Mortenson Announces First Building in Discovery Square

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Apr 27, 2017, 13:05 ET

MINNEAPOLIS, April 27, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Mortenson today announced the design and location for its first building in the Destination Medical Center (DMC) Discovery Square development in Rochester, Minn. Designed for life science research and innovation, the new building features a tenant-focused, amenity-rich design. Groundbreaking on the project is planned for late 2017 with a target completion date in 2019.

Mortenson today announced the design and location for its first building in the Destination Medical Center (DMC) Discovery Square development in Rochester, Minn. With its close physical linkage to Mayo Clinic, this building will provide an authentic urban experience that supports a unique environment for community amenities, collaborative culture and a one-of-a-kind innovative ecosystem. Photo credit: Designed by the team of RSP Architects and HOK.

With its close physical linkage to Mayo Clinic, this building will provide an authentic urban experience that supports a unique environment for community amenities, collaborative culture and a one-of-a-kind innovative ecosystem.

Highlights:

The 60,000+ square-foot facility will be ideally situated at the corner of 4^th Street SW and 2^nd Avenue SW in the 16-block Discovery Square sub-district, pending final approval
Unique, integrated design with flexible, open workspaces that allow tenants to adapt to ever-changing needs in the life science industry
Common spaces will be centralized within the building to promote collaboration among tenants
Building orientation, massing, wall / roof construction, and mechanical systems will capitalize on high performing systems for increased energy efficiency
Located near the historic Mayo Clinic campus and the Gonda Building, adjacent to Mayo Clinic's Guggenheim, Hilton and Stabile Buildings
Proximity to Collider, an entrepreneurial ecosystem for tech innovators and collaborators in Rochester
Walking score of 74; Walking distance to the heart of Rochester's Historic Southwest neighborhood, including restaurants, bars, coffee shops, retail and more

Designed by the team of RSP Architects and HOK, the new building will enhance connections and enable collaboration among tenants to share ideas and test and build new products. Its design will help tenants accelerate the translation of the most promising health-related therapies and technologies to meet the unmet needs of patients and bring solutions to patients sooner.

"Innovation and collaboration are the bedrock of Discovery Square, yet both require a great deal of intentionality," said Jeremy Jacobs, development executive at Mortenson. "RSP and HOK have integrated best practices from across the world to ensure that tenants will have unrivaled access to spaces that facilitate and encourage collaboration."

"One of the project's guiding design principles is to create something completely different for Rochester and for life science research," said Jon Buggy, AIA, principal, RSP Architects. "Life-enhancing scientific and therapeutic breakthroughs will happen here. Appropriately, this first life science building is planned and designed to establish a very strong visual and programmatic presence for the promise of Discovery Square; science and discovery will be on display - open to, engaging, and committed to the innovation community and public realm of Rochester."

"Development of Discovery Square is a major step forward for the world of life science research," said Eli Hoisington, AIA, LEED AP, HOK's design principal. "Discovery Square will be a bridge to the mission of Mayo Clinic. Anchored by Mayo Clinic, the first phase will provide a new 'address' for the future of life science, research, education, technology, and innovation. We are extremely excited about this opportunity to bring our experience designing innovative research environments to this globally-important project."

Colliers will serve as the leasing agent and oversee tenant recruitment in partnership with Mortenson, the DMC Economic Development Agency, and many others. Property leasing information is available through Louis Suarez, VP Healthcare Services with Colliers International | Minneapolis-St. Paul, at [email protected].

Discovery Square will be a densely populated and highly-connected urban life science hub, attracting the world's leading medical practitioners, educators, researchers, and businesses. For more information on DMC, including its sub-districts, visit http://dmc.mn/maps/#discoverySquare.

About DMC
Destination Medical Center (DMC) is the largest public-private economic initiative in Minnesota's history. The 20-year plan to transform Rochester into a global destination for health and wellness will attract developers, investors, startups, and entrepreneurs to live, work, and play in America's City for Health. For more information, visit dmc.mn.

About Mortenson
Founded in 1954, Mortenson is a U.S.-based, family-owned construction and real estate development company. As one of the nation's top builders, Mortenson provides a complete range of development and construction services, including site acquisition, financing, planning, program management, preconstruction, general contracting, construction management, design-build and turnkey delivery.

Mortenson has operations across North America with offices in Chicago, Denver, Fargo, Iowa City, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Phoenix, Portland, San Antonio, Seattle, Washington, D.C., and in Canada. For more information, visit mortenson.com.