Medical device startup to set up shop in Buffalo’s Northland neighborhood

Rookery Labs, a portfolio company of Egret Healthcare Ventures, wants to occupy what’s called the “Red Shed” building, a small, one-story red outpost structure at 683 Northland Ave.

Located next to the parking lot but separate from the main Northland Central complex that houses the Workforce Training Center and Buffalo Manufacturing Works, the 5,866-square-foot building has been occupied by Garwood since December 2020, when it moved there from the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus. But Garwood plans to move out by the end of August, and Egret hopes Rookery can move in the following day.

Egret is a Buffalo-based investment firm focused on backing medical device technologies. Co-founded by former Jacobs Institute CEO and prominent local investor William Maggio, who is also a managing partner at Lorraine Capital, the private equity firm was created to invest in healthcare technologies.

In addition to Maggio, who is chairman, Egret is led by Matt Colpoys, a biopharma veteran who previously led an immuno-oncology startup and worked at several well-known biotech companies, including Genentech and Pharmacia. Egret’s leadership also includes Michael Hughes, senior vice president and chief administrative officer of Kaleida Health, as well as a current vice president at Jacobs and an attorney at Lippes Mathias.

Egret was looking for a space for Rookery, which makes a catheter device. She contacted the Buffalo Urban Development Corp. — which owns the Northland complex — and signed a letter of intent with BUDC to occupy the Red Shed starting Sept. 1.

“We’re still learning about the ins and outs,” said Rebecca Gandour, BUDC’s executive vice president. “It feels like Garwood. For us, it’s a really nice transition, that someone saw the value of the space and how it was built.”

The terms of the five-year lease — with three extra months to cover the end of the current calendar year — call for a base monthly rent of $4,888, increasing 3 percent each year. That’s up from the $3,300 a month Garwood started with.

Rookery will be responsible for maintenance and any additional improvements beyond what already exists. After three years, it would have the right to expand to other Northland premises, if available, or terminate the lease with 90 days’ notice. But it could also continue for five years and even extend for another five years.

“It just gives them a chance to breathe a little bit if they’re successful and need more space,” Gandour said. “I hope they’re a part of campus for a long time.”

The letter of intent must be approved by the BUDC board on Tuesday. A formal lease must then be negotiated and signed.