break ground soon on the first 100,000 square feet of space at the Brooklyn Army Terminal.

BioBAT is New York's answer to a commonly asked question: Why doesn't the city, home to some of the most acclaimed scientists in the medical field, play host to a booming biotech industry? Lack of affordable space for start-ups is most frequently cited. But when BioBAT is finished, it will have close to a half million square feet of space to host the 20 or so biotech companies that are spun off from the city's universities each year, says Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

The hep C developer Apath is slated to become the first tenant when the facility opens its doors next year. The city and state are chipping in $60 million to cover the cost of infrastructure development.

- here's the story from the Wall Street Journal  (sub. req.)