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Posted Dec 27, 2017, 9:10 PM
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Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: Philadelphia
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Gray's Ferry's future: How Penn is bringing the 'West Philadelphia playbook' to another neighborhood
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Early in 2014, the University of Pennsylvania unveiled a master plan for 23 acres it acquired in the Greys Ferry section of the city and laid out an ambitious goal to create a place where fledgling companies-— whether spun out of the University of Pennsylvania or not-— could incubate and therefore establish a hub buzzing with innovation.
It was a bit of an experiment since Penn had never undertaken a real estate project such as this and in October 2016, what had been the Marshall Labs for DuPont Corp. was newly minted as Pennovation Works and officially opened.
Having just completed its first full year in operation, it looks as if Penn’s experiment is working beyond creating a place for innovation. Pennovation Works has helped establish an economic anchor in the neighborhood, aided in laying the ground work for the university’s growing presence in Gray’s Ferry and may portend a wave of redevelopment in that part of the city.
The early success of Pennovation Works has been a bit of a surprise for those involved in its development.
“Within a year, we were full,” said Anne Papageorge, vice president for facilities and real estate services at the University of Pennsylvania. She noted that Pennovation Works exceeded its business plan and budget though that doesn’t mean it is profitable since the university is still subsidizing portions of its operations.
The first building to get renovated on the site, a 58,000-square-foot property called the Pennovation Center, offers office and lab space to startups. That is what opened in October 2016 and, during those early days of the center, it is where KMel Robotics, a company formed by Alex Kushleyev and Daniel Mellinger, both Penn graduates, perfected their drone technology. In February 2015, Qualcomm Technologies Inc. acquired KMel but that wasn’t the end of its presence at the Pennovation Center. At the insistence of the two Penn alums, Qualcomm Research Philadelphia opened last summer in 10,000 square feet – a space that has high bay ceilings so drone and other flying devices have clearance for testing, along with its labs and offices.
Papageorge attributed the accelerated success of Pennovation Works on several competitive advantages.
The affiliation with Penn attracts startups that want to be associated with the university and internationally recognized researchers. Pennovation Works is the low cost provider of such space in the market. When targeting early stage companies, Penn recognized that it needed to provide flexibility, like leases with shorter terms and the ability to adjust with a company’s space needs. Papageorge added, “Philadelphia doesn’t have wet lab space," and there is a demand for it.
With that success also comes a challenge. Penn wants to make sure it stays ahead of demand and has done that on two fronts. With space now tight at the Pennovation Center, Penn moved forward with renovating 8,000 square feet for additional lab and office space in the building that was going unused. It also moved ahead with a $4 million renovation of an existing 24,000-square-foot office building with office and dry lab space. That has already attracted tenants such as Cognitive Operational Systems, or COSY, which exemplifies what Penn is trying to do at Pennovation Works.
Founded in 2014 by Jonas Cleveland and Kostas Daniilidis, who studied in Penn’s robotics lab, COSY worked from a so-called “Inventor Garage” at the Pennovation Center. It outgrew the garage space and moved into 2,412 square feet at the newly renovated office building. Another company, Automation Research Group, which is not affiliated with Penn but wanted to be in Philadelphia, has leased roughly 500 square feet in the same building.
Next up will be renovating what is referred to as the “Lab Building,” which totals 69,000 square feet. A feasibility study has been conducted and the space will eventually be retrofitted into modern wet lab space. Once an anchor tenant is secured, that project will begin. It will take about two years to complete. Pennovation Works also includes development sites that can accommodate up to 1.5 million square feet of new space.
While the university drew up its own blueprint to follow with the roll out of Pennovation Works, much of it is still evolving. For example, one aspect that hasn’t worked out as anticipated is the use of coworking space in the building.
“People still have the tendency to want their own office,” Papageorge said.
While coworking hasn’t panned out, the demand to use the space for events has exceeded expectations. More than 50 programs, including the 1776 Challenge Cup Philadelphia, were held at the center and attracted more than 6,500 people. While some areas are thriving, Penn wants to enhance it by bolstering an arts and culture component as well as add more food options as a way to provide more amenities at the site.
Penn’s ambitions aren’t just focused on Pennovation Works. It has begun to look at the Gray’s Ferry neighborhood as the next frontier, in line with the city's economic development officials' continued focus on the redevelopment of the Lower Schuylkill. The part of that area that is closest to Pennovation Works and University City has been targeted as an innovation district.
The university has under agreement with the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp. a parcel at 1201 S. 35th St. that sits directly across from Pennovation Works. An abandoned concrete silo sits on the property now and the site totals 130,500 square feet, giving Penn ample room to undertake a large project. Early discussions revolve around developing a mixed-use project on the property.
“It’s an important corner and would change the whole look and feel of the neighborhood,” Papageorge said. “It’s the West Philadelphia playbook.” In other words, using the economic engine of Penn to begin to stabilize and transform an area.
In addition to investing in development activity, the university has also extended its Home Ownership Services program to Gray’s Ferry that was considered a success in West Philadelphia. It offers employees help with closing costs, down payments and home improvements.
Other efforts are also underway. Penn is working with PennDot and the Philadelphia streets department to improve traffic, mass transit and connectivity to the area. And, the Philadelphia chapter of Urban Land Institute and PennPraxis conducted a Gray’s Ferry Healthy Corridor project, which evaluated the area and looked for ways to improve its sense of community and social cohesion, promote healthy eating and active living, as well as provide economic, housing and educational opportunities.
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https://www.bizjournals.com/philadel...ome-owner.html
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