Kraus-Anderson has completed construction of a 19,600-square-foot addition to University Enterprise Laboratories, a growing biotech incubator founded in 2003 as a partnership between the University of Minneapolis and the City of Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Designed by Minneapolis-based Alliiance, the $6.4 million, 19,600-square-foot expansion adds 18 laboratories and a new mezzanine inside the existing building located at 1000 Westgate Drive in the Midway neighborhood of St. Paul.
Kraus-Anderson renovated the original 125,000-square-foot Target warehouse in 2005.
Former Mayor Randy Kelly’s vision was to develop Saint Paul’s Bioscience Zone into a full-blown research park to support the development of a large number of new companies in the burgeoning field of life sciences, biomedical and technology.
Today the incubator is home to 35 young bioscience companies that share common lab space and participate in programs to help them along the path to market success. UEL’s many services include wet labs and conference space, as well as living units for the observation of human response to new medicines and treatments and for 24/7 operation and food service capabilities. UEL also helps start-ups form partnerships and connections to the thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem in Minnesota.