Battelle to move to South Lake Union

Battelle Memorial Institute is relocating its Seattle research center to the South Lake Union area, adding another heavyweight to the growing science community transforming the neighborhood.

Battelle said yesterday that it will take over about half of the five-story 1100 Dexter Building. In May, the building will be home to about 140 scientists, engineers and staff currently split between two buildings in Laurelhurst near the University of Washington.

"Just to be in the South Lake Union area is a real positive for us," said Dawn Nelson, facilities manager for Battelle's Seattle Research Center. "We wanted to be close to the UW and we wanted to be in this new high-tech area."

The move will also allow the research center to grow. Nelson said the company expects to add 60 to 70 employees over the next four years.

Built in 1997, 1100 Dexter had been home to software company WRQ, which later subleased much of its space to a company that provides temporary offices. The building is owned by TriMet Development and the Starwood Capital Group.

The nonprofit Battelle, based in Columbus, Ohio, is one of the world's largest private research and development companies and works with government agencies and private companies. The company is best known in this state for operating the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland.

The Seattle research center focuses on four areas.

About half the employees work on public-health research, providing surveys and data analysis for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as well as private health-care companies.

Another group of scientists is working for the Department of Transportation to study how gadgets such as cellphones and GPS receivers affect drivers. The new building will house a high-tech driving simulator.

Some 38 scientists and engineers work on issues related to preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction. And the fourth group works on water-quality programs, mostly for the Environmental Protection Agency.

J. Martin McOmber: 206-464-2022 or mmcomber@seattletimes.com