Mission Street and BentallGreenOak (BGO) have acquired a 23-acre site on Coldham’s Lane in Cambridge to deliver a world-class science and innovation campus less than 10 minutes east of the city centre.
This is the fifth and largest acquisition by the specialist science and innovation development joint venture since the partnership formed in January 2021.
The platform now has a development pipeline of over 1m sq. ft. of lab and office space in key strategic UK locations with initial schemes in Oxford and Cambridge due for completion in mid-2023.
The scale of the 23-acre site presents the opportunity to deliver an innovative masterplan of the highest quality. The joint venture aims to offer future occupiers and the public a unique offering: an open innovation campus with transformative landscaping, new café and play area with access and views across the adjacent lakes as well as a dedicated pedestrian and cycle route to the city-centre.
Artem Korolev, Founder and CEO of Mission Street, commented: “This new acquisition provides the potential to deliver the most centrally located science and innovation district in Cambridge. The site will provide the opportunity to deliver our vision for the next generation of commercial science real estate in the UK: integrating the scheme into Cambridge’s urban fabric, with collaboration and sustainability at its heart. We look forward to working with the stakeholders and local community as we work through our plans.”
Toby Phelps, Managing Partner at BentallGreenOak, said: “We continue to have conviction that the science and innovation sector in the UK will be a source of growth and opportunity for strategic, purpose-driven real estate investment. Cambridge is at the epicentre of this dynamic industry and the current severe shortage of specialist space highlights the opportunity we see in the sector. We are looking forward to working with our partner, Mission Street, and the broader Cambridge business and governmental community to bring this exciting project to fruition.”
The ‘Golden Triangle’ of Oxford, Cambridge, and London – a region where UK life sciences has a critical mass – is responsible for seven percent of England’s economic output. Research from Bidwells recently revealed that despite a growing demand for more than two million square feet of space from companies of all sizes, there are no available laboratories left to let in the life sciences cluster of Cambridge.
Life Science-focused real estate development has struggled to keep pace with record-breaking fundraising levels among biotech companies – who raised £4.5 billion last year – and current supply constraints in this specialized space market has become a critical consideration in the UK’s pursuit of becoming a ‘scientific superpower’.
