Biden-Carper Announce Key Senate Committee Approves $6 Million for Local Projects

WASHINGTON, DC – Earlier today, Senators Joe Biden and Tom Carper announced that a key Senate committee approved more than $6 million for Delaware projects, including $2.5 million for the construction of a state-of-the-art aerospace technology and learning complex in Kent County. This project is the brainchild of the Delaware AeroSpace Education Foundation, a non-profit group working with state and local governments, community leaders and several corporations including ICI Americas, Inc. and AstraZeneca. The facility will be the first of its kind in Delaware and will include interactive exhibits, learning laboratories, professional development workshops and a resource center. “This project is great for Delaware and Delaware is a natural fit for the facility,” said Senator Biden. “We have a very high concentration of scientists in our communities and corporations that readily support this type of high-tech learning and educational exploration. Clearly this facility will draw people from all over the mid-Atlantic region.” “Delaware continues to shine as a model for public and private partnerships. The result is a center that transforms science into a hands-on learning experience for Delawareans of all ages,” Carper said. “As our interest in science and technology grows so will our desire to dream up innovative solutions. This center will be an invaluable resource.” Also included in the bill passed today by the Subcommittee on Veterans, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations committee is: – $2.0 million for a land treatment and disposal wastewater facility in Millsboro to help replace the current system and expand capacity to meet future needs; – $750,000 for the Central Branch YMCA to add 40 additional single occupancy rooms for low-income individuals and help renovate the existing 140 units; – $300,000 for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Delaware for facility construction and renovation in an effort to double the size of the children served in the state; – $500,000 for the Center for the Study of Metals in the Environment, a multi- university consortium of scientist and engineers established to help the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) examine the risks posed by metals in the environment. The bill now must be passed by the full Senate.