I recently visited St. Louis’ Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and Bio Research & Development Growth Park (BRDG Park) with a group of local business and education leaders led by Joel Seligman and Danny Wegman.
So why the interest in St. Louis? And in these facilities in particular? The reason is that they are the latest pieces of St. Louis’ thriving biotech innovation ecosystem - an ecosystem that could prove a model for Rochester.
In 2002, St. Louis founded the Cortex Innovation Community, a 200-acre innovation hub and technology district within the city - intentionally chosen to be close to major research universities, medical centers and cultural assets. Since its launch, Cortex has brought 1 million square feet of space online, and generated 2,500 technology-related jobs - with plans to ramp up to some 13,000 jobs.
