Archives: BIO Commentary from April 10, 2006

Commentary: Blagojevich Discusses Chicago & Midwest
Biotech Industry

You'll hear a lot of statistics over the next few days
and our job, I suppose, is to put them in context. For
example, at this morning's BIO plenary breakfast,
Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich stated that 20% of
our nation's biotech companies are within a 300 mile
radius of Chicago. Which is kind of like saying that
the GDP generated within a 30 mile radius of Newark
allows the region to surpass Switzerland's national
GDP and approach that of Russia. There's one principal
reason for that - New York City. A place which is
quite different from Newark.

Can Chicago take credit for its neighbors? A better
statistic would be what percentage of the nation's
biotech companies are within the Chicago metropolitan
area. And while the Governor may prefer that this be
defined with St. Louis, Indianapolis, and Madison,
Wisconsin lying within that metro area (to make it a
pretty number), it's worth leveling with people and
admitting that the 20% figure is just a tad
misleading.

Next year's BIO event will be held in Boston - do you
think Boston leaders will cite the percentage of
biotechs within a 300 mile radius of Boston? They can
probably use a 50 mile radius and not be bashful about
the figure. Ditto for San Francisco, San Diego and
other cities which are clearly dominant in the
industry.

In his talk, Governor Blagojevich said that Illinois
has 60,000 workers in the biotech industry, and he
touted the incentives that were put in place to lure
Takeda and Astellas Pharma to Illinois (with Astellas
operations in Deerfield, I believe). He noted that
Illinois ranks 4th in public funding for stem cell
research and there is a push for an additional $100
million in funding. Illinois has also eliminated sales
tax on biodiesel. He recognized the accomplishments of
fellow Midwest governors, noting that the Governor of
Minnesota has worked closely with the Mayo Clinic, and
acknowledging Wisconsin's advancements with stem
cells.

Blagojevich received a few laughs during his talk. As
he urged companies to locate operations in Illinois,
he said, "We have it all. Good weather ... [pause]
some of the time." He also took pride in the fact that
the Cubs are only a 1/2 game out of first place. "Yes,
it's only April, but we're optimistic here."

The governor described his arrival at BIO via security
detail. Since it was nice out, he decided to roll down
the tinted windows and enjoy the sunshine. When the
car came to a stop, he locked eyes with a young girl,
perhaps 14 years old by Rod's description. She looked
at him and exclaimed, "Oh my god, it's Mayor Daley."

Is this where I say that 20% of Rod Blagojevich
sightings (or cases where he's mistaken for Mayor
Daley) take place within a 300 mile radius of Chicago?