Situated within the Designated Port Area of Gloucester’s waterfront, the site at 417 Main Street underwent a transformation, a first step toward the revitalization of the city’s historic working waterfront. This transformation was made possible by Windover’s project development services which guided the site development strategy, from feasibility analysis to design, leasing for future tenants, permitting, and construction.
The result is a 18,500 square-foot, two-story building with views of the harbor that will serve as a marine biology research hub for the region. The first tenant, the Gloucester Marine Genomics Institute (GMGI), occupies 5,900 square feet on the first floor of the building in a first-of-its-kind, world-class research facility. Windover performed the fit-out for their facility as well as the construction of the core and shell at 417 Main Street in a design-build approach.
GMGI performs highly-specialized genomics research in marine organisms and required a sophisticated and technical lab facility to support this effort. For their facility, Windover built out challenging MEP configurations to accommodate laboratory spaces and high-tech equipment such as a marine life research room featuring 18 aquaria with complicated thermal controls and plumbing that delivers Gloucester salt water directly to the living species; a molecular genomics wet lab; a DNA lab with sequencers; an equipment passage area featuring minus-80-degree freezers; and a reagent lab with built-in fume hoods.
