Connecticut Crafts
Convincing Case for Bio

Paul Pescatello, president of CURE (Connecticut United for Research Excellence), an organization that promotes the state as a center of biotech research, says a perfect storm of factors makes for favorable life science research. Development of Connecticut's biotech cluster, which is largely in the New Haven metro area, has been a quiet evolution, he says.
        "Ten years ago, there might have been three biotech companies," Pescatello says. "We've always had the pharmaceutical presence, but we didn't have the biotech until recently."
        While the Connecticut bio community is relatively young, it has been stable. Pescatello says even during the economic turbulence of the early 21st century, all of the state's fledgling companies survived and many attracted new investment.
        Pescatello points out Connecticut's relatively unique incentive offered to biotech companies that allows them to cash in early on research and development tax credits, at a rate of 65 cents on the dollar. He says this is especially beneficial to biotech firms that may not realize a profit during their first several years of existence. The program is limited to companies with $70 million or less in annual revenue. Connecticut was the first state to enact this type of incentive, he says, and New Jersey has since adopted a similar program.
        "The city and Yale have done a lot to make New Haven a much more livable city," Pescatello says. "There's new condos, retail and restaurants. It has kind of a Cambridge-esque feel to it."
        Improved transportation options in the region also are also boosting New Haven's case, Pescatello suggests. Delta Air Lines recently added a flight to Tweed New Haven Airport from its Cincinnati hub, and Amtrak's new Acela Express has commuters zipping to New Haven from Boston and New York City. The rapid rail connection between metro areas offers a unique "European" feel to the region, he says.
        Also fueling New Haven's rise is plentiful lab space, something that did not exist a few years ago. Bio companies are now populating two facilities. One is the Technology Center at 300 George St., renovated in 2000, and another is a new large facility at Science Park.
        "I'm always amazed that the advantages of being in Connecticut are somewhat of a secret," says Pescatello. "The pharmaceutical companies have been here awhile and they research the best places to live. Hopefully, a lot of the New York startups that tend to migrate toward the pharmaceutical companies in northern New Jersey will begin looking at New Haven with the high-speed rail connections."