“For generations, Worcester has been an industrial powerhouse. While globalization and other factors have led traditional manufacturing to go south and overseas, Worcester has the potential to once again be a leader in this sector, through 21st century biomanufacturing.”

Those were the words of City Manager Eric Batista at the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce Breakfast Club Keynote on September 10. The numbers support him: Worcester County ranks among the top 25 metros in the nation for biomanufacturing, and second among metros under one million people.

The City has been a steadfast parter in this work to bring jobs and economic development to our region through our growing life sciences cluster – and its paying off. We are seeing an increase in pad-ready sites, tax incentives, and regional investment (reflecting the goals and recommendations in our Regional Biomanufacturing Strategy). The shared goal is good-paying jobs that let people build careers where they live.

Thank you to City Manager Batista and his team for your commitment to growing a Biomanufacturing Hub right here in Worcester.

Read his full remarks here:

It is a pleasure to be here this morning with people who see Worcester the way I do. You see Worcester’s potential. You see the strong community we have built here, and as a result, you’ve chosen to build your businesses here and invest in the future of Worcester, the future of the “Heart of the Commonwealth.” It wasn’t long after Worcester’s incorporation as a city that it became known by that moniker. The term is so engrained in the city’s history that it’s even unclear who first came up with it. So engrained in the city’s identity that even our street signs serve as a reminder. Worcester helps Massachusetts run, it is a vital organ that steadily beats to keep the Commonwealth going. Despite the declining populations in other areas of the Commonwealth, Worcester has continued to grow. The population has increased by more than 7,000 since the last Census in 2020, to a new high of nearly 214,000 residents. People are continuing to vote with their feet and they are choosing Worcester. They see the opportunity. They see Worcester as a place where they can live, work, and raise a family. While our population has been growing, and we’ve had our foot on the gas pedal in building new housing, my Administration along with the Chamber and other partners have been doubling down on jobs. We don’t want to be a bedroom community for the rest of the Commonwealth. We want to see the same success in job growth, so that when you live here, you also can have a stable income and meaningful career opportunities here. For decades, we have been working to establish Worcester as a global hub for biotechnology. As Massachusetts has consistently been a leader in intellectual capital, research and development, this is no surprise. Through our Economic Development Coordinating Council, we have been focused on a data-driven approach as we work to foster growth within industries where Worcester is positioned for success. This approach has turned our focus to biomanufacturing as a natural progression beyond just research and development. For generations, Worcester has been an industrial powerhouse. While globalization and other factors have led traditional manufacturing to go south and overseas, Worcester has the potential to once again be a leader in this sector, through 21st century biomanufacturing. Worcester County consistently ranks in the top 25 of all metros nationwide for biomanufacturing due to our highly dense and specialized talent pool that exceeds three times the national average. Even more impressively, Worcester ranks second in the nation for metro areas with less than a million people. As Tim often says, one of the top issues consistently facing Chamber-member businesses is workforce development and access to talent. We have been intentional, and strategic, in understanding the strength of our workforce as we support existing businesses and cultivate new jobs in growing industries. Our colleges and universities have bolstered workforce development with several programs that create a pipeline to the biomanufacturing industry. These institutions significantly contribute to our workforce and our economic base more broadly. At the same time, my Administration recognizes the calls from community for transparency and accountability when it comes to these institutions’ impact and contributions to the city. My Administration has leaned into the town and gown relationships over the past two years and I am optimistic about our direction. The municipality has been working with these institutions and other partners to take deliberate steps to establish and implement our Regional Biomanufacturing Strategy, and we are well along our way to making this a reality. In the fall of 2025, the Commonwealth, through the Mass Tech Collaborative, designated Worcester as a bioindustrial Tech Hub or “BioHub.” This designation came with $5.2 million grant to Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives and Worcester Polytechnic Institute. That significant investment will help them build out more than 14,000 square feet of space for pilot-scale manufacturing and new equipment development. It will also centralize biomanufacturing education and training in the region. The Tech Hub designation shows a recognition from the Commonwealth that we have the proximity, price point, available land, and talent pool to grow the biomanufacturing industry. Our strategy, helmed by MBI, the longest-running life science incubator in the state, provides the roadmap Central Massachusetts needs to compete at a global level. And as a municipality we are not sitting back, we are taking an active role in removing hurdles to development: working with the WBDC, we are creating new pad-ready sites for this type of advanced manufacturing at the Reactory and GreenTech Park. We established a tax increment financing framework for GreenTech Park that will help Worcester compete for these good paying jobs as companies evaluate the costs involved in potential locations. There are currently 13 active, post-construction TIF projects that collectively represent over $330 million in private investment, which has led to the creation of 763 new, full-time jobs and the retention of 347 full-time jobs. We have worked with partners at the state level to put together incentive packages, where our commitment locally will unlock and leverage significant state resources. We know that these efforts will help uplift not just the city of Worcester, but the Central Massachusetts region … Many of you here today have already played a part in creating the environment where people want to live, work, play, and raise a family. You are all part of what has driven business, industry, and new residents to the region. Thank you for your commitment to the city and adding to the wonderful things it has to offer. As I mentioned, while other cities in the Commonwealth’s populations are stagnating, ours continues to grow. People are coming here because they see all we have to offer and they want to be a part of it. Now is the time to capitalize on that growth. How can your businesses benefit from the influx of people and investment in our region? How can you be part of what makes Worcester the Heart of the Commonwealth? What makes us known throughout the country and the world for everything we contribute to Massachusetts? I call on you to be energized by the fact that despite any hardships or setbacks, Worcester has the collaborative gene, and we see each other through hard times, coming out stronger on the other end. Over the centuries, as the world and industries have changed, Worcester has reinvented itself and adapted, never losing its place as the Heart of the Commonwealth. As we work to achieve the goals I just laid out, we will only further solidify that status. Don’t miss your opportunity to be a part of it. Thank you.