The seven-story PVD Labs building under construction in Providence will include an incubator for 30,000 wet and dry labs under a tentative agreement approved Thursday by the Rhode Island Life Science Hub board. (Courtesy of Ancora L&G)
Rhode Island’s first, dedicated incubator for life science startups now has a home and a developer under a $10 million non-binding contract approved Thursday by the Rhode Island Life Science Hub board.
The quasi-public state agency’s unanimous vote came minutes after a closed-door virtual discussion on the terms of state funding for the wet lab set aside for testing drugs, chemicals and other biological materials. A term sheet detailing the partnership and public financing will not be made public until it is finalized, according to Jillian Scott, a spokesperson for the agency.
The draft agreement, detailed in a news release, brings together the state’s emerging life science agency with Brown University, the I-195 Redevelopment District Commission and developer Ancora L&G to house the long-awaited state incubator in the new, seven storey healthcare facility. and science building already under construction in the I-195 district.
The PVD laboratories project at 150 Richmond St. ground broke at the end of 2022with plans to house a new 80,000-square-foot state health laboratory and provide 120,000 square feet for commercial life science tenants. Brown University, which has already signed on as anchor tenant with a corresponding 10-year $13 million investment in the building, will sublease 30,000 square feet to serve as a state incubator.
The Rhode Island Life Science Hub will provide $9 million $45 million, three-year state budget for development and construction costs, among other start-up costs, with an additional $1 million through the I-195 District Commission.
Neil Steinberg, president of the Life Science Hub, praised the panel’s decision as a “historic move” that will help put Rhode Island on the map as a destination for innovation and investment in the life sciences.
Creating space for start-up companies to research and test medicines, chemicals and other biological materials was an important reason for this legislators and industry leaders wanted a dedicated life science agency in Rhode Island.
“The development of this laboratory space is a transformative step for Rhode Island’s life sciences community,” Steinberg said in a statement. “The project addresses an urgent need for modern incubator laboratory facilities in the state to support existing life science companies and attract new ones.”
Ancora was one of the three companies which submitted proposals in response to a competition request issued in April. Other bids were not immediately available, although Ancora’s preliminary selection follows an “extensive review process” by a subcommittee of the board, according to an agency statement.
The Life Science Hub board must still negotiate and approve a final, binding agreement, for which no timeline has yet been set.
The incubator is expected to be open and operational by the end of 2025.
SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES IN YOUR INBOX
