Pfizer Relocates Facility to Mission Bay

On August 5, Mayor Gavin Newsom formally anounced that Pfizer Pharmaceutical Corporation will be relocating the worldwide headquarters of its Biotherapeutics and Bioinnovation Center (BBC) from South San Francisco to San Francisco’s Mission Bay. The new space will be located in 100,500 sq/ft of R&D office space located at 455 Mission Bay Boulevard South. The move will take place in early 2010 and will initially employ around 100 people. In an effort to connect private pharmaceutical research with academic research, the transition to Mission Bay is strategic because of its proximity to UCSF. According to Corey Goodman, the President of Pfizer’s BBC, pharmaceutical companies benefit greatly from physical--and philosophical--proximity to academic centers.

The move is hailed as a success for both San Francisco and the Pfizer BBC, who originally started discussions in March 2008. During this process, OEWD advised Pfizer representatives on available incentive programs and made the case for San Francisco. When asked about the choice of San Francisco, Goodman says, "We did look around and realized it wasn't about price. The issue is about culture”. Mayor Newsom’s personal involvement in the negotiations also gave Goodman and Pfizer added confidence in its selection of Mission Bay. OEWD will continue to be Pfizer’s key point of contact with the City during their transition, build-out, move-in and the commencement of operations.

The BBC represents a unique arm of Pfizer, the largest pharmaceutical company in the nation. The Center aggressively pursues bioinnovation through collaboration with world-class academic, public-sector and private-sector institutions in all areas of emerging science. The goal of this collaboration is to accelerate the research and development of medicines across a wide range of therapeutic areas focusing on satisfying unmet medical needs for patients. The BBC represents an innovative operating model for Pfizer and the pharmaceutical industry, as it brings the best features of venture capital, entrepreneurship and pharmaceutical research together in one place for the first time. The Center’s transition to Mission Bay, with its proximity to UCSF, represents a step in the right direction for the City of San Francisco, Pfizer, and the pursuit of medical research and development.