As the construction of Boston University’s Level 4 Biosafety Laboratory in BU’s Medical Campus in South Boston continues to draw legal battles and residents’ opposition, the mayor of a town in rural New York contends his community would have been a better location for the biolab.
James Brown, mayor of Rome, N.Y., said he was denied in his appeal to the National Institutes of Health — which awarded BUMC a $128 million grant in 2003 to build the biolab — to award his town funding to build the research center.
Roxbury residents have largely opposed the biolab’s construction, saying the deadly diseases that will be studied at the lab pose too great a risk to the area, despite assurances of safety from BUMC representatives.
In contrast, Rome residents have pursued building a laboratory for years, Brown said, citing the job opportunities the lab would create.
“Here we have a situation where we are getting nothing but positive feedback from the entire community,” he said.
Brown said although it has been suggested the Rome area lacks the educational and scientific resources needed to support such a laboratory, several accredited universities in the area, including Syracuse University, provide an intellectual base similar to the one in Boston.
Rome said the lab’s introduction in Boston was poorly planned, which contributed to the negative feedback from residents. BU would have garnered less criticism if officials held public meetings before starting construction to assuage residents’ concerns, Rome said.
“You see controversy from day one against the biolab in Boston,” he said.
Even in the years since his town lost the bid to Boston, Brown said he has continued writing to and meeting with elected officials to build Rome’s case.
“It’s a long shot,” he said. “But I’m not going to give up on it.”
After a judge struck down an October injunction filed on behalf of Roxbury residents to halt the biolab’s construction, Rome’s chances to reclaim the grant have decreased significantly. After years of legislative backup, the laboratory is already a quarter completed, according to BUMC spokeswoman Ellen Berlin.
Berlin added the type of research that will be conducted at the lab fits well with current BUMC research, and the lab would lose its usefulness if it were built in New York. She also said BUMC and Boston officials will continue to discuss progress with the community.
“[Researchers] will find cures and save lives from horrible diseases,” Berlin said. “We have the best researchers that can perform this research, and it will be beneficial to the public health and economy.”
Once completed in 2008, the laboratory will create 660 permanent jobs in addition to the 1,300 jobs construction has already provided, she said.
Vicky Steinitz, spokeswoman for the Stop the BU Bio-terrorism Lab coalition, said she doubts the additional labs will benefit the Roxbury community.
“The jobs in this lab will be for people with advanced research degrees and security clearance, not for the people that live in the community,” she said.
There are currently four safety level 4 laboratories in the country, and none are in an area as densely populated as BUMC.
Steinitz said the laboratory would be better suited for a less densely populated area such as Rome, adding the presence of a former army base in the town would benefit security measures for the biolab.
“I wouldn’t want to wish this on anybody,” she said. “But better it be there than here.”