$165M Life Science Development in Providence to House Labs for RIDOH, Brown

A new $165-million life sciences development in Rhode Island’s Innovation and Design District, funded in part by an $81.7-million grant from the Center for Disease Control, is moving forward according to RI Gov. Dan McKee.

The 212,000-square-foot, seven-story building in Providence will house a public health lab for the State of Rhode Island while also providing additional lab space available for lease to organizations in the local life sciences community.

The Rhode Island Department of Health State Health Laboratories will anchor the facility, with the remaining floors available to academic and industry partners in the biotechnology field. The 80,000-square-foot state-of-the-art State Health Laboratories will provide updated and flexible space to accommodate biological and chemical testing for a variety of infectious disease, environmental, and forensic testing services.

To help attract additional tenants and encourage a thriving mix of public and private entities focused on health and medicine, Brown University has signed a letter of intent to lease 20,000 square feet of laboratory space in the building for 10 years.

The project is the result of a multi-partner collaboration, which alongside Ancora L&G and its development partner GRE, a regional development services company serving the Science and Technology sector, includes the RI Department of Administration, the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission, the RI Commerce Corporation, the RI Executive Office of Health and Human Services, and Rhode Island Department of Health. This public/private partnership follows a condominium model with ownership of the State Health Laboratories unit conveyed to the State of Rhode Island on completion, with developer Ancora L&G retaining ownership of the private laboratory space.