TMC BioPort: 500-Acre Bio Manufacturing Campus

[Highrise Tower]

TMC CEO unveils Plans for Growth of Texas Medical Center as a Leading Life Science Corridor

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220920006149/en/TMC-CEO-unveils-Plans-for-Growth-of-Texas-Medical-Center-as-a-Leading-Life-Science-Corridor

With a vision to become the world’s most comprehensive life science ecosystem, TMC is anchored by four districts – the TMC Medical Campus, TMC Innovation Factory, TMC Helix Park, and the newly announced TMC BioPort.

BioPort is TMC’s newest initiative and will serve as the Texas Medical Center’s biomanufacturing and medical supplies distribution engine. The district will span several hundred acres driving the much-needed repatriation of critical medical supplies and new cell and gene therapies. In addition, TMC BioPort will provide on-site upskill training center, creating over 100,000 new job opportunities for residents in the Greater Houston region. This vital initiative is aligned with the expectation that the US will significantly increase its biomanufacturing capacity to assure ready access to pharmaceuticals, therapies and medical supplies.

[CREguy13]

I have no knowledge, but I would put all my money on this being the Buffalo Speedway site.  There are many bio-manufacturing companies already in the immediate area along Fannin and Kirby.  This is a no-brainer for all parties assuming they can agree to terms.

[Highrise Tower]

Concept rendering was tweeted by the TMC account. 

This definitely looks like the road configuration of Willowbend Blvd near Buffalo Speedway. wow!!

[ChannelTwoNews]

Initial renderings it seems?

 

Edited September 20, 2022 by ChannelTwoNews
Saw tweet was referred to after I sat on this page for too long!

[kennyc05]

Great news for H-Town!

[BigFootsSocks]

They're gonna rebuild Saint Arnold's bier garden, so they're already off to a great start.

[thatguysly]

Good lord this is massive and incredible news. 

[X.R.]

TMC is going to end up employing half the working-age population in the city at this rate. 

[bobruss]

To put this mildly

This is a game changer !

[Luminare]

[monarch]

^^^ and so it begins...

[Fortune]

The Houston Business Journal article states that the TMC Bioport will be south of the 610 Loop. 

https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2022/09/20/texas-medical-center-new-bioport-campus.html

 

[Highrise Tower]

18 minutes ago, Fortune said:

The Houston Business Journal article states that the TMC Bioport will be south of the 610 Loop. 

https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2022/09/20/texas-medical-center-new-bioport-campus.html

 

The concept rendering resembles the parcel shape of the old UT Research Campus proposal.  I believe I can also see that little lake, or bayou in the concept rendering. If that's indeed a body of water then that would be confirmation it's the same property.

 

[BEES?!]

Holy wow this is absolutely massive. TMC3 was already going to create a ton of jobs wasn’t it? This is just going to be nuts

[Highrise Tower]

There was an RFI for the 80-acres UT still controlled back in 2019.

RFI No.: 720-1930 Request for Information - Ground Lease and/or Joint Development of approximately 80 Acres of Land west of Buffalo Speedway and bisected by Willowbend Boulevard, Houston, Texas.

The recent HBJ article mentioned the Texas Medical Center had partners. Did the UT System and TMC go into a partnership for a joint development? I also remember hearing Fertitta was opened to a joint development.

The UT land is, in total, 307 acres.  Did the TMC purchase more land on Buffalo Speedway/Holmes Road?  I know there are several large tracts for sale out there.

 

[Twinsanity02]

My brain is having trouble incorporating this. Hopefully this is not a dream. Let me understand this. In addition to TMC3, Levit Green, Texas A&M growth, the McNair building, this is also going up? Will this be considered part of the TMC?

[Twinsanity02]

9 minutes ago, Twinsanity02 said:

My brain is having trouble incorporating this. Hopefully this is not a dream. Let me understand this. In addition to TMC3, Levit Green, Texas A&M growth, the McNair building, this is also going up? Will this be considered part of the TMC?

Brain is now functioning. Answered my own questions.

[Big E]

On 9/20/2022 at 10:41 PM, Highrise Tower said:

There was an RFI for the 80-acres UT still controlled back in 2019.

RFI No.: 720-1930 Request for Information - Ground Lease and/or Joint Development of approximately 80 Acres of Land west of Buffalo Speedway and bisected by Willowbend Boulevard, Houston, Texas.

The recent HBJ article mentioned the Texas Medical Center had partners. Did the UT System and TMC go into a partnership for a joint development? I also remember hearing Fertitta was opened to a joint development.

The UT land is, in total, 307 acres.  Did the TMC purchase more land on Buffalo Speedway/Holmes Road?  I know there are several large tracts for sale out there.

 

UT weren't mentioned in the announcement though, were they? It seems that TMC bought the land from them, which would make sense, since UT were selling it. I just wonder how much of that land they acquired? Though, however much of the land they got, this is a much better use of it than simply leaving it vacant.

Edited September 22, 2022 by Big E

[talltexan83]

It would be great to see some kind of hike & bike trail that connects this parcel to the rest of the TMC.  Cutting through the NRG/rodeo/Astrodome parking lots and over the old Astroworld pedestrian bridge.  This would be a great excuse to improve the pedestrian experience in and around NRG....

[OkieEric]

35 minutes ago, talltexan83 said:

It would be great to see some kind of hike & bike trail that connects this parcel to the rest of the TMC.  Cutting through the NRG/rodeo/Astrodome parking lots and over the old Astroworld pedestrian bridge.  This would be a great excuse to improve the pedestrian experience in and around NRG....

Don't forget World Cup in 2026....so hopefully this is at least on someone's radar.  Too bad the former Astroworld plot isn't somehow in play in all of this

[houstontexasjack]

Texas Medical Center's new biomanufacturing center to bring 100,000 jobs to Houston https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/article/Texas-Medical-Center-planning-to-build-500-acre-17457273.php
 

“The TMC BioPort campus would be located on a piece of land near the intersection of Buffalo Speedway and Holmes Road, just west of Wildcat Golf Club, just a few miles southwest of the medical center’s main campus. 

The medical center is under contract to buy the land, which is currently held by multiple owners, McKeon said. He declined to identify the owners or discuss the potential sale price while negotiations are ongoing.”

[Fortune]

It sounds like it will be this property:

 

[zaphod]

This is probably a really dumb question, but do these TMC developments which are private sector oriented and not necessarily just hospitals pay normal property taxes? To the city? Just curious.

Edited September 21, 2022 by zaphod

[texan]

6 hours ago, houstontexasjack said:

Texas Medical Center's new biomanufacturing center to bring 100,000 jobs to Houston https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/article/Texas-Medical-Center-planning-to-build-500-acre-17457273.php
 

“The TMC BioPort campus would be located on a piece of land near the intersection of Buffalo Speedway and Holmes Road, just west of Wildcat Golf Club, just a few miles southwest of the medical center’s main campus. 

The medical center is under contract to buy the land, which is currently held by multiple owners, McKeon said. He declined to identify the owners or discuss the potential sale price while negotiations are ongoing.”

The article also states the first buildings could begin construction within two years but first they will need to invest about $100 million for infrastructure. Elkus Manfredi is doing the master plan.

[Highrise Tower]

Did the TMC purchase this land? I've heard that the TMC BioPort has land still under contract, which this land is.  However, the total 115-acres is separated into different parcels along the way- not concentrated as a whole, continuous, piece of land.  I'm not sure how this would benefit them, unless they also buy the surrounding parcels to adjoin as one. 

[Ross]

42 minutes ago, Highrise Tower said:

Did the TMC purchase this land? I've heard that the TMC BioPort has land still under contract, which this land is.  However, the total 115-acres is separated into different parcels along the way- not concentrated as a whole, continuous, piece of land.  I'm not sure how this would benefit them, unless they also buy the surrounding parcels to adjoin as one. 

The land ownership in that area is fairly complex, with lots of parcels, as shown on the parcel map below(Buffalo Speedway is the road running down the middle). A number of them are owned by one family that started acquiring property there around 2014. I suspect they will make a decent profit selling to TMC

[Highrise Tower]

The above circled Buffalo Speedway parcel is under contract.  There has been some activity here as well.  The TMC might have just bought the land.

Looks like I'll need to merge threads. This is a repost?

[Highrise Tower]

Here's the skyline views from the Buffalo Speedway/Holmes Road bridge.  Very good views!! Hopefully there will be a mid-rise or a high-rise involved with this development so they can see the skyline views of the TMC and Uptown.

Pardon the dirty lens, still trying to figure that out.

[X.R.]

Some more thoughts: Another aspect of this is that TMC is moving ahead with this while quite a few developers and such are slowing down because of global market fears, among other things. To me, this indicates a type of market resiliency that, in Houston, has only really happened for oil and gas and that was many years ago. Its the kind of event that may show a real shift in what will make the gears turn in Houston, both economically and politically in the next decade or so. 

Plus, while oil and gas is still wrestling with hybrid work schedules and increased parental leave and just general HR stuff that brings them in line with the types of benefits their engineers would see from more tech oriented employers, TMC just has its foot on the gas. TMC isn't perfect, and they've had some real issues over the years, but this is a massive flexing of their muscles that shows Houston isn't just an O&G town anymore. 

[Highrise Tower]

Anyone else notice that this may not be located where UT is selling their 307 acres? 

The BioPort campus might actually be located on Buffalo Speedway, in between Holmes Road and W. Airport Blvd.  This would also explain the circular roundabout featured in the concept rendering.  The roundabout is located about halfway to W. Airport on Buffalo Speedway.

Screenshot from the State of Texas Medical Center 2022:

[Moore-to-it]

Drove out there yesterday  to look around... the economic  impact  it going  to have  on the area will be huge... That the five corners  district  the city been trying  to rejuvenate  for years , isn't  it?

[Luminare]

1 hour ago, Highrise Tower said:

Anyone else notice that this may not be located where UT is selling their 307 acres? 

The BioPort campus might actually be located on Buffalo Speedway, in between Holmes Road and W. Airport Blvd.  This would also explain the circular roundabout featured in the concept rendering.  The roundabout is located about halfway to W. Airport on Buffalo Speedway.

Screenshot from the State of Texas Medical Center 2022:

This is actually even better news, because its the really really big lot south of where you think it is. "But wait, there's more!"

[Highrise Tower]

I believe this site is the location of the new TMC BioPort.

[texan]

4 hours ago, Highrise Tower said:

Anyone else notice that this may not be located where UT is selling their 307 acres? 

The BioPort campus might actually be located on Buffalo Speedway, in between Holmes Road and W. Airport Blvd.  This would also explain the circular roundabout featured in the concept rendering.  The roundabout is located about halfway to W. Airport on Buffalo Speedway.

Screenshot from the State of Texas Medical Center 2022:

The Domain proper in Austin is 303 acres. 100,000 biotech workers could definitely use a high density, mixed-use development of that size to live, shop, and eat in.

[Houston?]

That area news the development!

[thatguysly]

I drove that recently when 610/288 was awful. I was wondering if it would ever be developed. Great news for that area.

[Moore-to-it]

6 hours ago, thatguysly said:

I drove that recently when 610/288 was awful. I was wondering if it would ever be developed. Great news for that area.

They are building  Apts a few miles up the road along with a few stores... I fully  expect  this development  to draw even more development  interest...those 100,000 people  are going  to need places to stay relatively  close to their jobs....??  We could  be in for a massive explosion of residential  development  in the area 

[thatguysly]

9 minutes ago, Moore-to-it said:

They are building  Apts a few miles up the road along with a few stores... I fully  expect  this development  to draw even more development  interest...those 100,000 people  are going  to need places to stay relatively  close to their jobs....??  We could  be in for a massive explosion of residential  development  in the area 

I saw that. There are also some new(?) houses/townhouses going in down Airport closer to Almeda and then more going in east of 288. Plus a whole lot of new warehouses/distribution centers going in along 288 as well. Just massive development. But that area has need an influx of jobs and development. This should also provide a lot of blue collar jobs which should be locally supported.

[Highrise Tower]

This weekend I drove down Buffalo Speedway to take a photo of all the different For Sale signs that were posted a long the street. Definitely looks like the majority of them were from the same company.  I saw the same phone number on the signs: 832-867-6380.

Bonus: The sign for UT's land when the Kirksey's owned it before UT got involved.

[Highrise Tower]

Texas Medical Center’s future 500-acre BioPort campus a 'game changer,' TMC CEO says

Oct 10, 2022

https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2022/10/10/texas-medical-center-tmc-bioport-economic-impact.html

Announced at the recent State of the TMC event, the campus will focus on cell and gene therapy — a method that takes cells out of the body for correction through highly sophisticated biomanufacturing then places them back into the body to treat diseases — as well as manufacturing and distribution for pharmaceuticals and medical supplies.

McKeon told the Houston Business Journal talks for this campus began when the pandemic hit. During the height of Covid-19, each member institution of the medical center had to pull their requests together to make one order for personal protection equipment, vaccines and ventilators from Europe and Asia. However, during this time, the orders also were met with a lot of theft, creating additional problems.

“A lot of the focus right now is, 'How do we make sure that Houston has a major distribution area in the event of another pandemic or major environmental event?'” McKeon said. “It's really about national security. A number of events that have taken place over the last two years, three years since the pandemic has made us really see the value of TMC BioPort.”

In all, the BioPort campus is expected to create 100,000 jobs. The new jobs will not just be for people who have earned Ph.D.s — TMC aims to incorporate students right out of high school with an education campus in the middle of BioPort, he said. TMC plans to partner with Texas A&M University, Houston Independent School District and others to bring the education component to fruition.

“You need the minds; we've had them here for years with our 120,000 employees at the medical center,” McKeon said. “You need a place where an industry can work side by side, and that's what Helix Park brings. You need an early-stage incubator, and that's what our Innovation Factory brings. And now, you need biomanufacturing, so when you're developing new drugs and therapies, you want to test those lines locally, close by so you can deliver them to patients.”

TMC BioPort’s campus will be near the intersection of Buffalo Speedway and Holmes Road, west of Wildcat Golf Club and about a mile south of the 610 Loop. It will be constructed in phases. Information about the owners of the land and additional details could not be made available right now.

The master plan for the campus is being done by David Manfredi of Elkus Manfredi Architects, the same Boston-based firm that designed TMC Helix Park. With $100 million invested for infrastructure, McKeon expects to break ground on construction as early as the first quarter of next year. So far, TMC has spent $5 million on preparations, and plans to spend another $5 million in the next six months as part of the due diligence stage.

McKeon emphasized that since the project is in the due diligence stage, anything could happen that could cause TMC to call it off. Although he does not see that happening, McKeon said it is important to keep in mind how early on the project is.

[EllenOlenska]

Some might wonder if we're even playing the same game. 

[Highrise Tower]

Craig Cohen of Houston Public Media broadcasting from the University of Houston had guest Bill McKeon on today's Houston Matters show.  I'm sure the 11-minute interview will be online soon. There might even be local journalists that will create a story about this interview. 

Here is my write-up as I was listening live.  The segments that stood out for me. 
(Verbiage might not be 100% accurate.)

Craig Cohen: Is this then just about creating specific space for existing companies to move into?

Bill McKeon: No, we are actually evolving. These are coming from internal obviously when you see the great developments that are happening at MD Anderson, Baylor College of Medicine, UT, A&M, those are driven demand, that is creating this demand. One of the great opportunities is for us to have the Work Force Training Center right in the heart of the BioPort. This will create 100,000 new jobs for Houston. That's a $54 billion economic impact for this BioPort alone. 

CC: Do you have a time line for all of this to happen?

BM:  We have been in the due diligence phase for a well over a year-and-a-half now. When you are talking about such a large amount of land you have to do a tremendous amount of work to study the land. In Texas, it's not surprising there is oil wells through out, there's energy lines.  You have to be very detailed in your diligence phase, because you're really not just building a place to build a building, you are building a place to build 50 factories.  It has been under way for a year, to a year-and-a-half already. We have 5 or 6 customers already looking to move into the area. We think it will be activated from a time line of as early next year, early 2023. 

CC: I hear 50 new factories and a couple of thoughts come to mind.  One of course is the potential impact to the air quality. But the other one, which is a very much concern here in Houston, is what would all of that development mean for how water flows in the Texas Medical Center?

BM: Water detention. What's great about modern architecture now, when you design sports fields that can be used as water detention centers should there be terrible rain. That can also be activated and used for soccer fields for the campus.  In respect to Bio Manufacturing, Bio Manufacturing isn't like most manufacturing where you see smoke coming out of stacks. This is highly advanced technical equipment that is actually creating cell lines. So you're not burning, and creating anything negative for the environment. As a matter of fact, for an economic standpoint, we are building centralized distribution so that we are not buying 50 different warehouses we are actually centralizing making it less expensive and more efficient in the process. 

CC: Where does most of the Medical Manufacturing occur today? 

BM: Number 1 place is Europe, then number 2 is Boston, and up and coming will be Houston.  In the Carolina's they start educational training in the 5th grade.  They can come right out of high school and go into a $160,000, $170,000 dollar job. Part of our Work Force Training Center, we will be working with all of our schools to make sure we start the training very early on to create these opportunities to serve these great young men and women coming out of High School. 

 

[ChannelTwoNews]

20 hours ago, Highrise Tower said:

Craig Cohen of Houston Public Media broadcasting from the University of Houston had guest Bill McKeon on today's Houston Matters show.  I'm sure the 11-minute interview will be online soon. There might even be local journalists that will create a story about this interview. 

Here is my write-up as I was listening live.  The segments that stood out for me. 
(Verbiage might not be 100% accurate.)

Craig Cohen: Is this then just about creating specific space for existing companies to move into?

Bill McKeon: No, we are actually evolving. These are coming from internal obviously when you see the great developments that are happening at MD Anderson, Baylor College of Medicine, UT, A&M, those are driven demand, that is creating this demand. One of the great opportunities is for us to have the Work Force Training Center right in the heart of the BioPort. This will create 100,000 new jobs for Houston. That's a $54 billion economic impact for this BioPort alone. 

CC: Do you have a time line for all of this to happen?

BM:  We have been in the due diligence phase for a well over a year-and-a-half now. When you are talking about such a large amount of land you have to do a tremendous amount of work to study the land. In Texas, it's not surprising there is oil wells through out, there's energy lines.  You have to be very detailed in your diligence phase, because you're really not just building a place to build a building, you are building a place to build 50 factories.  It has been under way for a year, to a year-and-a-half already. We have 5 or 6 customers already looking to move into the area. We think it will be activated from a time line of as early next year, early 2023. 

CC: I hear 50 new factories and a couple of thoughts come to mind.  One of course is the potential impact to the air quality. But the other one, which is a very much concern here in Houston, is what would all of that development mean for how water flows in the Texas Medical Center?

BM: Water detention. What's great about modern architecture now, when you design sports fields that can be used as water detention centers should there be terrible rain. That can also be activated and used for soccer fields for the campus.  In respect to Bio Manufacturing, Bio Manufacturing isn't like most manufacturing where you see smoke coming out of stacks. This is highly advanced technical equipment that is actually creating cell lines. So you're not burning, and creating anything negative for the environment. As a matter of fact, for an economic standpoint, we are building centralized distribution so that we are not buying 50 different warehouses we are actually centralizing making it less expensive and more efficient in the process. 

CC: Where does most of the Medical Manufacturing occur today? 

BM: Number 1 place is Europe, then number 2 is Boston, and up and coming will be Houston.  In the Carolina's they start educational training in the 5th grade.  They can come right out of high school and go into a $160,000, $170,000 dollar job. Part of our Work Force Training Center, we will be working with all of our schools to make sure we start the training very early on to create these opportunities to serve these great young men and women coming out of High School. 

 

No transcript or seperate story yet but the audio of the show is available now.

https://www.houstonpublicmedia.org/articles/shows/houston-matters/2022/10/17/434796/daca-ruling-and-the-astros-head-back-the-alcs-oct-17-2022/

[Highrise Tower]

Pathways are being created in several parts a long Buffalo Speedway.

[Highrise Tower]

Orange and pink flags appeared this week. Let's go!!

[Highrise Tower]

One of the parcels was mowed this week. Looks much better!

[Highrise Tower]

A line of new flags appeared!! Upon closer inspection they are for MCI Fiber Optic Cable.

[Highrise Tower]

On 7/15/2022 at 8:53 PM, Highrise Tower said:

Noticed this the other day. I wonder if it's Crown Castle's?

Edit: No, it clearly states "Site Concepts, Inc." out of Palm City, Florida.

A plan review permit for a new cell tower was pulled the other day:

 

[Highrise Tower]

I need to report localized street flooding on a certain part of Buffalo Speedway. I believe this is only a blockage someplace?  On all of Buffalo Speedway, there was only one small section that could not contain the heavy rains this past weekend.

Hopefully it's fixed in the master plan.  Or hopefully, the blockage is removed soon.

[Highrise Tower]

I need to report some illegal dumping along Buffalo Speedway. Can someone please handle this? Message me if needed.