Unless hypocrisy rules, Miami isn't for Scripps

Miami is building a biotech village that is everything The Scripps Research Institute at Mecca Farms is not. It's urban. Labs might be taller than three stories. It's near highways and public transportation. And its strongest attribute, like the Briger site in Palm Beach Gardens, is that it's next to an existing university, the University of Miami.

The Post laid out the city's plan in an article last Sunday, and the plan suggests that the site could compete for Scripps. If the institute is tempted to set up in Miami, even temporarily, its insistence on the remote Mecca Farms site would be reason enough to tell Miami no.

To deliver Mecca, the county is battling five lawsuits filed by environmental groups. They argue that putting Scripps on the former grove is cover to develop the county's rural fringe. Because a landowner in Martin County had to tear down five luxury apartment buildings after courts ruled that they violated the comprehensive plan, and because that's an issue in the Mecca suits, Palm Beach County has refused to begin building Scripps' permanent home. But Scripps is eager to put its scientists to work. Miami would love to have them, as City Manager Joe Arriola told The Post.

On top of its pledge of more than $200 million in direct aid, Palm Beach County has done everything Scripps has asked. To offset delays, the county has offered to finance a second $12 million building at Florida Atlantic University's Jupiter campus. On Tuesday, commissioners voted to borrow $150 million, as required by the contract with Scripps, even though the county is not ready to spend the money. The move locks in low interest rates and reassures the Legislature, which doubts the county's commitment. But it doesn't assure construction.

That could change. The county may buy insurance to cover litigation losses. Insurance won't help, however, if a judge blocks development at Mecca beyond Scripps. Spinoff business on the 1,920-acre site would provide taxpayers the best return on their investment.

In a refreshingly sober analysis, the county's new Scripps project manager listed even more opportunities for legal challenges. The Sierra Club and Florida Wildlife Federation filed suit Thursday in federal court to block the county's first wetlands permit. Additional permits remain outstanding, including one for a power plant, another for Mecca's drainage system and one for more than half the property. The report also warns of lengthy delays to obtain a permit for extending PGA Boulevard west to the site. PGA is critical to drawing spinoff businesses, which county experts say are unlikely to come until the threat of litigation is removed.

Scripps has caused the county's dilemma by insisting on Mecca Farms. Scripps needs to assure the county that it will not bolt for a site that has everything Mecca lacks.