Wein said he expects to present a detailed proposal on the Mann negotiations to the North Campus board at its next meeting, scheduled for 8 a.m. Friday, Dec. 5. Wein also began negotiations last week with an unnamed developer for an entertainment-related project. He said he also hopes to make a presentation on the entertainment venture at the upcoming North Campus board meeting. Although reaction to the new development plan for the North Campus has been mostly positive, the biotechnology park and its potential educational links to the university are the components that thus far have drawn the most praise. A partnership with a private company would create internships and high-paying jobs for students, as well as research opportunities for faculty, said Edward Carroll, dean of CSUN's College of Science and Mathematics.
Many potential benefits are possible.
Partnerships between the biomedical industry and universities are growing, Carroll said, particularly in Southern California. UCLA, USC, UC Irvine, Caltech and the Claremont Colleges are among the institutions that have ties with the industry. The prospect emerged when Metzenberg called Ahmed Enany, executive director of the Southern California Biomedical Council, after reading about the demise of the university's planned retail center. Enany, in turn, put CSUN officials in touch with Mann, who happens to chair the council. Coincidentally, about the same time in October, Los Angeles Vice Mayor Rocky Delgadillo approached the university about negotiating with Mann.