Yale University buys New Haven office building for $140M

It doesn’t take an Ivy League education to recognize the challenges in the office market, but an Ivy League institution can offer at least a little help. 

Yale University has purchased a life science office and laboratory building at 300 George Street, New Haven, for $140 million, the Hartford Business Journal reported.

The transaction was completed on Dec. 1, and the seller was WE George Street LLC, an entity affiliated with Winstanley Enterprises based in Concord, Massachusetts. 

Winstanley Enterprises had acquired the building in 2000 for $27.5 million.

The last appraisal of the building, constructed in 1959, valued it at $109 million. The property, described on Winstanley Enterprises’ website, is nearly 520,000 square feet on 2.4 acres. 

The building has been leased to various tenants, including Yale, Yale New Haven Hospital and multiple biotechnology companies. Initially built as a call center for Southern New England Telephone, the location has become a key in the city’s growing biotechnology sector.

The university’s plan to continue operating the building in its current state, according to Lauren Zucker, a spokesperson for Yale. With the universities occupancy reaching 75 percent, primarily in life-science laboratory space, the university has played a big role in anchoring the industry in New Haven. 

While there are no immediate plans to remove the property from the tax rolls, Yale assured the city that any future decision will adhere to the terms outlined in its partnership agreement with New Haven. 

Through that agreement, Yale commits to making annual voluntary financial contributions to the city, reinforcing its commitment to the local community and its ongoing support for the burgeoning biotechnology sector in New Haven.

Indeed, two years ago, Yale announced it would be the anchor tenant at Winstanley Enterprises’ planned 101 College Street building in New Haven, which the school called “a key project in the city’s effort to become a national hub for the life sciences industry.”

The school leased 125,000 square feet across three floors of the 10-story building. The lease includes office and biomedical lab space.

— Ted Glanzer