An innovation hub housing UNC-Chapel Hill services for startups and entrepreneurs will open next year in a new development from Grubb Properties.
The UNC System Board of Governors has approved a lease for about 24,500 square feet in a building that Charlotte-based Grubb Properties is developing at 136 Rosemary St., part of major developments that could transform downtown Chapel Hill.
During a master-plan revision in 2019, the university identified the need for more than 150,000 square feet of space dedicated to innovation. The lease of this space helps fill that need, while also giving Innovate Carolina the opportunity to connect with more companies away from campus and at a centralized location. Innovate Carolina is a university-wide initiative aimed at promoting innovation and entrepreneurship.
Michelle Bolas, chief innovation officer for the university and executive director for Innovate Carolina, previously said there was a feeling the responsibility was on corporate partners to access the resources the university has available.
"We want to flip that script and bring our innovation expertise to the edge of campus," Bolas said.
Within this space, companies could access Innovate Carolina's suite of services, which include market research and technology commercialization, among others. Additionally, the site will include startup accelerators and opportunities for large corporations to partner with university researchers.
Another aim of this innovation hub is to keep more of the companies that spin out from UNC in Chapel Hill. Innovate Carolina generally focuses on three areas of startup activity: companies based on intellectual property the university owns; companies that aren't based on IP; and student-founded companies.
As of July 2021, there were 538 UNC-affiliated startups active globally, with 446 headquartered in North Carolina. Creating a space where companies can connect with services and have direct access to talent coming out of the university could help keep more of this activity local.
"We know that if we can capture even a fraction of that within one innovation environment, it's going to make a difference," Bolas said.
Discussions with startups about locating in the building are ongoing, Bolas said. But at least one company has confirmed it will be in the innovation hub. BioLabs North Carolina, which offers lab space to life-sciences companies and has offices in Durham, is opening a location there. This will give life-sciences startups access to wet labs and opportunities to meet investors.
Innovate Carolina will identify and announce other partners in the coming months as it works on designing the space. The office is projected to open in the second quarter of 2023.
The lease approved by the Board of Governors runs for 10 years and starts at about $1 million annually, with the amount escalating 3% per year. The first year includes five months of free rent, according to Board of Governors meeting documents.
Grubb Properties is one of the Charlotte area's top-10 commercial real estate firms. It has roughly 100 local employees. Grubb is the developer behind Link Apartments Montford and Link NoDa on 36th, plus its project in the Gold District. Grubb is also developing a car-free apartment concept in west Charlotte.
