Finally.
The long-awaited Mizzou Center, the focus of much speculation and later some controversy, has officially opened.
With great fanfare, a great high school jazz band, some food, balloons and a sunny sky, representatives from the city of Blue Springs and the University of Missouri opened the doors Tuesday to what they call the anchor, the magnet that will attract students, researchers and, hopefully, aspiring companies to Blue Springs and the greater Kansas City area.
Jacqueline Clark, president of the Mizzou Alumni Association, could remember a time years ago when Mizzou wasn’t quite so close.
“At that time,” Clark said, referring to some 20 years ago, “Mizzou was so far away from Blue Springs. We can’t begin to say how much we’re pleased that there will be more emphasis on Mizzou here.”
While the doors were opened Tuesday, it will take the next few weeks to complete finishing touches on the approximately 8,000 square feet of office space on the first floor of the Heartland Financial Building. Once fully operational, the center will offer six department services, with others planned for the future.
Mayor Carson Ross said the concept started years ago and that its opening Tuesday signified success not just for the city but for the metropolitan area as a whole.
“People will stop and take note,” Ross said.
The Mizzou Center was initially to be the first building constructed for the hugely ambitious Missouri Innovation Park, an estimated 118-acre complex that is expected to house research facilities and start-up companies that focus primarily on the animal health and life sciences. The Mizzou Center would be that location where research would take place, where graduate students assist on-site companies (both established and start-ups) .
But the university announced in March that it was, for the time being, scaling down its original plans due to budget concerns. Instead, the university would lease space at the Heartland Financial Building and build momentum from there.
Several university officials were present Tuesday during the ceremony, including Missouri Chancellor Brady Deaton and Provost Brian Foster.
Deaton said he believes Blue Springs is “leading the pack.” With more than 25,000 Mizzou alumni living in the Kansas City area, he said that was a significant pool from which to draw support and, hopefully, a work force.
“The tenants of this building will build partnerships, develop smoother transitions for technology transfer and create jobs,” Deaton said in a prepared statement.
Al Black, previous west central regional director for MU Extension, was named director of the Mizzou Center and promised great things for the area.
“This center is going to grow and expand,” he said, adding in a prepared statement issued beforehand:
“It’s exciting to know that I’ll play a part of building something that will fundamentally change the landscape of (the university) in the Kansas City region. It also will create opportunities for jobs, build connections with students, become a rallying point for alumni and assist our development efforts.”
Others present on Tuesday included Leo Morton, University of Missouri Kansas City chancellor, who said the university must be more competitive with other universities throughout the area – as well as collaborative.
Warren Erdman, vice chairman of the University of Missouri Board of Curators, said the center is a reflection of the times at hand.
“We’re going through tough times in Missouri,” he said, “but we’ll look back and realize these were also the best days for Mizzou.”
Later that night at the annual Blue Springs Economic Development Corporation banquet, Lisa Franklin, chairman of the board of directors, compared the last year to a Hollywood film – minus stars, of course.
“We looked at ourselves as an action movie – a thriller, sometimes scary,” she said. “But we persevered.”
Both Franklin and Brien Starner, president of the EDC, complimented the city for its cooperative nature and willingness to do more. In addition to the innovation park, a project that has commanded most of the attention since it was first unveiled in late 2008, Starner said the EDC remains focused on other issues, including highway corridor development throughout the city.
For instance, the EDC recently assembled several task forces, including one that will investigate industrial parks and the kinds of companies that typically locate in them.
AT MIZZOU CENTER
The following list is of services that will be offered at the Mizzou Center in Blue Springs
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MU Academic Programs, which will provide advising, workshops, career development and educational opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students in person and via video conferencing.
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MU College of Engineering and Missouri Procurement Technical Assistance Center, which will counsel businesses in the metro area to help them procure federal, state and local government contracts.
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MU College of Education, School of Information Science and Learning Technologies, which will provide website usability testing for businesses, government agencies and others, tapping faculty expertise to design training programs and information services.
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MU College of Veterinary Medicine, which will help develop and extend research partnerships within the KC Animal Health Corridor.
