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MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- "You know, there are 49 other governors in the country. And everyone of them, I can promise you this, would love to have St. Jude be in their state." Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam showed the state commitment to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and its massive expansion project on Thursday. "We want to be a part of that as well. So the state is going to contribute $12 million to the infrastructure." The city and county will invest $25 million to improve the infrastructure from the hospital's campus west toward the river with a main focus on the Pinch District. "And one of the great things about it is we're doing it without using our general fund or property tax dollars that are dedicated to other core city services," said Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland. The plans is to blend the St. Jude campus with the Pinch District through commercial development and creating what's described as a more inviting environment for hospital employees, patients and guests. The project will also include housing and research facilities with the promise of 1800 new jobs. The $9 billion project is expected to double the hospital's economic impact in the community. "The combined economic impact of ALSAC and St.Jude is over 2.5 billion dollars per year. And at the end of this plan we're projecting it to be between 3.5 billion and 4 billion dollars per year." The cost covers the entire expansion plan and continuing operations. The hospital is expected to raise $8 billion through public donations.