Coronavirus Could Push Jacksonville Into Becoming A Life Science Cluster

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North Florida could benefit from future research related to the coronavirus.

Michael Brown, senior director for office services for Colliers International in Jacksonville, who is a life sciences CRE specialist, believes clusters will continue to develop around the University of Florida and Alachua and around the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville.

“There are some very talented people in this region at the Mayo Clinic and the University of Florida, as well as some world-class contract manufacturing operations in Alachua,” Brown tells GlobeSt.com. “There will be companies seeking out their help, particularly in a time like this. I can also see other contract manufacturers and contract research groups giving North Florida serious consideration for expansion. Companies are being funded and good science is finding its way into labs. There are positive developments that offer promise. We are going to see a lot of push and pull. If this goes on for a much longer period of time than anyone hopes, I think there will be more detrimental issues and things that are unforeseen such as supply chains collapsing. But there is a silver lining out there as well. The science developed recently over the last two years has been way ahead of the innovation curve in terms of discovery. Manufacturing processes are getting better. The science itself, even if it is postponed or interrupted, will still be good science when it’s sitting on the shelf and not doing anything for a while.”

The country’s main life science clusters are well-established-Boston, San Francisco, San Diego and North Carolina’s Research Triangle—but there are secondary markets that are slowly gaining density and Brown asserts that Jacksonville has the foundation to become a small cluster. He cites land availability, transportation infrastructure and science coming out of the region’s universities.

“The academic underpinning is essential and it bodes well for Jacksonville,” Brown says.

Many challenges lie ahead, but Brown is optimistic that the life sciences sector in the US has the building blocks in place.

“My feeling is that when this does end, that ramping back up in pursuit of this science is going to be difficult and will require funding and new regulations, but it can be done and it’s not as though we’ve had companies out there failing in what they are pursuing,” Brown says. “I don’t want to say we will pick up right where we left off, but this particular industry will bounce back and it will bounce back with lessons learned along the way that will be very much process oriented.”

 

Source: GlobeSt

Health-Centered Communities May Start To Resonate In Coronavirus Era

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Health-centered communities, neighborhoods where millennials, baby boomers, technological advances, and new health care delivery models all converge, can be the blueprint of urban and suburban planning even in the age of COVID-19 and especially post-COVID-19, says Dennis Frenchman, Director of the MIT Center for Real Estate and the Class of 1922 Professor of Urban Design and Planning.

“Baby boomers are looking for convenient, affordable, aging-in-place health care options. Millennials, meanwhile, are pursuing physical environments that support their well-being and community-centric values,” Frenchman tells GlobeSt.com. “Our goal is to provide a blueprint for how to navigate these complex and profound demographic and cultural shifts taking shape throughout our society.”

Frenchman and his colleague, Stanley Shaw, plan on offering the course, Developing Health-Centered Communities: The Next Revolution.” in Real Estate in the Fall.

Baby boomers are aging and healthcare is foremost on their mind while most millennials are trying to lead healthy lifestyles by eating healthy foods and leading active social lives.

“These two generations are colliding in terms of health and wellness,” observes Frenchman.

Another plus to these communities for baby boomers how older buildings relate to their health.

“Living and working in an older, poorly ventilated building can negatively contribute to your health and longevity,” explains Frenchman. “If you have better quality air, sunlight and an overall healthy environment, landlords and developers can get premium rents.”

For these and other reasons, millennials are now suggesting their parents move to a health-centered community where parents can age in place instead of assisted-living facilities. As a result, the younger generation has more contact with the older generation, Frenchman says.

These communities tend to feature health centers in addition to the ubiquitous clubhouse. The developers also encourage walking around the community instead of driving everywhere. Instead of flattening hills, developers keep them intact to promote more exercise and movements.

“Health-centered communities also feature bike trails, social opportunities, horse stables and wellness programs,” says Frenchman. “Developers who offer these products will garner a lot of interest from all age groups.”

COVID-19

People are naturally social animals and the coronavirus has thrown a wrench in attending or hosting social events. In this age of social distancing however, healthy-centered communities can easily adapt to not interacting or engaging at any given time.

“Technology will solve some of the need but not necessarily all. However, it can work for a period of time,” explains Frenchman. “With digital technology, and in a health-centered community, patients are monitored remotely in their own environment. They can actually monitor their own oxygen, pollutants, carbon monoxide, etc. These tests are important for many reasons but it also shows you the physiological response of people as they live on their own environment.”

Frenchman believes these health-centered communities are simply a better way of living.

“There are less ER visits and less hospital stays,” says Frenchman. “Encouraging people to use their body and minds and overall just take care of themselves in this age of COVID-19 is always a good thing and it can also result in profits.”

 

Source: GlobeSt.

How Medical Offices Fuse With Mixed-Use Projects

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With the need for medical services on the upswing and an increased overall preoccupation for wellness, communities across the nation have been looking for solutions to bring health-care services more within their reach.

For a growing number of mixed-use developments, medical offices are becoming the ultimate amenity, making convenient care available in settings that feature modern technology and are minimizing the unpleasant clinical experience.

HSA PrimeCare Executive Vice President Robert Titzer points out that while the era of academic medical centers is not over, demand for smaller medical offices located in sites with good visibility and ample parking is expected to rise. What’s more, given that medical offices are considered safer investments in times of economic slowdown than retail and hospitality assets, adding a health-care component to a larger development ensures its stability on the long run.

Commercial Property Executive: What type of mixed-use developments is incorporating medical office spaces and do you think luxury projects are benefiting more from this addition?

Robert Titzer: Medical offices can be incorporated into a wide variety of mixed-use developments. Everyone needs health-care services, at all income levels, and essentially wherever people live and work. So, whether the project is deemed a luxury product or otherwise, there is often a health-care application that can make sense in the overall development.

Commercial Property Executive: What criteria does your company apply when choosing a location for a new MOB project that will be part of a mixed-use?

Robert Titzer: Our company’s decision-making closely follows that of the designated health-care provider. That is, we attempt to align the provider’s ambulatory care strategy with location and site selection on the macro level. On the micro level, we look for sites that have good visibility, intuitive wayfinding, ample parking and/or transit access.

Commercial Property Executive: Accessibility is a great advantage of health-care projects. Are there any disadvantages that mixed-use property managers could address better?

Robert Titzer: The challenge that many owners find is dealing with the mix and volume of patient and customer flow in and out of mixed-use sites. Medical facilities operate best when their patients do not have to compete for parking or access with other component users of the development, because oftentimes the patient population is not as physically mobile as a shopper, for instance. They need drop-off areas and protected parking close to their destinations.

Commercial Property Executive: Tell us about how you succeeded in attracting Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin to Drexel Town Square and how do health-care providers usually see the concept of a MOB as part of a mixed-use development.

Drexel Town Square. (IMAGE CREDIT: HSA Commercial Real Estate)

Robert Titzer: Drexel Town Square is an exciting new “front door” for Oak Creek, Wis., and having a health-care component dovetailed perfectly with the development’s mix of community, retail and residential uses. Its location made perfect sense for Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin. As part of a larger 85-acre mixed-use project that includes a new city hall, public library, shopping, restaurants, service-oriented businesses, hotel and apartments, a MOB fits into this modern, master-planned development. HSA PrimeCare worked hard to ensure the development addressed the access issues mentioned above. We also programmed flexibility into the design by approaching it as a mini-campus that could adapt and grow with the health-care system’s needs over time.

Commercial Property Executive: What are your expectations from the medical office sector going forward?

Robert Titzer: We see continued strong demand for ambulatory care facilities in a wide variety of locations, as health-care providers strive to reach their patients more effectively by providing easier access, and to serve their patients more economically in ambulatory care settings versus in-hospital care. Consolidation of sites of care is also a driver in the establishment of newer, more modern and efficient buildings that can drive operating efficiencies for health-care systems.

Commercial Property Executive: What should health-care property managers focus on more at this late point in the economic cycle?

Robert Titzer: At HSA PrimeCare, we always strive to stay ahead of the game. That means being prepared for what your building needs to be five years from now, not simply what it is today. That also means keeping the property in A-plus condition and anticipating tenant needs as uses evolve with the change in health-care delivery. This could encompass improvements such as common-area renovations, or services and amenities like enhanced on-site dining and snack options.

Commercial Property Executive: Today, we’re seeing a lot of focus on wellness rather than just getting treatment. Is the era of mega hospitals and medical campuses coming to an end?

Robert Titzer: We see the large academic medical centers taking on increased importance in our society as places where groundbreaking research takes place and extremely complicated care is delivered to the most challenged patients. These centers will continue to grow in importance as it is an exciting time for medicine. Medical professionals now have vast troves of medical data at their disposal that can be used to tackle these mega-challenges. Academic medical centers are uniquely positioned to take on this task, which makes their existence all the more important in today’s world.

 

Source: Commercial Property Executive