Lake Superior State University has a major new expansion underway in Sault Ste. Marie.
Already a home for fisheries, aquatic and Great Lakes research, the university now plans to build a $11.8 million expansion for its successful Aquatic Research Lab. Almost $9 million of the funding was approved by the Michigan legislature for the 2016-17 school year, with LSSU needing to raise the rest.
Along with the addition will come a new name, the Center for Freshwater Research and Education. It'll include an improved hatchery facility, more research and classroom space, research and fish disease testing labs, a community center and K-12 learning area.
"The Center for Freshwater Research and Education will help connect LSSU's faculty expertise and students to the Great Lakes economy by providing a state-of-the-art facility to not only conduct freshwater research, but also provide public education and outreach," says LSSU President Tom Pleger. "With our location in the heart of the Great Lakes, along an international border, we have the perfect location for such a facility and we are pleased that this investment milestone by Michigan recognizes the importance and need for this project."
The new center will be located in a building just west of the Cloverland Electrical Cooperative power plant on the St. Marys River.
Writer: Kim Eggleston
Source: Lake Superior State University
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