Global Life Sciences Cluster Report 2011 - Jones Lang LaSalle

Bay Area
Equities opened the doors to its most recent development,
455 Mission Bay Boulevard in San Francisco, and welcomed
Nektar Therapeutics and Bayer Pharmaceuticals to San
Francisco. They occupy 105,000 and 50,000 square feet,
respectively. In 2011, Alexandria purchased 409–499 Illinois,
a two-building life sciences asset 50 percent occupied
by Fibrogen.
South San Francisco contains the highest concentration of
life sciences companies in San Mateo Country and brightest
talent pool in Northern California. The restoration of venture
capital confidence has resulted in increased demand for space
and expansion, spurring some hiring. The life sciences industry
in South San Francisco remained resilient throughout 2010
despite heavy losses in employment in the tech industry,
and was able to bounce back by the beginning of 2011. Top
companies in South San Francisco include Amgen, Elan,
Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, among
others. Swiss drug maker Genentech alone currently occupies
approximately 5 million square feet in the area. Although
there was much speculation as to the state of the South San
Francisco submarket when the company was acquired by
Roche in 2008, Genentech has expanded through recent
construction of a new office building on their campus.
The East Bay’s life sciences market is generally clustered in
Richmond, Fremont, Newark, Berkeley, and Emeryville, and
contains approximately 4.6 million square feet of inventory
within office, flex and lab space. In 2009, Bayer’s efforts to
enlarge the Oakland Enterprise Zone to include Berkeley
and Emeryville were paramount to retaining life sciences
companies in the region, and should foster future growth in
the industry. Significant life science companies include Abgenix,
Novartis, Bayer HealthCare, and WaferGen Biosystems.
18 Americas | Jones Lang LaSalle
Industry framework
Intellectual capacity
San Francisco’s location, impressive business center and
world renowned cultural attractions make the city one of the
most attractive places to live in the United States. Both the
Mid-Peninsula and Silicon Valley have been at the forefront
of innovation and advancement in technology, attracting talent
from all around the world. Major corporations such as Genentech
continually support academic programs at local universities
through grants, scholarships, and internship programs. Specific
areas within Palo Alto are dedicated solely to research and
development companies to encourage students to work locally
once they graduate. The East Bay shares this talent pool, and
University of California at Berkeley similarly draws students
from around the world to its biology and chemistry programs.
South San Francisco contains the highest
concentration of life sciences companies in
San Mateo Country and brightest talent pool
in Northern California. The restoration of
venture capital confidence has resulted in
increased demand for space and expansion,
spurring some hiring.
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