County Grants CBRE Exclusive Contract for Research Park

PALM BEACH COUNTY, FL-The county is finalizing a contract with CB Richard Ellis for the firm to be the exclusive consultant, marketer and brokerage for the proposed Palm Beach County Bioscience Research Park–which potentially could total up to eight million sf in building space, according to information CBRE submitted to the county.The total size, stated in the firm’s consulting report, is the park’s long-term potential, in addition to university and medical center uses, says Michael Klotz, a first vice president with the company who will be one of the day-to-day brokers for the project.The two parties are formalizing the contract, and CBRE already has done one report based on the contract and is working on a second. The contract award didn’t come as a surprise to CBRE, he says, because the firm has gained considerable experience in bioscience/pharmaceutical real estate in the last couple of years. However, competition was strong, and the firm beat out several big name firms for the assignment, including Cushman & Wakefield, Trammell Crow Co., Jones Lang LaSalle and the Staubach Co. “It was very competitive,” Klotz says.At first, the firm will be a consultant to the county on finding a location for the park. The firm will consider several factors required to have a successful research cluster, including “institutional and corporate support, infrastructure capabilities, expansion opportunities, industry interest in the area, and the measure of public investment commitment,” according to CBRE.The company then plans to analyze the economic impact the park would have on the area, demographics and other area trends, and assess the 1,900-acre master plan’s proposed mix of retail, research and development, and commercial space for practicality and feasibility in the market. When a site is chosen, CBRE intends to formulate and implement a plan to identify potential tenants and/or owner-occupants for the rest of the park.The proposed park evolved out of La Jolla, CA-based Scripps Research Institute’s 2003 decision to open a research division in Palm Beach County. The state and county’s financial incentive package to attract Scripps included a commitment to create a research cluster like the one around its headquarters by developing a large complex for the use of these companies.The Scripps Research Institute would encompass 360,000 sf at the park. Besides the existing cluster around the institute, other successful biotech research clusters include Research Triangle in North Carolina and Stanford Research Park in Palo Alto, CA.Patricia Ardigo, group leader of CBRE’s Life Sciences Group, will lead the team working on the research park. In addition to Klotz, Robert Smith, first vice president, will act as a day-to-day broker for the project. Tom Jirovsky, senior managing director of the company’s Sedway Consulting Group, will provide strategic advisory services.