ANCHOR TENANT IN FLORIDA CENTER FOR INNOVATION

RECEIVES CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY

TRADITION, Fla. (September 30, 2008) – Months ahead of schedule, the anchor tenant of the Florida Center for Innovation at Tradition (FCI) accepted its Certificate of Occupancy from Port St. Lucie officials today, making the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies (TPIMS) the first among the life sciences organizations attracted to Florida by the state’s Innovation Incentive Fund to receive its C.O.

            “This achievement is testament to the entrepreneurial spirit of the City of Port St. Lucie and to the partnership established with TPIMS President Dr. Richard Houghten,” said Andy Favata, vice president of Core Communities, developer of the 8,300-acre Tradition community and its 150-acre FCI research campus in which the TPIMS headquarters is located.  “Two years after Dr. Houghten announced his intention to establish new headquarters here, a highly sophisticated, technologically robust, LEED-certified facility is open for business.”

Over that two year time frame, TPIMS’ decision to locate in FCI has brought significant attention to the research campus and the City of Port St. Lucie, and has attracted other organizations to locate in this growing life sciences cluster. 

            In addition to the TPIMS facility, the Oregon Health & Science University has announced its intention to expand its Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute (VGTI) into a 130,000-square-foot facility in FCI, and the Mann Research Center has announced plans for a six-building, 410,000-square-foot life sciences complex adjacent to both facilities.

            For more information about the Florida Center for Innovation at Tradition, visit www.innovationflorida.com.