State & Local Tech-based ED Round Up

Birmingham, Alabama

A $90 million building and as many as 2,000 more jobs are in the works for the University of Alabama at Birmingham, reported The Associated Press July 25. Construction costing up to $125 million would provide more than 1.4 million sq. ft., doubling the university’s research space. The new building is among the university’s plans for an additional three buildings that would add up to 500,000 sq. ft. and 2,000 jobs. The announcement of the building follows Gov. Don Siegelman’s $35 million recent pledge to build the Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research Institute — an 11-story building and $90 million project expected to create 1,400 jobs. School officials anticipate the project also will create $100 million in new research dollars annually.



Franklin, Virginia

Local officials in Franklin have announced plans including $2.3 million in renovation costs to develop a business incubator center, according to a July 19 article in the Virginian Pilot. State and federal grants will help fund the renovation of nearly 40,000 sq. ft. on four floors of a former buggy factory, the article reports. In addition, Virginia’s Center for Innovative Technology is supplying a $50,000 grant from its Advanced Communications Assistance Fund to help link the center to Franklin’s fiber optic communications network.



Portland, Maine

The Bayside neighborhood soon may be revitalized. New offices and possibly manufacturing space are included in an $11 million plan to use 400,000 sq. ft. to build a business and technology park, The Associated Press announced August 1. Expected to spur hundreds of new jobs, the park would replace a brownfield site in the Bayside neighborhood. The first phase of the park, $1.5 million, is being funded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Another $1 million to buy the property is being provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.