The announcement comes from the Cleveland Clinic, leading 20 academic and medical institutions in the project, and Team NEO, the business recruiting arm of the area's chambers of commerce.
Their joint venture -- the Global Cardiovascular Innovation Center, or GCIC, will be the most visible and costly push yet to entice state-of-the-art technology companies to either relocate, or send portions of their operations to Cleveland.
Clinic technology Executive Director Chris Coburn calls the center an important catalyst for not only the medical community, but for the entire Northeast Ohio economy. He says several companies are already showing high interest about locating to a region populated by other cutting edge heart specialist firms.
Chris Coburn: They will see that being in this community of CVI will help their bottom line, help them develop their products more quickly, validate their technology, putting them as part of a continuous chance of perspective to discuss their ideas with top physicians.
Interest comes not only because of the Clinic, but because 11 of the top 100 rated cardiovascular related companies in the U.S. News' rankings are already located in Ohio. This push is to increase that number, and Cleveland's standing in the medical world.
Chris Coburn: There are many novel aspects as to what the GCIC represents, and we believe we are applying lessons about how new cardiovascular technology emerges and gets to patients.
A new building alongside the clinic complex on cedar road will house some of the planned operations. The $250 million price tag for the new center includes a portion of a $60 million state grant for biotechnology development. Rick Jackson, 90.3.