SMCC, UNE partner with proposed marine business incubator
Southern Maine Community College and the University of New England are teaming up with the developer of a proposed marine business incubator in Portland to bid for a $7 million state bond.
The Portland Press Herald reported that the coalition between SMCC, UNE and the New England Ocean Cluster House is the first group to publicly announce its plans to bid for the bond money, which was approved by voters last year and is earmarked for the creation of marine-related jobs. The coalition also includes the Downeast Institute for Applied Marine Research and Education and the Cobscook Community Learning Center.
If the coalition wins the bond money, UNE would use a portion to expand its marine laboratories onto a pier it would build on the Saco River. In addition, the New England Ocean Cluster House would use a $2.5 million portion to make infrastructure improvements for a 30,000-square-foot space at Maine State Pier, for which it’s currently negotiating a lease with the city.
UNE plans to assist businesses at the New England Ocean Cluster House with research efforts from its Marine Science Center in Biddeford and its College of Pharmacy in Portland. SMCC’s plans for involvement with the marine business incubator haven’t been announced yet.
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