San Diego Planners Approve 1M SF Life Science Campus

A mega-development in the heart of San Diego’s research cluster has won the unanimous approval of the city’s Planning Commission, a 1M SF life science project that will be known as BioMed Towne Center View.

BioMed Realty is planning to build the research campus, which will include five buildings on a 34-acre site in San Diego’s University City district, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.

The planners approved the project’s environmental impact statement, the most important hurdle before the City Council ratifies the deal. In a statement hailing the approach of the finish line for the project, which has been two years in the making, the developers stressed the environmental stewardship that has been a priority of the plans.

“Towne Center View has been thoughtfully designed with spectacular architecture and native landscaping that respects its unique location and incorporates environmental stewardship and climate action values of BioMed Realty and our community,” the San Diego-based company said, in a statement.

The project site, on a parcel wedged between I-805 and I-5, sits on a hilltop that is more than 330 feet above sea level. The buildings in the campus are expected to range from two to six stories each, with a series of balconies, rooftop decks and parking garages that will accommodate 2,500 vehicles.

Amenities will include overlooks, walking trails and seven acres of open space, including a fitness center and sports fields. The life science campus is expected to house about 3,000 workers.

The hilltop site was graded several years ago for a previously entitled, smaller project but left undeveloped, the report said.

BioMed purchased the 21.8-acre undeveloped, northern portion of the project site at the end of Towne Center Drive for $100M in September 2022 from Cush Enterprises.

The firm already owned the southern portion of the project site, which is developed with three buildings leased to Union Bank and genetic screening company Helix. The existing buildings will be demolished to make way for Towne Center View.

To gain approval from the city planners, BioMed agreed to several traffic mitigation measures. The campus will charge for parking, as well as provide bike facilities, subsidized transit passes, carpool priority parking and an employee shuttle to the UTC transit station, the Union-Tribune reported.

BioMed will be required to report to the city trip count data and information from employee surveys to measure vehicle miles traveled. The firm will face fines if traffic exceeds agreed-to limits.

The developer said Towne Center View’s design will play off the surrounding landscape with “sculptural building forms and transparent facades.” Buildings also are being shaped by the architects and placed in locations meant to maximize views from several vantage points.

BioMed Realty Trust owns and operates about 16M SF of real estate spread across the life science hubs of San Diego, San Francisco, Boston, Boulder, Seattle and Cambridge UK. Founded and headquartered in San Diego in 2004, the company was acquired by Blackstone in 2016 for $8B.