30 Knightsbridge Road in Piscataway
By Joshua Burd
A biotechnology company has expanded to nearly 200,000 square feet at a Piscataway office complex, in the largest of three recent deals announced by Keystone Property Group.
The landlord said Infinity BiologiX, or IBX, has grown from an initial commitment of 30,000 square feet at 30 Knightsbridge Road. The deal with the Rutgers University spinoff has filled a large section of the four-building, 685,000-square-foot property now known as Middlesex Science Center, where Keystone has spearheaded a sweeping overhaul aimed at capitalizing on its location and its origins as an AT&T office and data center.
JLL’s John Buckley and Bob Ryan represented the tenant, while Jon Meisel and Doug Petrozzini of CBRE represented ownership.
“The addition of IBX, a global leader in biotech, to our impressive list of tenants illustrates how MSC’s robust infrastructure satisfies the needs of life sciences tenants,” Keystone Founder and CEO Bill Glazer said. “Given Keystone’s growing reputation in the life sciences community, we are thrilled that IBX opted to put its growth under one roof where it can thrive and continue its important work.”
IBX will use the space as a facility to enhance and accelerate its mission to understand the genetic causes of common, complex diseases and discover diagnoses, treatments and, eventually, cures, according to a news release. The company, the world’s largest university-based biorepository, will use the property’s infrastructure and high-quality biomaterials to continue converting bio-samples into renewable resources, thereby extending research capabilities.
“As a fully functional biorepository, our capabilities span the entire life cycle of a sample,” said Jitesh Patel, senior director of infrastructure and logistics at IBX. “We are staffed 24/7/365 to ensure timely processing of samples. MSC’s in-place infrastructure checked all the boxes in satisfying our speed to market lab needs.”
Middlesex Science Center is now 92 percent leased after the recent deals with IBX and two other tenants, LIXIL Corp. and Paychex. LIXIL, a maker of kitchen and bathroom fixtures, late last year committed to 60,270 square feet at the property, while Paychex recently signed a 30,000-square-foot renewal.
Scott Lesh and Scott Stange of JLL represented LIXIL, while Mike Maroon of The Acclaim Group represented Paychex, the news release said. Meisel and Petrozzini of CBRE represented Keystone in both deals.
“The renewal of Paychex validates that the tenants who occupy MSC stay long term,” Glazer said. “The building enables Paychex to operate efficiently and effectively while remaining highly competitive in a rapidly changing and increasingly essential industry.”
In announcing the deals, Keystone noted that 30 Knightsbridge has infrastructure such as high-capacity, weight-bearing floors and floor-to-deck heights of up to 32 feet, four inches, along with robust chiller capacity, fresh air intakes and dual power supply served by an on-site substation. The features help augment a location near Rutgers and the complex’s 40,000 square feet of amenity space.
Investment, redevelopment have brought new life to Piscataway office market
