Editor’s note: Steve S. Rao is a Council Member At Large for the Town of Morrisville and serves as Board Member of the New American Economy, a bi partisan organization focused on the economic benefits of Immigration Reform.    He also serves on the Race and Equity Task Force for the North Carolina League of Municipalities. Rao joins WRAL TechWire’s growing lineup of contributors. His posts will appear on Fridays.

MORRISVILLE – In January 2021, Kane Realty announced plans for the creation of a $1 billion, pharmaceuticals and life sciences innovation district at North Hills.  The 33-acre district calls for an unprecedented amount of open natural area (including outdoor working spaces), multi family residential units, and bustling, walkable ground level with experiential retail and maker’s spaces.

At the time of this announcement, during a Council Meeting, I declared my interest in having a similar type of investment in Morrisville.   That same month, during a Virtual Chamber Meeting, I jokingly asked one of the panelists, real estate development icon, John Kane if he could make a similar investment in our Town.

Well, this year, my wish came true, at least the one for a life science campus in Morrisville.

New $1B life science campus coming to Morrisville: The Spark

A few weeks ago, Starwood Capital Group and Trinity Capital Advisors  announced plans to develop Spark LS, a $1 billion life sciences campus located within North Carolina’s Research Triangle in Morrisville.

The 109-acre development will be located at the intersection of McCrimmon Parkway and Airport Boulevard, four miles from Raleigh-Durham Airport and five miles from Apple’s new $1 billion office campus.

The 1.5 million-square-foot project is set to include 12 to 15 buildings with lab and bio-manufacturing space, green spaces, restaurants, retail, a STEM education and amenity center, and several multi-use outdoor recreation areas.

Kudos goes to our Planning Department, engaged citizens and Council, all of whom worked so hard to approve our revised  land use plan last year,  which allowed for such a game changing investment in the McCrimmon Area.

Morrisville welcomes boom that Apple will bring

The Town is already home to 10% of the 100 Public companies in the state, including Syneos Health, Channel Advisor, and Lenovo.  Before the  Covid Pandemic, Credit Suisse, Cisco, Microsoft, and Oracle were bringing in over 50,000 workers into  the Town on any given day.   The revised Land Use Plan allows for denser residential and mixed use development, which will  transform this area of Town into a mixed use destination where residents can live, work and play.   We need more areas like this in Town as we continue to experience growth.    Such an ecosystem will  establish Morrisville as a destination for market leading science and tech companies, and will fuel the growth of start up companies in the region.

While rapid growth will continue to challenge us with increased traffic congestion and overcapped schools, I am confident that we must welcome high paying jobs to Morrisville, and look at the live, work, play model as a way to signifcantly increase our tax base , avoid near term tax increases and force us to invest in and execute our Affordable Housing Plan to address rising home prices.

One cannot help notice that  jobs investment in Morrisville  has picked up considerable pace in 2021, with two of the six Life science companies recruited to Wake County landing in our All America City.

In April 2021, San Franciso Based Genomics company, Invitae announced that it will be calling Morrisville’s Stitch Office Park (Old Outlet Mall) home, with plans to create 374 jobs and invest $1.4 million in the Town.  The Invitate announcement came only a few days after Apple announced their plans for a $1 billion campus in Research Triangle (3000 jobs)

In December 2021,  Science 37, publicly traded research and development company announced that it  will be moving its headquarters to Morrisville, creating some 250 new jobs in the next several years.

Lets not forget the 2019 Microsoft expansion , adding 500 jobs and $47 billion investment to the Morrisville coffer.

Why Morrisville?  

Market leading companies are not just investing in Morrisville because of its ideal central location in the Triangle, but are also attracted to the highly educated workforce, an increasingly diverse community, our commitment to innovation, and world class parks and restaurants.

Let me highlight some of the ways our Town is leading in these areas:

  • The Town’s recent award of the Clean Tech Innovation Award for our Clean Tech Corridor Initiative, our Smart City and Sustainability initiatives, and On Demand, app based Transit Service, Morrisville Smart Shuttle,  are a few examples of how we are  leveraging innovation to enhance the quality of life for our residents.
  • Church Street Park is the home of our first professional cricket team, the Morrisville Cardinals, and the International Cricket Council has hosted Team USA and other national teams this past year at the US Championships.   Plans are already underway for over $2 million investment in the expansion of Church Street Park so the Town can host World Cup Qualifiers, which will lure more tourists and sports fans from around the country.
  • Wake Tech RTP’s  recent announcement of an Early Career STEM High School and the addition of their new Biotech Center will continue to provide our Town a competitive advantage in having one of the most educated and trained workforces in the nation for life science and technology companies.     Our plans for a Town Center Downtown Project will begin this year, which will could be a destination for start up incubators, and growing companies.
  • Finally, our designation as an All America City and recent ranking by Niche and Stacker as the number one place to live in North Carolina continue to  propel the Town of Morrisville, as a global  destination  for economic growth and opportunity.

During a very divisive time in our nation, I cannot think of a better place to live and work then a diverse and inclusive Town which values innovation, education and the quality of life of our residents.  I am confident that many companies around the country and world are  feeling the same way.

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We must  mandate developers and companies invest in our Town to pay for road construction, parks and greenways.   For example, in a conditional multi family rezoning approved by Council last year,  Dominion Realty invested over $1 million in road constructions, $800,000 in parks, and $3.5 million in affordable housing.    Apple intends to establish  $100 million fund to transportation and schools infrastructure.   I hope that Morrisville, and Cary are a part of these conversations to address  to an already worsening traffic congestion problem.

At the end of the day, this development is projected to bring in $800,000 revenue  to Morrisville  and $81 million to the County.    More money for police, fire, schools, transportation infrastructure, affordable housing,  parks  and services which enhance the quality of life for our residents.

We know growth will continue.   We cannot stop it but Smart Growth means balanced growth.

But we can be sure of one absolute truth:

The Town of Morrisville has emerged as  major engine of economic growth in North Carolina and the United States and a new home for market leading life science companies.

In the highly competitive sport of economic development, we can compete and win against anyone.

Let the Games Begin.   Stay tuned for an even more exciting 2022.

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