New York State Senate members John R. (Randy) Kuhl Jr. (R-C, 52nd Dist.), James L. Seward (R-C, 50th Dist.) and Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno (R-C, 43rd Dist.) today (Nov. 1) announced that Cornell University will receive $25 million from the state's Gen*NY*sis biotechnology economic development program as a major share of the cost of constructing the university's Life Science Technology Building.

The announcement was made at the October meeting of the Cornell University Board of Trustees in the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art on the Cornell campus.

The new Cornell facility is estimated to have a total construction cost of $110 million and will be the largest single building project in the university's history. It is expected to generate an additional federal research investment of at least $200 million and create more than 1,000 new jobs over the next decade from the exploitation of research discoveries.

The grant is being provided via the state's $225-million Gen*NY*sis (Generating Employment Through New York Science) program initiated by the Senate majority two years ago and approved in the 2002-03 state budget.

Cornell officials put the cost of the university's new life sciences facilities, including the new research building and the $62.5 million DufÞeld Hall nanotechnology project, which is being constructed on the Cornell Engineering Quad, at $350 million. This amount also will include two transgenic mouse facilities ($6 million and $25 million); a lab complex in Baker, Olin and Clark halls ($75 million); lab renovations ($20 million); equipment and core facilities ($3 million); and the proposed U.S. Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service Nutritional Genomics Lab ($50 million). The Life Science Technology Building will serve as the hub for many of these facilities engaged in functional and comparative genomics, as well as other interdisciplinary, technology-driven activities, including computational biology, biomedical engineering, nanobiotechnology and biophysics.

The new life sciences facility will include state-of-the-art communication technology to provide links to businesses and other universities, medical schools and research laboratories statewide. Among the most innovative aspects of the new building will be the first incubator on the Cornell campus for startup companies in the life sciences.

The Life Science Technology Building will bring together researchers and students in a diverse range of disciplines, including physical sciences, engineering and computational sciences, not only to conduct research, but also to apply their research to problem-solving in the areas of human medicine, veterinary science, sustainable agriculture and environmental remediation.

Making the announcement of the funding at Cornell, Kuhl said: "With America poised for rapid growth in the Þeld of life sciences and the biotechnology industry, it is imperative that New York state become more competitive in this economic arena. The Gen*NY*sis program makes us highly competitive. It is extremely exciting that Cornell University will play an enhanced and leading role in helping our region and all of New York state seize these vast opportunities for economic growth, innovation and, ultimately, great achievement."

Seward commented: "New York has an opportunity to break ahead of other states and take a leadership role in biotechnology and genome research, and Cornell University is well positioned to take New York into these exciting new areas of academic research, high technology and business development. The Senate majority's Gen*NY*sis program is a new and innovative approach to job growth and economic development, and the partnerships between academia and industry that will result have the potential for producing good jobs for our area."

Majority leader Bruno said: "I commend Sen. Kuhl, Sen. Seward and Cornell University for working together to build this state-of-the-art Life Science Technology Building. It will be good for the rapidly growing Þelds of genomics science and, when combined with the business incubator, it will be good for the economy of the entire region.

"The Gen*NY*sis program represents the state's most significant investment ever in biotechnology and biomedical economic development," Bruno added. "It is a rapidly growing Þeld, and this investment will build on New York's exceptional life sciences research capabilities to be extremely competitive for biotech businesses and jobs."

In a statement from Albany, Gov. George E. Pataki said: "This historic new investment to construct a Life Science Technology Building at Cornell University is going to have a powerful economic impact, creating new jobs and further strengthening Cornell's role as a leader in biotechnology research. This exciting initiative, along with our new Centers of Excellence across the state, will promote new economic growth and job creation in the region, while further securing New York's role as a national leader in the high-tech and biotech Þelds."

Cornell President Hunter Rawlings thanked Bruno and his colleagues in the New York Senate for their leadership in promoting the state's economic development through investment in the life sciences and biotechnology. "The Gen*NY*sis Centers of Excellence program initiated by Sen. Bruno and Gov. Pataki is an essential component of New York's economic growth and prosperity for decades to come," he said. "With this new facility, Cornell's world-renowned strengths in the physical, chemical, biological and computational sciences will join forces to advance our path-breaking research and instruction in ways that will bring a tremendous beneÞt to this region and to all of New York state."

In addition to providing funding for the Life Science Technology Building, money from the Gen*NY*sis program also has been invested in major biotechnology research initiatives at Syracuse University and Binghamton University on the SUNY Binghamton campus. Gen*NY*sis is focused on all stages of the life sciences research and development process, from basic to applied research to final product, encouraging collaboration between institutions, both public and private, and companies, both emerging and established.