Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis is planning a multimillion-dollar facility in Central Florida to help meet growing U.S. demand for cutting-edge cancer treatments.
The company recently announced it will build its fourth U.S. radioligand therapy (RLT) manufacturing facility on the 43-acre campus of University Crossing at Winter Park, 3825 Forsyth Rd., just east of the city limits. Novartis expects the 35,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art plant to come online by 2029.
The Orlando Economic Partnership said in a news release that Novartis plans to invest around $70 million in the project. Novartis’ goal is to strengthen its specialized supply chain and ensure timely delivery of the lifesaving therapies to patients across the Southeast, OEP said.
Destin Wells, OEP’s senior vice president of economic development, said during an interview Tuesday that the agency collaborated with city, county and state partners to ensure Novartis would have the resources and support it needs to succeed in Central Florida.
Wells said not only will Novartis create 50 jobs — with an average annual salary of $90,000 — in the region over the next three years, it will reinforce a lesser-known strength of Central Florida: Specialty pharmaceuticals.
“Our regions has a very high concentration of these types of companies that are manufacturing small batch, highly specialized, short-shelf-life-kind-of drugs and medications that are really critical,” he said. “From a number of different perspectives … it really is something that is a great win for the region.”
Tracy Garcia, OEP’s senior director of economic development, said Novartis will occupy space in one of the back buildings at University Crossing. Garcia said OEP helped Novartis vet several area locations due to the heavy industrial zoning needed for the facility.
Wells said site selection was a competitive process that included other locations in Florida and other states. He said the state provided incentives, but he didn’t know what they were and they weren’t available yet on the state website where the data is posted.
Garcia said the nature of the facility will require Novartis to go through a complex permitting process before construction can begin.
“With the radioactive-type medicine they’ll be manufacturing, they’ll have to get some federal permits, as well, so they’re hopefully going to be able to start in 2027,” she said.
An aerial view of the 43-acre campus of University Crossing at Winter Park, 3825 Forsyth Road just east of the city limits. Novartis plans to construct a facility in one of the back buildings to produce cancer-fighting therapies for patients in the Southeast. (Courtesy of Novartis)
The Florida site is the fourth of five existing or planned Novartis facilities. It’s part of the company’s $23 billion U.S. investment announced in April to further expand its specialized supply chain and manufacturing capabilities for RLT.
The company is currently investing in expansions of RLT facilities in Indiana and New Jersey. In November, the company announced the completion of a facility in California.
And Novartis isn’t the only pharmaceutical company with plans to expand in Central Florida.
Hill Dermaceuticals, a pharmaceutical company based in Sanford, recently filed preliminary plans to construct a new 80,000-square-foot factory near Orlando Sanford International Airport.
The proposed facility would rise on property directly next to Hill Dermaceuticals’ current location at 2650 Mellonville Avenue, mere feet from nearby airport hangars. Sanford-based Shoemaker Construction has been tabbed for development of the site.
Brian Bell can be reached at bbell@orlandosentinel.com. Have a tip about Central Florida development? Email Newsroom@GrowthSpotter.com. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook and LinkedIn.