By Bill Rautenstrauch

Observer Staff Writer

The mood at Eastern Oregon University was jubilant Tuesday as Congressman Greg Walden presented the school with a check for $2 million in federal money to help equip a research laboratory being built in the new science center.

"It's an astounding two million dollars," a beaming Walden said during a mid-morning ceremony at the center.

"The average for this type of grant is $1.1 million."

The 10,000-square-foot lab will be used by Oregon Health & Science University researchers and Eastern faculty to study biotechnology and related disciplines.

Much of its state-of-the-art equipment will be purchased with the EDA money.

The $33.5 million science center is opening this fall.

Walden, a member of both the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Committee on Resources, was instrumental in securing the federal investment.

The Republican from Hood River presented the check before a large crowd of university officials, local government leaders and representatives of local and regional economic development agencies.

Many attending the ceremony had a hand in drafting the grant proposal that netted the money from the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Walden had high praise for them.

"This wouldn't have happened if not for the way people at the university and in the community pulled together. It took a lot of teamwork," he said.

The EDA is a sub-agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Its mission is to help communities across the nation develop favorable business environments and create higher-skilled, higher-wage jobs.

The EDA estimates that over the next five years, the science center project will generate more than 500 jobs, directly and indirectly.

The positions could include faculty members, nurses, research and administrative jobs and more.

A portion of the jobs will likely be with spin-off companies created as a result of activities at the science center.

Walden was accompanied to the check presentation ceremony by U.S. Department of Commerce Deputy Assistant Secretary Sandy Baruah and EDA Regional Director Ann Berblinger.

Baruah said that since Oregon's unemployment rate is highest in the nation, the Bush administration is closely monitoring the state's economic situation.

"Oregon and the Pacific Northwest are bright lights on the Bush administration's radar screen," he said.

He added, "The high unemployment rate gets everybody's attention. When we sit down and decide where the money is going, we look at areas that need it most."

The EOU science center was one in a series of stops for Walden on Tuesday.

The 2nd District congressman also visited the business incubator at the airport industrial park, and addressed a Rotary Club luncheon in La Grande.