Hooray! Someone wonders out loud about the wisdom of blindly following David Murdock’s grand plan for a biotech research mecca up Kannapolis way. Dale Gibson of The Triangle Business Journal makes these points:
The fact is, there is huge risk involved for North Carolina taxpayers.
Murdock says he’ll spend some of his millions to put up hundreds of thousands of square feet of office and lab space, retail shops, housing and even a movie theater.
But, and this is a huge but, he’s asking the state of North Carolina to put some significant skin in this game. This is skin to the tune of $25 million a year.
Let that sink in. That’s $25 million a year for who knows how long?
The risk for filling the offices and labs lies not with Murdock but with the state of North Carolina. Outgoing UNC System President Molly Broad says the legislature will be asked to vote to undertake that risk by approving $16 million in startup costs and the first of the ongoing $25 million annual appropriations.
Murdock’s position is understandably shrewd for the wise businessman he is. His position can be likened to an office developer who doesn’t turn a spade of dirt until he has certain pre-lease agreements.
He’s asking North Carolina taxpayers to pre-lease 270,000 square feet of space.
Once the state gives its guarantee, who will lease that space?
Uh, good question. Like we said the day the deal was announced, everything turns on Murdock’s ability to attract top companies to the site. And Gibson notes that a North Carolina mill town will have to compete with the likes of San Francisco, Austin, and Boston as a place to live and work. Shall we say that the odds are not good that Kannapolis wins those battles?
Gibson also makes a point that frankly I had not considered, and that is prospect of Murdock’s operation bleeding talent away from NC State and UNC. All the while getting $25 million a year for doing so.
Hmmm.
