The University of Michigan will move forward with a plan to sell a parcel of university-owned land in the Ann Arbor Technology Park that will allow a company to increase its local employment by up to 500 new jobs.
The Board of Regents on Thursday approved selling the 17.8-acre parcel located east of U.S. 23 and south of Plymouth Road to KLA-Tencor Corp., a Milpitas, California-based global capital equipment company. The sales price is $26.7 million.
KLA-Tencor is the leading provider of process controls and yield-management solutions for the semiconductor and related nanoelectronics industries. The company expressed an interest in developing a research and development center near the university that would strengthen its long-term relationship, including collaborative research, with U-M.
With the purchase of the land, KLA-Tencor aims to create up to 500 local jobs.
Earlier this year, Ann Arbor SPARK, a nonprofit organization that focuses on economic and employment development in Washtenaw and Livingston counties, touted KLA-Tencor’s desire to invest in Ann Arbor as a huge win for the region.
“It’s not only a boost to the economy in terms of investment and new jobs, but it’s a boost to our visibility globally as a place where Silicon Valley companies are choosing to expand,” Paul Krutko, Ann Arbor SPARK president, said in a press release.
