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Shawnee Planning for Bioscience District

By Kelley Weiss

Kansas City, MO – Another Johnson County city is vying for a bioscience development to promote life science research and commercial products. KCUR's Kelley Weiss reports.

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Olathe announced preliminary plans last week to build a large bioscience park featuring a Kansas State University satellite campus, research facilities and laboratories for commercial product development. Now the city of Shawnee is joining the race to attract a 65-acre bioscience district as well. Keith Gary, of the Kansas City Area Life Sciences Institute, says the possible incubators will provide Kansas City with a needed outlet for the local bioscience industry.

Keith Gary:"They provide a missing link in terms of the wet lab incubators and being able to transit new discoveries out of the laboratory and into the marketplace."

Gary says if the research parks are approved they will provide training and job opportunities for area workers and boost Kansas City's life science research efforts.

Funding for health care coverage on KCUR has been provided by the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City.

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