Incubators in the News

New York City Launches Second Biotech Incubator Companies wanting to commercialize new technologies can now bring their companies to Brooklyn, with the June opening of a new technology incubator located near Downstate University's biochemistry department. The Advanced Biotechnology Incubator will eventually house up to 30 companies, according to Eva Brown Cramer, vice president for biotechnology and scientific affairs at Downstate. The $12 million incubator, funded by both government and private sources, is a first for Brooklyn and second to be opened in New York City. The first was opened in 1995 at Columbia University, according to the Daily News.



Colorado Incubator Merges With Venture Company, Becomes CTEK

In a continuing effort to expand its services throughout the state, the Colorado Technology Incubator, a community-based business catalyst, has merged with Colorado Venture Centers, changing its name to CTEK, the Daily Camera reports. According to Vice President of CTEK, Mike Murphy, part of tacking on ventures to its name means several venture centers and plans for a new corporate office to launch such new community centers are underway.



West Virginia Technology Center Expected To Spur Economic Growth

A grass roots technology and entrepreneurial center is expected to open at Concord College in southern West Virginia in 2006. The $13.9 million Technology Center promises to enable technology transfer, entrepreneurial support, technical currency, and business incubation, according to the Charleston Daily Mail. Up to eight small businesses will be housed in the center that hopes to create 130 jobs and bring $60.8 million into the economy by 2009. The college is still seeking $5.7 million to complete the project and expects to receive $5 million from the West Virginia Economic Development grant and other funds.



$3 Million Clean Ohio Fund Grant Provides for Cleveland Technology Center

MidTown Cleveland, Inc. received a $3 million Clean Ohio Revitalization grant in 2002 to purchase the former Ohio Knitting Mills building, and recently announced it will use the facility as an anchor to develop the surrounding neighborhood into the MidTown Technology Center, according to the governor’s press office. The old knitting mill will be transformed into a 72,000 square foot incubator for biotechnology, medical research, and computer software companies among others and is scheduled to open early next year. Once completed, the center expects to provide affordable and flexible space to meet the needs of growing technology companies, and will play an important role in the revitalization of the MidTown area.



Innovation Center Reaching Its Capacity, Plans To Expand (IN)

Innovation Center of Northeast Indiana announced its plans in May to lease an additional 10,000 square feet to accommodate for up to 10 new high-tech businesses. Officials said the incubator is more than 90 percent filled and has doubled in size since opening in 2001, The Fort Wayne News Sentinel reports.



Four Incubators Under Construction for Olmulgee campus of Oklahoma State U.

Four incubators will have a home in Pryor Creek, Oklahoma at the new Enterprise Center, an onsite business incubator aimed at assisting small start-up companies, according to MidAmerica. The state's largest industrial park will build and develop the OSU Okmulgee/MidAmerica Innovation & Entrepreneurial Center, which will be built as an addition to the current facility constructed by MidAmerica that functions as a continuing workforce development training operation. The MidAmerica Board of Trustees voted in May to fund administration of the facility for three years. Each of the four incubators will have 2,000 to 2,200 square feet of space, and construction of the building is scheduled to begin this fall with building completion expected six months after construction begins.

San Jose Opens Fourth Incubator

The city of San Jose anticipates thousands of jobs, millions of dollars in new capital, and the creation of successful new businesses as a result of its newest incubator, which opened in early July, said Harry Mavrogenes, interim executive director of the San Jose Redevelopment Agency. The San Jose Bioscience Incubator and Innovation Center is the fourth of its kind for the city, and will be operated by the San Jose State University Foundation. The city of San Jose and private developer Mission West Properties provided funding for the $6.5 million center that will house 15-20 bioscience and medical technology start-up companies.



Cutting Edge Architecture Planned for Lafayette Technology Center (LA)

Design plans for the new Acadiana Technology Immersion Center at UL Lafayette’s Research Park were unveiled in May. Backers of the $18 million center tout it as a future hub for high-tech businesses in the state, the Daily Advertiser reports. Landscaping and building designs promise to be as cutting edge as the technology inside its walls, said Sandy Kaplan, chairman of the Lafayette Economic Development Authority. Inside will house a “cave” or a six-sided enclosure used to view three-dimensional data visualizations, similar to virtual technology. The outside of the building will feature a reflection pool underneath and overhanging auditorium, Kaplan said.

NASA Contributing to Syracuse Technology Garden

Scheduled for completion in October, the Syracuse Technology Garden will house 23 start-up companies in computer, biotechnology, environmental, and other technology fields, reports SuccessSyracuse, a publication from the Syracuse Economic Growth Council. NASA helped to fund the project, giving the technology garden an automatic partnership with other NASA incubators throughout the U.S., allowing the technology garden access to utilize NASA’s resources, information, education, contacts and capital. The Syracuse Chamber of Commerce will oversee the $3 million incubator in central New York.

RENEW NY Hopes To Raise Awareness of Renewable Energy Companies

The Renewable Energy Network of Entrepreneurs in Western New York (RENEW NY) was announced last month as a collaborative effort focused on identifying, incubating and creating renewable energy companies in Western New York. The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority provided $150,000 for funding toward the project, along with additional contributions from High Tech Rochester, Greater Rochester Enterprise (GRE), Rochester Institute of Technology, and Ennovasion Group. According to GRE, RENEW NY will create a catalogue of renewable energy companies and resources in the region and establish an inventory of all the clean-energy intellectual property in the area. Other functions of the incubator include matching entrepreneurs with seed capital, grant assistance, coaching and mentoring, education and training, networking opportunities, and raising overall awareness of renewable energy companies in the region.

Business-Technology Incubator to Fill Columbus Department Store (OH)

The Columbus Center for the Arts and Sciences will fill the vacated Lazarus building in downtown Columbus, Ohio. Ohio State University (OSU), Battelle, and the city will help transform the building, which officials hope will help revitalize the RiverSouth District, The Columbus Dispatch reports. Plans for the center include a business-technology incubator and research and development space for applied science. According to the article, OSU and Battelle will collaborate on research involving energy, the environment, and climate change. Funding is expected to come from federal, state and private sources.

Columbia (SC) Incubator’s Move To City Building Allows For Rent-Free Occupation

Columbia City Council approved the proposal set forth by Mayor Bob Coble to move USC Columbia’s Technology Incubator to a city-owned building, allowing the incubator to operate rent-free for seven years. Mayor Coble said allowing the move into the abandoned building helps the incubator further the city’s goal of creating jobs. According to an article in The State, since its creation in 1999, the incubator has graduated 10 companies, nine of which are still operating in Columbia, and has generated 250 jobs.