A site near Fort Leavenworth remains in the running for a new $451 million National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility, and optimism for landing the project is spreading into Lawrence.

The project, sought by the Department of Homeland Security, would cost an estimated $451 million, cover 500,000 square feet and employ 250 scientists. It would include secure labs for creating vaccines, isolating livestock and conducting research designed to protect public and animal health.

“It really paints Kansas in a positive light to be considered at this point,” said Matthew McClorey, chief executive officer for the Lawrence Regional Technology Center, which helps promote development of technology companies in the area. “The amount of the investment would have a very beneficial impact on the local community, as would bringing in all those scientists – to bring in that much intellectual capital would be a major positive.”

The department announced last week that the Leavenworth site, along with a site at Kansas State University in Manhattan, had survived the first cut of potential locations for the project. Engineers, scientists, lawyers, academics and communicators from Homeland Security, USDA, the Department of Defense and the Department of Health and Human Services culled a list of 29 “interested sites” to 18 sites in 14 states.

Homeland Security officials will seek additional information from the remaining sites – Kansas’ two locations are supported by the Heartland BioAgro Consortium – before settling on a “small” list of finalists by the end of this year.

A final decision is expected in early 2008.