- What is Aggie Square?
- Aggie Square puts a spotlight on what UC Davis is known for: collaborative, inter-disciplinary research that improves lives. The innovation hub will harness the power of UC Davis and its partners to create positive economic and social impact in Sacramento and beyond. Located on the UC Davis Sacramento Campus, home to UC Davis Health, Aggie Square will co-locate business partners and community-based programs with UC Davis innovation and research to create a stronger and healthier shared community. UC Davis innovation and entrepreneurship will foster partnerships in new technologies, new ways of advancing human health, new partnerships in lifelong learning; Aggie Square will create a new kind of campus, a unique live/work/discover environment in which students, faculty, staff, business partners and community members interact, grow and thrive.
UC Davis has identified approximately two dozen acres on the Sacramento campus for developing Aggie Square. Phase 1 of the project will occupy just over eight acres. - What is the timing of Aggie Square?
- Aggie Square's Launch Headquarters opened in August 2019. Construction for Aggie Square's first phase is scheduled to begin in 2022 and will include two life sciences buildings with modern lab space, a classroom and office tower, student housing, a food and health building, an open-air marketplace and a public square.
- How is Aggie Square funded?
- Aggie Square’s construction is fueled by private investment. A private real estate developer, will lease university owned land to finance, build, and manage the Aggie Square buildings. The university and other partners will lease space in the buildings.
- What is the economic impact of Aggie Square?
- The Sacramento office of Economic and Planning Systems has completed an economic and fiscal impact study on behalf of UC Davis. Initial findings from this report indicate that the six-county region will receive nearly $5 billion in new, ongoing annual economic impact, and $2.6 billion in one-time economic impact from construction of Aggie Square Phase 1 and Phase 2. Approximately $3 billion of ongoing annual economic impact and more than $1.6 billion in one-time economic impact from construction is directly attributable to Phase 1 of Aggie Square.
These ongoing, annual economic impact and revenue estimates do not fully capture the spin-off economic benefits and shared-wealth creation that will come from start-ups that “go big,” business-growth beyond Aggie Square, company relocations to the region, and catalytic innovations and inventions sparked by the ecosystem at Aggie Square. The combined impact will be substantial and unprecedented. - How can I get involved?
- We welcome your input and participation. Email us at aggiesquare@ucdavis.edu with questions, ideas or concerns. Subscribe to the Aggie Square newsletter (you can sign up on this website) for regular updates.
- How does the Aggie Square team engage the local community?
Our team connects constantly with community members. In addition to regular meetings with the Community Engagement Advisory Committee and the Partnership Advisory Council, we regularly attend neighborhood association meetings and other community events. For example, we attended an Oak Park Neighborhood Association meeting in January and provided written answers to submitted questions here. We hold regular "open house" meetings — all are welcome, and all topics are on the table.
People with additional questions or concerns can contact us via email at aggiesquare@ucdavis.
- How is the community involved in decisions related to Aggie Square?
We meet regularly with two specific community-focused groups. The Partnership Advisory Council is co-chaired by UC Davis Chancellor Gary May and Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg. It consists of elected officials and civic and business leaders and neighborhood association representatives. The Community Engagement Advisory Committee includes representatives from neighborhood associations, local leaders, and rank-and-file employees of UC Davis Health and UC Davis.
We hold regular “open house” meetings as well — all are welcome, and we are open to any suggestions that community members have.
- How are you coordinating workforce development initiatives?
Aggie Square, UC Davis Health Anchor Institution Mission, City of Sacramento and Sacramento Employment and Training Agency (SETA) collaborate closely on a set of workforce development initiatives to provide career awareness, education, training, paid work experience, supportive services and career coaching to create pathways for local residents to employment opportunities at UC Davis and other public sector employers. These include workforce pathways training pilot programs in sterile processing, IT service desk analysts and clinical research coordinators and an annual career and resources fair. UC Davis HR partners on programming to directly assist community members seeking UC Davis employment with outreach activities such as monthly Job Talks, 1:1 career chats and attendance at area job fairs.
In addition, UC Davis Continuing and Professional Education (CPE) coordinates UC Davis’ workforce training efforts, and Aggie Square will be its new home. For example, CPE in partnership with campus departments has completed two workforce pathway programs and is already working with the Institute for Regenerative Cures and a private life sciences company to develop a certificate program in stem cell manufacturing process. This is an example of creating a career opportunity pipeline for members in the community. Along with partners in the Mayor’s Workforce Collective, CPE is designing new career development and training programs for the companies UC Davis recruits to Aggie Square and the rest of the Sacramento campus.
We are not acting alone. As part of the Mayor’s Workforce Collective, UC Davis, California State University, Sacramento, and Los Rios Community College District are collaborating to identify the skills people in Sacramento will need to get and keep higher-wage jobs, and then developing the programs to provide those skills.
Additionally, UC Davis has held a number of job fair events and local talks in the area to provide information about current openings and how to apply. For example, UC Davis Talent Acquisition held a job talk in January 2020 with the Employment Development Department and Sacramento Food Bank discussing strategies about how to stand out as an applicant, as well as the benefits of starting your career with us.
Updated information on recruiting events can be found online at https://hr.ucdavis.edu/careers/events-tips/recru-events.
- Will you be preserving or restoring Governor's Hall?
- We are examining the site now to assess the viability of restoring the facility for use as a performing arts space and for conferences and meetings. If we determine the venue could operate successfully for these uses, UC Davis will seek to raise money for the restoration.