Annapolis homeland security incubator downsizing

BYLINE: Scott Dance

The Chesapeake Innovation Center, an Annapolis homeland security incubator, is downsizing its facilities by about three-fourths and will continue to house eight companies, the center said Monday.

The CIC is moving to a 5,400-square-foot space a floor below its current location on Admiral Cochrane Drive. According to the company's Web site, the space it's leaving is 24,000 square feet.

CIC officials said in December that their lease on the facility would end April 30 and they were considering relocating. The CIC had about a dozen member companies then, and when it moves to the smaller space, it will have eight, according to a CIC release.

Monday's move appears to address an ongoing deficit at the CIC and other operational challenges county officials had recently said could impact the future of the incubator.

The new space will have a capacity to serve eight to 10 members, Anne Arundel Economic Development Corp. CEO Robert Hannon said in a release. The CIC has seen a high of 19 members.

Two CIC member companies are graduating from the incubator this month -- PharmAthene, which is moving to Park Place in Annapolis, and Inclinix, which is moving to other offices within the same Admiral Cochrane Drive building.

The incubator has had turnover recently in its leadership, with former Executive Director Laura Neuman stepping down in February after several months. The CIC's original managers, John Elstner and Mark Sauter, were removed by former Anne Arundel development chief Aaron Greenfield, who cited performance issues.