Craig Blais, president and CEO of the Worcester Business Development Corp.

WORCESTER, MA—The Worcester Business Development Corp. has been chosen to redevelop the 44-acre former Worcester State Hospital campus here into prime biomanufacturing space.

Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito announced WBC's selection last Friday. The project is expected to create approximately 500,000 square feet of biomanufacturing space that will be geared at attracting biotech firms moving from the research phase to the commercialization process. The redevelopment of the land is part of the Commonwealth's ongoing “Open for Business Initiative” announced in October 2015 that seeks to redevelop underutilized state assets into productive pieces of our state economy.

“Transforming this unused property into a biomanufacturing park is exactly the type of project we envisioned when we launched the Open for Business initiative,” Lt. Gov. Polito says. “We look forward to continuing our work with the city, the region, all stakeholders involved, and the Worcester Businesses Development Corporation to ensure this property brings new jobs, economic growth, and a new community partner for local residents and students.”

The Worcester Business Development Corporation has considerable local development experience and has successfully completed projects such as the Massachusetts Biotechnology Research Park, Gateway Park, and Centech Park.

Craig Blais, president and CEO of the Worcester Business Development Corp., says the redevelopment of the property provides a great opportunity to now introduce biomanufacturing uses to Worcester.

A number of unused buildings will be demolished. However, the $302-million Worcester Recovery Center and Hospital, which opened in 2012, will remain in operation on the property. “We will rely on the continued and expanded public/private partnerships to accomplish the goals in Baker-Polito Open for Business Initiative,” Blais says. “Worcester is proud to be one of the first regions of the state to develop manufacturing jobs through the Open for Business Initiative.”

Blais told the Worcester Telegram that the WBDC offered approximately $1 million for the state-owned land. He said that the WBDC expects the first biomanufacturing firm could take occupancy in 30 months. Blais could not be reached by Globest.com at press time for further comment.

Groups involved in the process to redevelop the former Worcester State Hospital property include: Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives, the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, the City of Worcester, the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, UMass Medical Center, the Worcester Business Development Corporation, the Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance, Mass Development, and the local legislative delegation.

Kevin O'Sullivan, president of Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives, says of the redevelopment project, “Our vision here is to be the poster child for this initiative. We want bio-manufacturing to be a staple of the economy here in Central Massachusetts as well as the entire Commonwealth.”

Travis McCready, president and CEO of the MLSC, adds, “This project will further Massachusetts' emergence as a completely integrated ecosystem for the development of new therapeutics, from discovery, right through to commercialization and production, and we're pleased to see that Worcester will be at the nexus of this growth in advanced manufacturing.”

WORCESTER, MA—The Worcester Business Development Corp. has been chosen to redevelop the 44-acre former Worcester State Hospital campus here into prime biomanufacturing space.

Craig Blais, president and CEO of the Worcester Business Development Corp., says the redevelopment of the property provides a great opportunity to now introduce biomanufacturing uses to Worcester.

Instant Insights /

Former State Hospital Campus to be Converted for Biomanufacturing Use

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