NU continues fair land push
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BY MELISSA LEE/Lincoln Journal Star
The battle for State Fair Park is far from over.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2015 Vision and local business leaders continue to believe the best use for the 251-acre site is a research and development arm of the UNL campus.
State Fair leaders continue to believe no one has the money to pay for such a venture.
Lawmakers have introduced a variety of bills — some may survive, some won’t — relating to the future of the fairgrounds as they begin to debate whether the land should stay with the Nebraska State Fair or go to the University of Nebraska for a research and development campus. Bills include:
LB1044 — Would give State Fair Park to the university and require the fair to move to a new location by 2012.
LB1116 — Would require NU to pay at least $30 million for the fairgrounds.
LB1115 — Would remove UNL Chancellor Harvey Perlman from the State Fair Board. Some have said Perlman’s seat on the board is a conflict of interest.
LB861 — Would strike down a state law requiring the fair to be held in Lincoln.
Where the money comes from
Here’s a breakdown of sources for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s federally sponsored research grants, followed by the percentage of the total each provides:
National Science Foundation: 23 percent
Department of Health & Human Services: 23 percent
U.S. Department of Agriculture: 18 percent
Department of Defense: 14 percent
Department of Education: 6 percent
U.S. Agency for International Development: 5 percent
Department of Energy: 3 percent
Environmental Protection Agency: 2 percent
Department of Transportation: 1 percent
Department of Interior: 1 percent
NASA: 1 percent
Other: 3 percent
Source: UNL Office of Research 2006-2007 Annual Report
Now the fairgrounds’ future likely lies with state lawmakers, who don’t seem to have an enviable job these days.
But even before senators decide who should get State Fair Park, university and business leaders are moving forward with their vision for the land, a high-tech research park they’re calling Nebraska Innovation Campus.
And they continue to line up supporters: Lincoln Mayor Chris Beutler, for example, the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, the Nebraska Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association and, most recently, the NU Board of Regents, which gave its unanimous approval at its January meeting.
UNL will aim to become one of the country’s top research institutions whether or not it acquires the fairgrounds, UNL Chancellor Harvey Perlman told regents then, but Nebraska Innovation Campus certainly would aid that goal.
“We think we can do that (become a major research school) with or without this project,” Perlman said.
Tentative plans for Nebraska Innovation Campus, which boasts 1.6 million square feet of developed space, have “enormous potential,” NU President J.B. Milliken told regents.
NU envisions its research campus as a mix of university facilities and private buildings. University researchers and business people could share ideas, equipment and resources to reach research breakthroughs and develop new products based on that work, NU says.
Supporters believe that public-private partnership would help create new jobs, stimulate Nebraska’s economy and keep bright young people in the state.
They also believe a key to research campus success is proximity to a university campus, which State Fair Park uniquely offers.
Many of today’s successful schools have joined forces with the private sector, Perlman said, pointing to North Carolina State University in Raleigh, home of one of the nation’s first and largest research campuses, as a prime example.
“Private-sector companies are interested in locating next to universities,” Perlman said at the regents meeting.
Still, whether UNL will get the fairgrounds remains a big if.
Gov. Dave Heineman and State Fair leaders have expressed serious doubts about the costs of relocating the fair.
The fair can afford to spruce itself up slowly at its current location, Executive Director Barney Cosner repeatedly has said, but a move would be too pricey and would burden taxpayers.
Heineman recently said he’d take $60 million from Nebraska Innovation Campus backers — private dollars, not taxpayer dollars — for the fairgrounds.
If the university believes the land is so important to its future, Heineman said, it could come up with the money.
Regardless, there are signs the university intends to play a more significant role in the state’s economy.
For example, UNL has given a new title to Prem Paul, formerly vice chancellor of research and dean of graduate studies.
Paul is now vice chancellor of research and economic development, with Ellen Weissinger assuming his duties in graduate studies.
Paul’s dual role in research and economics reflects UNL’s desire to more directly affect economic growth through research and job creation.
He has been particularly successful in that vein, helping UNL increase its external research funding by 63 percent since his arrival in 2001.
Now he’s free to focus on that area even more.
“It really builds on what we’ve been doing,” Paul said of his new title. “We want to continue to aggressively strengthen our research capabilities. … This is the part that we want to pay even more attention to.”
Research, Paul said, will be at the core of UNL’s growth.
UNL now is especially strong in agricultural, energy, transportation, engineering and chemistry research, he said, and is competing nationally for faculty and grants in those and other areas.
Incidentally, Paul gave his interview just as he was preparing for a trip to Washington, D.C., in search of even more grant money.
“The competition is intense,” he said. “But hey, we’re in it.”
Reach Melissa Lee at 473-2682 or mlee@journalstar.com.
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