DEPARTMENT: Economic Development Department
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Rene Dominguez
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: Council District 8
SUBJECT:
City Council consideration of a Chapter 380 Economic Development Grant Agreement with Pelican Therapeutics, Inc., a subsidiary of Heat Biologics, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $200,000.
SUMMARY:
Staff is requesting City Council consideration and action on an Ordinance authorizing the City to enter into a Chapter 380 Economic Development Grant Agreement (Agreement) with Pelican Therapeutics, Inc. (Pelican), a subsidiary of Heat Biologics, Inc. (Heat). The Agreement will provide an economic development grant to Pelican in an amount not to exceed $200,000, based on Pelican's commitment to relocate its corporate headquarters in San Antonio and create 22 new, full-time high-wage bioscience sector related jobs over five years.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Founded in 2011 and acquired by Heat in 2017, Pelican is a pre-clinical stage biotechnology company developing novel immunotherapy technologies to treat a wide variety of cancers. Pelican's treatments, in combination with the immunotherapies being developed by Heat, have significant potential to help treat cancer. In May of 2016, the Cancer Prevention Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT) awarded Pelican a $15.2 million grant to advance its lead product technology through a Phase I clinical trial.
To receive the CPRIT funding, Pelican is currently in the process of determining where in Texas to locate its headquarters and business operations, and is considering San Antonio, Georgetown, and Austin. Pelican plans to grow its local presence to 22 employees over the next five years with an average annual employee salary of $158,000. The company has also expressed an intention to make a capital investment of up to $750,000 in property improvements. Heat and Pelican intend to collaborate and engage the services of Cancer Insight, a local contract research organization (CRO) dedicated to d...
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