Sabans Give Another $1M To Tuscaloosa For Saban Discovery Center

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Nick and Terry Saban, along with the Nick's Kids Foundation, presented the City of Tuscaloosa with another donation of $1 million to go toward the proposed Saban Discovery Center at the current site of the Tuscaloosa News building.

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The donation was presented Wednesday at the foundation's annual luncheon at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox pointed out that, to date, the Sabans have invested $2.25 million toward the highly anticipated project.

"The Sabans are amazing and to be on this journey with them to create an elite STEAM Discovery Center for Tuscaloosa is an honor," Maddox said.

As part of the event on Wednesday, the Nick's Kids Foundation presented another $572,000 in donations to various local and state nonprofits. Beloved not just for the success on the gridiron, but also their philanthropy, the Sabans have donated nearly $11 million to charities and organizations since arriving in Tuscaloosa in 2007.

As Patch previously reported, the Tuscaloosa City Council on Tuesday voted to move forward on the design phase of the Saban Discovery Center, along with a 70,000-square-foot events center adjacent to the new facility on the same campus. Totaling more than $90 million, work on the new campus represents the largest investment in the city's history in terms of a capital project.

The Saban Discovery Center — with an estimated cost of $45 million — will see 20%-25% of its funding come from individuals and corporations, as Maddox pointed out earlier this week. It will also become the new home for Tuscaloosa Children's Theatre and Children's Hands-On Museum, which will rebrand as IGNITE.

Focusing on the promotion of science, technology, engineering, arts, and math (STEAM), the Saban Discovery Center will focus on four primary disciplines that will also be aligned with the curriculum in Tuscaloosa City Schools:

• Sports science.
• Technology, engineering and robotics.
• Earth and sustainability.
• Forms of energy.

Projections expect 177,000 visitors annually once the facility opens in 2025.

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