Company president Kathy Ordonez says she wants to fill thebuilding with 450 employees in the next two years. Ultimately,though, it may be just an outpost for the biotech company. Highprices and a tough cost of living may force the company to considerfuture locations outside the Valley.

Ordonez says employees are hesitant to move to the West Coastbecause of the region's lack of affordable housing. When a group ofNew Jersey employees came out to California to investigate apossible move, says Ordonez, their shock at the cost of living was"phenomenal." To get them here, Ordonez may have to resort to largemoving bonuses.

If things go as well as planned, however, the company will needmore room for growth than it's currently developing. Many biotechfirms have chosen to pull up their California stakes and relocateto New England, which is widely considered to be the world'slargest bioscience center, with fewer high-tech startups and lowercommercial rents than the booming Bay Area.