Scientists at the Center of Marine Biotechnology (COMB) will be moving shortly into spacious new quarters at the $160 million Columbus Center in Baltimore now that the state has approved their lease.
The Board of Public Works approved a 47-year lease yesterday with Columbus Center Development Inc., a private, nonprofit corporation.
"This is a wonderful opportunity to work in advanced facilities that will allow us to make rapid and important progress in our work," said Dr. Madilyn Fletcher, director and professor at COMB, which is part of the University of Maryland Biotechnology Institute.
Since 1986, COMB's laboratories have been housed at the Community College of Baltimore's Harbor Campus, space that it has outgrown.
"It's very cramped here," Dr. Fletcher said. "There are large instruments in the hallways, cramped on benches in the labs, and people are stumbling over each other. We have not been able to capitalize on our successes the way we should because we haven't had the space to grow."
The agreement calls for the institute to pay $1.46 million to Columbus Center Development during the fiscal year that begins July 1.
The payments cover the institute's share of the costs of annual operation, repair and maintenance, plus contributions to a capital reserve fund. Amounts in subsequent years will be determined in an annual operating budget. The lease "helps Maryland begin its move forward into the 21st century, a century which will make even more demands on our educational systems, our science and our ability to use private-sector know-how to propel public sector initiatives," said Gov. Parris N. Glendening.
About 100 researchers and their laboratories will relocate to the center on Piers 5 and 6, east of the National Aquarium. The move will begin March 15 and should be completed by June 1, Columbus Center spokeswoman Paula Dozier said.
Research activity in the new facility is expected to expand gradually, reaching an employment level of about 200 in a year's time, Ms. Dozier said. Jobs could eventually reach a peak of 300 to 400.
COMB scientists and their labs will occupy about 70 percent of the Columbus Center's area. The rest will house educational facilities of the Science and Technology Education Center, due to open next fall; and the Hall of Exploration's public exhibitions, due to open next year.
The Columbus Center, first proposed in 1987, has been developed with federal, state and city money to encourage the marine biotechnology industry. The corporation is also in the process of raising $20 million from the private sector for scientific equipment and educational displays.
Since COMB scientists moved from College Park to Baltimore, they have worked to discover ways to increase seafood production, develop new products of commercial value, and conduct research in bio-engineering.
Research and techniques developed at the center are being used by AquaPharm Technologies Corp., of Columbia, which is participating in a venture with a Massachusetts-based company and two Israeli partners. The U.S. and Israeli governments recently awarded a $3 million grant to the partners to help develop fertility drugs for fish and improve fish farming techniques.