JLL Tapped to Lease Nine-Building Life Science Campus in Morrisville, NC

JLL has been awarded the exclusive leasing assignment for Eastridge at Perimeter Park (EastRidge), a 490,000-square-foot, nine-building, Class-A life science campus located in the heart of North Carolina’s Research Triangle. JLL Executive Vice Presidents Eric Forshee and John MacDonell will lead marketing and leasing efforts on behalf of the owners, King Street Properties and Nuveen Real Estate.

Centrally located near Research Triangle Park, RDU International Airport and major thoroughfares I-540 and I-40, EastRidge provides convenient and unmatched access for its tenants. The campus, located at 100-1000 Perimeter Park Drive just off Airport Blvd, is positioned in close proximity to an abundance of hotels, shops and restaurants, all within a 5-minute drive from the campus. Since acquiring the nine single-story flex building campus, King Street Properties has made numerous improvements to the project, such as updated exterior façades and new signage, landscaping and repaving for pedestrians. Furthermore, King Street Properties is upgrading the infrastructure of the project to accommodate a diverse spectrum of life science needs and undertaking an extensive spec lab build out program. Research and development companies seeking flexible space will have access to high-quality institutional life science buildings at the campus.

“EastRidge is an unmatched opportunity for tenants looking to expand into one of the largest and most distinguished research communities in the country, at one of the premier campuses” said JLL’s Forshee. “Life science tenants are constantly looking for space with strategic locations and flexible opportunities, and the campus provides all of that and more. With an increased focus on amenities and creating a space that provides opportunities for employees to work and play, I’m certain EastRidge will become one of the most eminent developments in The Triangle. I’m confident in our team’s ability to lease up the space to top-tier companies in the industry quickly and efficiently, and I look forward to working alongside King Street Properties and Nuveen Real Estate as we bring high quality tenants into the space.”

Additionally, King Street Properties recently completed the ground-up construction of a state-of-the-art amenity building. The Shed, a 9,000-square-foot amenity hub, anchors the property and features technology-equipped training and conference spaces, a fitness center with locker rooms and showers, an indoor-outdoor tenant lounge, private collaboration rooms, a café and a fully featured golf simulator lounge. The Shed is a top of market amenity offering among the life science community in the Triangle, designed to attract top-tier tenants and foster collaboration and innovation in the workplace.

According to JLL’s 2022 Life Science Research Outlook, Raleigh-Durham is the sixth strongest market for life science clusters, and fourth in terms of talent acquisition and commercial real estate assets. Boston, Philadelphia, Bay Area, Raleigh-Durham, San Diego, Seattle and Metro DC contributed to the 9.6 million square feet of new product deliveries in 2022, closely tracking with the 9.1 million square feet of absorption in 2022. From July 1, 2021 to July 1, 2022, the development pipeline has grown in these markets by 73%, up from 20.8 million square feet to 36.2 million square feet, representing strong demand and explosive growth. Raleigh-Durham delivered a respectable amount of lab development over the past two years and is known as one of the preeminent biomanufacturing hubs in North America. Additionally, based on JLL’s model that determines what makes a life science market successful, Raleigh-Durham ranked above average in terms of both human and physical capital.

“Acquiring the campus back in 2020 was a significant step forward for us as we’re continuing to expand into select markets and more specifically, The Triangle, one of the most dynamic life science markets in the country,” said Tim Skender, Vice President of King Street Properties. “EastRidge represented our entry into the North Carolina market, where we’ve since added to the platform. We’re thrilled to have JLL’s unrivaled expertise on hand as we provide best-in-class facilities and services to our customers, enabling them to further attract and retain top talent.”