Conn., Mass. Firms to Design Jackson Labs Facility

Centerbrook Architects and Planners of Centerbrook, Conn., and Tsoi/Kobus & Associates of Cambridge, Mass., will plan and design The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine facility in Farmington, Laboratory officials announced.

“By combining the expertise of two top architecture and planning firms, we have the ideal team in place for this complex building project,” said Charles E. Hewett, Ph.D., Jackson’s executive vice president and chief operating officer. “Both firms specialize in designing scientific research space and are leaders in environmentally friendly building practices.”

JAX Genomic Medicine, a new nonprofit research institute for genomics-based medicine, will house 300 biomedical researchers, technicians and support staff in advanced computing facilities and laboratories.

Initial operations will begin this year in leased space on the University of Connecticut Health Center campus while the 173,000-square-foot permanent facility is designed and built on a nearby 17-acre site. Construction will begin before the end of this year, and the new facility will open in 2014.

Centerbrook partner James Childress said, “This project is a big deal for us, as it is for the State of Connecticut. We have the opportunity to work with the best laboratory designers in the country to help The Jackson Laboratory create a place that will be a world leader in medical research. We are proud to be involved and to live in a state that attracts this quality of research.”

“TKA is honored to be a part of the team that will bring the most technologically advanced and environmentally responsible genomics research facility to the UConn Health Center campus,” said Rick Kobus, senior partner of Tsoi/Kobus Associates. “We look forward to bringing our design expertise and experience to this partnership to help to attract world-class talent to this center for personalized medicine.”

The nonprofit Jackson Laboratory has built or renovated seven research buildings on its Bar Harbor, Maine, headquarters campus in the last 10 years, each structure representing the state of the art in function and energy conservation. The Laboratory is planning other major construction and retrofit projects associated with energy conservation, alternative energy, recycling, waste reduction and alternative transportation.

Jackson Senior Director of Facilities John Fitzpatrick noted, “Each of the design finalists presented compelling teams and initial concepts for the facility. But the team of Centerbrook-TKA reflected a deep appreciation of The Jackson Laboratory’s culture. They demonstrated a strong personal connection and commitment to the project, an understanding of the need for the facility to be a great place to do cutting-edge science, and a commitment to deliver a world-class facility through low-impact design concepts.”

The Jackson Laboratory is an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institution and National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center based in Bar Harbor, Maine, with a facility in Sacramento, Calif., and a total staff of about 1,400. Its mission is to discover the genetic basis for preventing, treating and curing human disease, and to enable research and education for the global biomedical community.