Drexel welcomed tenants to a newly renovated 20,800-square-foot space in One Drexel Plaza.
The Innovation Neighborhood, a real estate corridor stretching west from 30th Street Station, between Market Street and JFK Boulevard, envisioned in Drexel University’s master plan as an area that will be transformed into a sector for burgeoning science, technology and biomedical companies, is welcoming its first tenant at One Drexel Plaza — a new space at the Neighborhood’s eastern entrance. A local real estate development company, called PHL Next Stage Med, is setting up shop in a newly renovated, 20,800-square-foot space owned by the University at 3001 Market St.
While the Neighborhood has already welcomed companies on its western flank as part of a collaboration with University Science Center called the Innovation Center @3401, the arrival of PHL Next Stage Med marks the first company to establish occupancy on the eastern edge of the corridor.
PHL Next Stage Med provides collaborative workspaces for specialty medical companies. It focuses on supporting companies that are bringing medical, therapeutic and diagnostic devices to the market or provide health-related information technology services. The group is currently working with three companies, who will each have a physical presence in PHL Next Stage Med’s corner of the Innovation Neighborhood.
“Younger companies need more flexible space options with shorter term leases and efficient spaces. This project, in Drexel’s Innovation Neighborhood, gives younger companies access to one of the largest health care provider networks and one of the best-educated talent pools for workers,” said Rob Reisley, a co-founder of PHL Next Stage Med.
Among PHL Next Stage Med’s anchor companies are Plexus Innovation, a member-driven technology workshop for medical device developers working on prototypes; Militia Hill Ventures, a holding and management group for early-stage therapeutics companies; and Boston Device Development, a medical technology product development firm.
“We’re excited that PHL Next Stage is one of the very first movers in the Innovation Neighborhood,” said Drexel President John A. Fry. “PHL Next Stage's model is the perfect fit for the corridor: drawing entrepreneurs to Philadelphia to pursue commercial technologies that can save and improve lives.”
The Innovation Neighborhood development project, as envisioned by Drexel, will utilize 10 acres of underdeveloped land to create an economic gateway to University City and Drexel’s campus at Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station.
The Innovation Neighborhood is equipped to house technology partnerships, industrial joint ventures, interdisciplinary academic research programs, business incubators and more. Offices and laboratories, classroom space and residential and retail property will develop in tandem to create a dense, mixed-use neighborhood. It is the centerpiece of Drexel’s strategic focus on research, technology transfer and economic development.
As the Neighborhood has grown to the west, Drexel has partnered with University City Science Center to bring companies to the collaborative innovation and entrepreneurship program at ic@3401. With companies now arriving on the eastern side of the Neighborhood, Drexel Ventures, the University’s business accelerator arm, will guide these new tenants as they put down roots in this growing sector of University City. For more information about the Innovation Neighborhood visit: www.innovationneighborhoodphl.com. For more information about PHL Next Stage Med visit: www.nextstagemed.com.