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NC RTP will no longer be alone as a research center for North Carolina!
North Carolina Research Campus Plans Unveiled
9/12/2005
For Immediate Release
Contacts: Lynne Scott Safrit, Castle & Cooke, Inc., (704) 938-5400
Joni Worthington, University of North Carolina, (919) 962-4629
KANNAPOLIS, NC -- David H. Murdock, owner of Castle & Cooke, Inc. and Dole Food Company, Inc., and Molly Corbett Broad, president of the 16-campus University of North Carolina, unveiled plans today for the North Carolina Research Campus, a massive scientific and economic revitalization project that encompasses the former Cannon Mills plant and entire downtown area of Kannapolis, North Carolina. They were joined by Gov. Mike Easley, Senator Elizabeth Dole, Senator Richard Burr, Congressman Robin Hayes, President Pro Tempore of the Senate Marc Basnight, Speaker of the House James Black, and other regional, state, and University officials.
“I would like to personally thank Gov. Easley, Senator Dole, Senator Burr, Congressman Hayes, Senator Basnight, Speaker Black, and other members of our legislative delegation for their enthusiastic support and assistance in turning my vision for this project into reality. The receptiveness of all of our state leaders and their guidance and commitment to strengthening the economic viability of our state has been very gratifying to me as I have worked on this project over the past seven months, commented Mr. Murdock.
The 250-acre Cannon Mills Plant 1 site was purchased by Mr. Murdock at auction in December 2004. Mr. Murdock also owns another 100 acres in the downtown Kannapolis area and another 1000 acres throughout Cabarrus and Rowan counties.
The most exciting part of this project is to be able to create sustainable, better-paying jobs for the people of Kannapolis and the region, and the creation of this scientific community centered on biotechnology will allow a transformation of this economy from a manufacturing-based one to one centered on scientific knowledge and research. Through the collaboration of the university scientists, the biotechnology research, and the state-of-the-art laboratories, new discoveries will be made that will further my goal of teaching people about proper health, nutrition, and wellness.” explained Murdock.
UNC President Molly C. Broad observed, “We cannot overstate the significance of the University’s embarking in partnership with Dole and David Murdock, on a project of this magnitude, scale, and potential. This initiative advances our three-part mission of teaching, research, and public service, and in the process gives new meaning to the terms collaborative and multi-disciplinary. It underscores our commitment to foster statewide economic development and technology transfer and demonstrates a new level of our commitment to serve the needs of the entire state. This project will serve as a national model for what can happen when private enterprise, higher education, and state government partner to affect positive change for the future.
When completed, the 350-acre campus will house the most state-of-the-art laboratory space in the nation and is expected to become home to over 100 biotechnology companies. A partnership with the University of North Carolina, including UNC-Chapel Hill, North Carolina State University, and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, has been forged to advance groundbreaking research focused on health and nutrition and to enable each of these institutions to have a physical presence in Kannapolis. Advanced discussions with Duke University and other universities in the state are underway to define these institutions involvement in the campus.
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Construction on the first building will begin as soon as architectural plans are finalized. When completed, the North Carolina Research Campus will include more than one million square feet of office and laboratory space, 350,000 square feet of new retail and commercial space, and approximately 700 new residential units.
It has been an exciting endeavor for me to work with the scientific community in North Carolina on this project. As a scientist, it is a place like this campus that will inspire research and allow great scientific discovery for years to come, commented Dr. Andrew Conrad, chief scientific officer of LabCorps’ National Genetics Institute, and a member of the Board of Directors for both Castle and Cooke, Inc. and Dole Food Company, Inc.
It's exciting to be able to express how I feel," said Kannapolis Mayor Ray Moss. "Mr. Murdock's plans to take silent factories, demolish them and create new industry will have a remarkable impact in our city. We have seen many wonderful new development projects in the last few years, and have worked hard to bring them here. The North Carolina Research Campus marks a new level of excitement and achievement where people will be able to live, learn, work, play and worship in the city they love."
Justin Murdock, son of David Murdock and Senior Vice President for Dole and Castle & Cooke, stated, “This project will bring full circle the synergies of education, job retraining, and employment; and with this, the creation of new business for the future. Young people who are graduating from high school in North Carolina will go on to institutes of higher education in this state, and then will be able to return to Kannapolis for employment in the scientific laboratories or to create their own new businesses. It is my generation who needs to advance the study of life sciences and the life-changing discoveries that will alter the world for years to come, discoveries which will bring a brighter and healthier future for people throughout the world.”
“I am very excited to be working with our state government leaders and the University system on what is the beginning of the economic revitalization not only of Kannapolis, but also of Gaston County, the surrounding region, and the entire state of North Carolina. As the plans for this project have taken shape over the last seven months, I have been impressed by how receptive state leaders have been to new ideas and how warmly I have been welcomed in communities all across North Carolina. With their cooperation and involvement, this initiative will extend far beyond the laboratories in Kannapolis to regional manufacturing plants and farms statewide. I commend the state’s farming community, the University leaders, and state officials for joining in this great example of public-private partnership,” stated David Murdock.
Last month, Mr. Murdock and Dole announced that they would construct a $54 million vegetable processing plant in Gaston County that, when fully functional, is expected to create about 1,000 jobs. Mr. Murdock announced today that he has begun searching the state for a second site, not yet identified, for the construction of a packaging plant for frozen fruit.
Mr. Murdock and Dole Food Company have been traveling across North Carolina with state officials and with the states’ farming community to identify multiple geographic regions of the state that could transition from tobacco to healthy fruits and vegetables that could be processed at one of the Dole facilities being constructed. Working with North Carolina State University, the North Carolina Department of Agriculture, and the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, this program will significantly advance the states’ agricultural transition and expansion.
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