John P. Dunphy, vice president of Paratek harmaceuticals, stands in his new bio-lab space in Boston’s Marine Industrial Park
Paratek Pharmaceuticals searched the region to grow its biotech company, but settled on Boston’s Marine Industrial Park.
“We looked in Cambridge, Watertown, Waltham, Woburn and Route 128, but Boston was the right fit for us,” said John P. Dunphy, vice president.
The Boston-based company, with offices on Kneeland Street, wanted to upgrade its space and has found a home in a new 2-story facility in South Boston. It helped that Paratek, whose mission is to develop antibiotics that fight disease, received a $14 million tax-exempt empowerment zone bond from Boston Connects, an arm of the city of Boston. The funds will be used to complete the renovation of their bio-lab space at One Harbor St.
Paratek, which employs 61 full-time employees, and expects to employ an additional 50 people by 2010, is not the only biotech firm making a commitment to Boston. Andorra-based dental implant maker Soadco/Klockner has purchased a 3,000-square-foot office condominium in Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood for its U.S. headquarters. They are also seeking 120,000 square feet of manufacturing space in the area.
“We are looking to grow and diversify, and Boston is our first presence in the United States,” said Eduardo Vivas, Soadco/Klockner’s global corporate director. “We want to be close to the talent, and it’s here. Silicon Valley was our second choice but Boston has many advantages, including location and a highly professional and well-educated workforce.”
A third biotech company, Cogio Health, could close a deal shortly for 3,000 square feet in Copley Square for their planned move from Cambridge, according to Joshua Feast, the firm’s Chief Executive Officer.
The high-tech industry in Boston employed 191,700 people in 2006, according to AeA, a nationwide trade association. Boston is the fourth largest cyber city in the nation after New York and Washington, D.C., and the San Jose/Silicon Valley. The industry added 4,100 jobs to Boston in 2006, the sixth largest gain nationwide. Tech industry jobs are high paying; the average tech industry worker in Boston earned $95,100 or 65 percent more than the metropolitan area’s average private sector wage.
“The high-tech industry is very important to Boston,” said Anne Doherty Johnson, AeA’s New England Council executive director. “With 9 percent of our private sector workforce in the high-tech industry, it is imperative that we remain globally competitive, both with other cities as well as with other countries. Our high-tech companies continue to be challenged with finding enough high-skilled workers. While many students come here to our colleges and universities, we need to find new incentives to make them want to stay in Boston after graduating.”
Gov. Deval Patrick and the Legislature have made life sciences a priority. Last month, the governor, joined by Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, signed a $1 billion investment package that could boost the Bay State’s position as a global leader in life sciences. The Massachusetts Life Sciences Law includes $500 million in capital funding, $299.5 million for targeted infrastructure projects and $200 million in unrestricted funds for investment in public infrastructure projects.
