Idaho's burgeoning wine industry could get another boost - and consumers could get better Idaho wines - if a planned business incubator and education center is built in Eagle and Star.

The $1.1 million Idaho Viticulture Research Center would help new grape growers and winemakers who need space and equipment while waiting to launch their own vineyards and wineries.

Leading the charge for the center is Lloyd Mahaffey, owner of Floating Feather Vineyard in Eagle. A partnership that includes Mahaffeycalled Vinemakers LLC has joined with Boise State University and the College of Western Idaho to develop the nonprofit center, Mahaffey told the Idaho Statesman.

Plans call for a teaching winery, a co-op winery where people can share equipment, a tasting room, a lab for testing wines, classroom space, a grape-crushing pad, a bonded warehouse and a distribution center, all at one site in a 30-acre planned business park about 1,300 feet west of Ballantyne Road in Eagle.

A greenhouse and nursery would be built in Star on the west side of Pollard Lane north of Beacon Light Road.

The center plans to team with the College of Western Idaho, a new Nampa-based community college, to offer classes on how to build and operate a winery, as well as how to produce and market wines, Mahaffey said.

"We are working with College of Western Idaho to, first, create extension courses on viticulture and wine-making," he said in an e-mail. "Over time, we would like to see that grow into a two-year degree. At this time, there are no classes on viticulture or winemaking in Idaho. Furthermore, there is no teaching winery like the one at Fresno State, or a co-op winery where small winery startups can start making their wine until they can afford their own facility. These are important capabilities to grow the industry."

The center also will make use of Boise State research, he said.

Moya Shatz, executive director of the Idaho Grape Growers and Wine Producers Commission, said the center will help growers determine what grapes will grow best in what areas.

Ultimately the center's efforts will help the industry grow, while producing better wines that the public will like, Shatz said. "That way everybody wins," she said.

The center took a step closer to becoming a reality last month when it was awarded a $300,000 grant from the Idaho Department of Commerce to cover the cost of running sewer, water, roads and power to the Stillwater Technology Park.

The center's 3,500-square-foot building will occupy a 10,000-square-foot pad in the business park donated by Tri Cedars LLC, a privately held real estate investment, development and land management company partnership between John, Ed and Mark Priddy, brothers and Treasure Valley businessmen.

Mahaffey said private funds have been committed to cover construction costs, though he declined to say how much and from whom.

"The research building is still being designed, and we're waiting to see what the construction costs will be," said Mahaffey, who will act as the center's chairman.

Operating income will come from fees charged to users and from private donations, he said.

"The IVRC will receive no fees or tax dollars from the state or the Wine Commission," Mahaffey said.

The $300,000 grant is an Idaho Rural Community Block Grant. Idaho Commerce Department spokeswoman Bibiana Nertney said the grant was awarded to the city of Eagle and will be administered by Sage Community Resources, which provides community and economic development services in Southwest Idaho.

Stillwater developer Ron Bath said it would take about six months to install the infrastructure so that actual construction of the center can begin. The goal is to have the center open in 2010.

Bath said the Stillwater project has been on hold. Originally it was envisioned as a business park to house high-tech companies lured to the Eagle-Star Technology Corridor - another concept Mahaffey has championed.

Joe Estrella: 377-6465