HELIX NJ Phase One Nears Completion in New Brunswick

Construction on the centerpiece of New Brunswick’s growing innovation district is entering its home stretch. The first building within the Health + Life Science Exchange of New Jersey — widely known as HELIX NJ — is just six months from its targeted full completion, marking a major milestone in the city’s redevelopment momentum.

The initial 12-story tower, known as H-1, rises 574,000 square feet at the corner of Albany and Spring streets, directly adjacent to one of New Jersey’s busiest train stations. Designed as a hub for researchers, clinicians and entrepreneurs, H-1 will serve three core tenants:

• Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
• A state-of-the-art Rutgers research facility
• The New Jersey Innovation HUB — offering open labs and private spaces to support startups and scaling biotech companies

New Brunswick Development Corp. (Devco), the master developer behind the effort, is targeting an April 2026 opening that will officially launch the HELIX district as a destination for health science breakthroughs, commercialization, and public-private collaboration.

A Multi-Phase Innovation Campus Expands

Spanning a total of three project phases across roughly four acres, HELIX NJ is envisioned as a dynamic environment linking academia, healthcare and business. As H-1 reaches its final stage, momentum is growing for the next two towers:

• Phase Two: A 10-story, 370,000-square-foot Nokia Bell Labs research building rising just south of H-1, in partnership with SJP Properties.
• Phase Three: A 42-story mixed-use tower that will include offices, cutting-edge labs, 265 apartments and housing for 100 Rutgers medical students — advancing the district’s appeal as a live-work innovation ecosystem.

The third phase alone is estimated at $485 million and would cover 552,000 square feet along Paterson Street, backed by Devco and Pennrose.

Built for Collaboration and Culture

As excitement builds, Devco leaders emphasize this is more than a construction project — it’s a regional innovation catalyst.

“We’re creating an ecosystem, not building buildings, building laboratories, building offices,” Devco President Chris Paladino told TAPintoNewBrunswick. “It’s a place where people can collaborate. And with H3, the ecosystem will truly become a 24/7 place where people will be able to work and live.”

The energy of this future-ready campus is expected to attract entrepreneurs, scientists, healthcare professionals and students — forming an environment where discovery and economic development accelerate hand-in-hand.

With H-1 nearing completion and cranes active across the district, HELIX NJ is emerging as one of the most ambitious life sciences investments currently underway in New Jersey, positioning New Brunswick at the forefront of innovation in the Northeast.

Originally reported by oshua Burd in Real Estate NJ.