Cortex Innovation Community
Founded2002 (2002)
FounderWashington University
BJC HealthCare
UMSL
Saint Louis University
Missouri Botanical Garden
TypeTax-exempt 501(c)3 Non-profit
FocusLand use, land development, redevelopment, placemaking, marketing, startups, financing and fundraising.
Location
Coordinates38°38′05″N 90°15′04″W / 38.63465415°N 90.25115899250936°W / 38.63465415; -90.25115899250936
Area served
St. Louis, Missouri, United States
Members
22 directors[1]
Key people
June McAllister Fowler, Board Chair, Sam Fiorello, President and CEO, William Henry Danforth, John Dubinsky[2][3][4]
Employees
18
Websitecortexstl.org
Formerly called
Cortex West Redevelopment Corporation

Cortex Innovation Community, Cortex Innovation District, or Cortex is an innovation district in the Midtown neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri.[5] A 200-acre hub for technology and biological science research, development, and commercialization,[6] Cortex is a main location for the city's technology startup companies.[7][8] It is near Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis University, and Barnes-Jewish Hospital.

Cortex officials say their master plan calls for $2.3 billion of construction, producing more than 4.5 million square feet of mixed-use development to house 13,000 jobs in technology.[7][9][1]

Cortex 3.0, a $170 million expansion was completed in fall 2018.[10][11]

History

In 1998, William Henry Danforth, former chancellor of Washington University in St. Louis, sought to help the region better build upon its strengths in medicine and plant sciences. He formed the Coalition for Plant and Life Sciences, now known as BioSTL,[6] which led to the creation of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center.

Danforth and John Dubinsky, CEO of financial consulting firm Westmoreland Associates and the eventual chairman of the Cortex board, went to Cambridge, Massachusetts, to study Kendall Square, a noted innovation district, to see how the concept could be used in St. Louis.[2]

The idea was to create a district where companies could have access to talent, new technology, labs, and intellectual property.

The Midtown neighborhood was selected because the founding institutions are nearby and millennials wanted to live and work in the nearby urban areas.[2][12][1]

In 2002, Cortex was founded as a 501(c) 3 tax-exempt organization[13][1] by Washington University in St. Louis, BJC HealthCare (BJC), University of Missouri – St. Louis (UMSL), Saint Louis University, and the Missouri Botanical Garden.[2] These founders contributed a total of $29 million to buy land and serve as collateral for loans: Washington University, $15 million; BJC and SLU, $5 million apiece; and UMSL, $4 million.[2]

The Cortex West Redevelopment Corporation was classified by the city under Missouri statute Chapter 353 as a master developer of the district. St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay allowed Cortex to redevelop the area broadly in the "public interest" by issuing tax abatements and using eminent domain.[2][1]

Cortex hired CEO Dennis Lower, who executed a plan called Cortex 2.0 and converted the district from strictly bioscience to an open mixed-used district and added support for startup technology companies.[14]

In summer 2014, Square, the payments company set up by St. Louis natives Jim McKelvey and Jack Dorsey, opened offices at Cortex 4240.[14]

In 2015, Ikea opened in Cortex.[14]

In 2018, Microsoft opened its first Midwest headquarters in Cortex building 4220.[12]

In fall 2018, once Venture Cafe Innovation Hall opens at the 4220 Building in Cortex, 23 City Blocks Hospitality Group's restaurant and cafe, The Chocolate Pig will open.[15]

In June 2018, AON announced it would move 200 employees to the 4220 building.[16]

In March 2020, Washington University School of Medicine announced the construction of a new $616 million, 11 story, 609,000-square-foot neuroscience research building which will sit at the eastern edge of the Medical Campus in the Cortex Innovation Community. Construction of the building is set to be finished in 2023.[17]

One of the primary companies building Cortex is Wexford, which had as of 2018 developed three properties and a total of 536,903 square feet.[18]

Facts

Innovation centers

CET St. Louis

The Center for Emerging Technologies (CET) is developing and establishing next-generation biomedical science and other advanced technology companies.[7][28]

BioGenerator

BioGenerator discovers technologies and services with potential with an academic, research, or entrepreneur to make a company.[7][29]

In 2018, BioGenerator officials announced they will anchor the new Cortex biotech building.[30]

CIC St. Louis

Cambridge Innovation Center provides services for startups and companies including innovation spaces and coworking. CIC supports innovation in public relations, law, education, technology and life sciences.[7][31]

Venture Cafe St. Louis

Venture Café St. Louis is a nonprofit hosting community-focused events and programs that support early-stage entrepreneurs.[7]

COLLAB

In May 2019, Washington University in St. Louis and Saint Louis University launched the COLLAB at Cortex. The universities intend to use the 7,700-square-foot suite for various joint and separate projects, including training students in cybersecurity, entrepreneurship, and other high-demand fields. COLLAB is also intended to forge deals with industry to turn research discoveries into products; find or train technology workers; and pursue geospatial research, data science, and health informatics.[32]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Wagner, Julie (5 May 2016). "In St. Louis, a gateway to innovation and inclusion". Brookings. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Mack, Mary (27 February 2017). "Conceiving Cortex: Cortex Special Feature, Chapter 1, 2000-2002". EQSTL. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  3. ^ Edwards, Greg (30 November 2012). "John Dubinsky". St. Louis Business Journal. Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  4. ^ "Stifel Official Bio". Retrieved 20 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Cortex Official Website". Archived from the original on 11 April 2019. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  6. ^ a b "Cortex - Oral History". 28 August 2018. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  7. ^ a b c d e f "Cortex Official The District". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  8. ^ Arruda, William (5 December 2017). "What To Look For In A City When You're Relocating For Work". Forbes. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  9. ^ a b "Aloft Hotel Breaks Ground in Cortex". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  10. ^ Mack, Mary (27 February 2017). "Cortex's Evolution From A Life Science District To A Magnet For St. Louis Innovators: A Feature Series". EQSTL. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  11. ^ Mack, Mary (2 March 2017). "Cortex Looks Ahead: Cortex Special Feature, Chapter 4, 2017 And Beyond". EQSTL. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  12. ^ a b Sisson, Patrick (7 Aug 2018). "Universities, chasing the startup economy, reshape urban real estate". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  13. ^ "Cortex Official Who We Are". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  14. ^ a b c Mack, Mary (1 March 2017). "Cortex Shifts Focus: Cortex Special Feature, Chapter 3, 2010-2016". EQSTL. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  15. ^ Stiles, Nancy (11 April 2018). "The Chocolate Pig to Open at Cortex Innovation Hall This Fall". Feast Magazine. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  16. ^ Feldt, Brian (8 June 2018). "Aon relocating 200 employees from Clayton to St. Louis' Cortex district". St. Louis Post Dispatch. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  17. ^ "Washington University to break ground on major neuroscience research hub". Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. 2020-03-06. Retrieved 2020-03-07.
  18. ^ "Wexford + Cortex". 2015-12-29. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  19. ^ Diane Toroian Keaggy (24 July 2018). "Cortex MetroLink Station to open July 31". Washington University The Source. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  20. ^ "Metro Announces Opening Date for Cortex Metrolink Station". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  21. ^ Kae M. Petrin (31 July 2018). "Cortex MetroLink stop opens with promises of tech job growth". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  22. ^ Feldt, Brian (13 April 2018). "Developer plans more buildings in St. Louis' booming Cortex innovation district". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  23. ^ "Tarlton Overseeing Construction of St. Louis Innovation Hall". rejournal. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  24. ^ Jacob Barker; Tim Bryant (20 October 2016). "New $170 million Cortex development to add hotel, apartments, parking garage". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  25. ^ "Work starts on parking garage at Cortex". 13 August 2018. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  26. ^ "Esri Expands St. Louis Office to New Space in Tech District". 30 May 2018. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  27. ^ "Next NGA West". Next NGA West Official Site. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  28. ^ "Center for Emerging Technology". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  29. ^ "Biogenerator". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  30. ^ Barker, Jacob (18 April 2018). "BioGenerator plans to anchor Cortex biotech building". St. Louis Post Dispatch. Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  31. ^ "CIC Official". Retrieved 18 September 2018.
  32. ^ "SLU, WashU open innovation center in Cortex". ksdk.com. May 23, 2019. Retrieved 2022-08-23.

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