Kansas wins bid to build coveted $450 million DHS laboratory

Manhattan, Kan.

-- A site in Kansas was recommended over those in four other states for a new $450 million government laboratory to study biological threats against the United States.

The Department of Homeland Security chose the proposed Manhattan, Kan., location over sites in Georgia, North Carolina, Texas and Mississippi that also were on the short list, according to some members of Congress and staff briefed by agency officials. The facility could pump some $3.5 billion into the economy in Kansas.

Word of the site selection came from officials who asked to remain anonymous. An official announcement is expected within a few days, along with an environmental impact statement.

Comments or objections may be filed over a 30-day period from the time of the formal announcement, before the choice becomes final. The losing states will have an opportunity during that time to bring challenges.

The laboratory will replace the government's research facility at Plum Island, N.Y., four miles off eastern Long Island, where studies on anthrax, foot-and-mouth disease and other biological threats have been conducted for more than half a century.