Life Sciences Industry Growing in Jupiter

When Jeb Bush was governor of Florida in the early to mid-2000s, he developed a plan to boost the economy of Palm Beach County, which was then mostly focused on agriculture, tourism and construction.

Bush wanted to keep his plan secret. So he called it “Operation Air Conditioning.” That was code for a company he wanted to lure to the area: Scripps, known these days in Palm Beach County by the mouthful of a name: The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation and Research.

“He wanted to protect Scripps” from being lured in by other parts of the country, Kelly Smallridge, president and chief executive of the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County, told Dan’s Papers.

“(Bush) thought the term ‘Air Conditioning’ would transform the county like air conditioning transformed the state of Florida,” Smallridge said.

Bush’s plan worked. In 2003, Scripps, as locals refer to it, had located to an orange grove in the county. Three years later, the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience joined Scripps in the orange grove.

Thus was a medical and life sciences industry born in Palm Beach County.

Two years ago, both located the campus of Florida Atlantic University in Jupiter. Tourism, agriculture and financial services remain solid parts of Palm Beach County’s economy. But the healthcare and life sciences sector have emerged in the last decade as a powerhouse for growth.

The life sciences industry was attracted to the area by Florida’s low tax rate, generally favorable weather and a workforce hungry for better-paying jobs.

Scripps and Max Planck together employ nearly 100,000 people, according to Palm Beach County data. They boast an average salary of $101,000 and, the data says, and generate total income of a staggering $7.5 billion annually.

“(Life sciences) really sticks out in the history of economic development as a huge, huge success, Dr. Jerry Parrish, chief economist at Metro Atlanta Chamber, said in an interview.

Scripps focuses on biomedical research, drug discovery and clinical studies. Planck has attracted neuroscientists from around the world, regional economists say.

“Their mission is to answer fundamental questions about brain development and function, and to develop new technologies that unlock previously inaccessible scientific frontiers,” Planck documents say.

The two research facilities have brought in other life sciences companies, including DePuy Synthes, a Johnson & Johnson institute, Gift of Life, ModMed, ProCaps Group, Twinlab, Exuma Biotech and ZimVie Dental & Spine.

“We brought in more technology and knowledge-information companies” in the last decade than ever before, said Smallridge.

Hospitals, too, have come to the county. NYU Langone is planning to build a 75,000-square-foot facility in West Palm Beach.

Palm Beach County colleges — Palm Beach Atlantic University, Florida Atlantic University, Palm Beach Atlantic University, Lynn University and Nova Southeastern University — have largely geared curriculums to the life sciences.

The life sciences industry has boosted salaries, created jobs, kept young people in the county and provided nonprofit organizations with deeper pockets to tap.

The life sciences industry has not grown as rapidly as planners and local economists had once hoped. To help the industry grow, Florida kicked in about $300 million and Palm Beach County another $270 million, for land development and recruiting efforts. But in 2008, the recession hit the area hard and put a halt to private money and cut into research grants. The major pharmaceutical companies, like Pfizer, did not arrive. Additionally, construction and labor costs rose.

Now, planners say, the industry needs an additional five to ten years to reach the potential they see for it. They are still confident the big companies will come, because, like the movie said, they have built it.

But even with growth, challenges have come. Economic development officials say county roads must be expanded, improvements need to be made in public transportation, and there is a lack of affordable housing.

Maria Marino, a vice president of the Palm Beach County Commissioners, said county officials are trying to meet the challengers. In 2022, she said, the commission put up a $200 million bond issue to build affordable housing, and voters approved the bond. But, she said, commissioners are still trying to find appropriate land.

“You don’t want put people 30 miles from where they work,” Marino said. “And you don’t want to say, ‘We don’t want you, so we’re putting you here or there.’ You have to work with the developers.”

Public transportation, she said, may require more buses for Palm Tram, the bus system, in addition to more bus stops. “You have to have bus stops where there’s lots of people,” Marino said.

But, in all, Palm County officials are pleased with where they have come so far.

“Palm Beach County used to be the place where you would go to retire,” Smallridge said. “And today, it’s attracting some of the brightest, youngest, innovative minds.”