OTTUMWA —
While business incubators are beneficial in all parts of Iowa, southeast Iowa is especially in need, Indian Hills Community College officials said Saturday.
Marlene Sprouse, vice president of academic affairs, said the college has hoped for years that companies would move to the area due to the high-tech training the college provides, such as robotics, aviation, laser technology and more.
She hopes a new business incubator will now further that goal.
“We’re trying to get the cycle to break,” Sprouse said.
Indian Hills officials spoke with U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack Saturday afternoon about the $750,000 grant the college received from the U.S. Economic Development Agency to build a business incubator on the north campus.
“Business incubators in general are a really good idea,” Loebsack said. “It’s a regional approach to economic development. The idea is to provide seed money and seed capital for companies.”
The incubator is anticipated to create 450 jobs and leverage $8.4 million in private investment.
“It’s part of a multi-faceted project we initiated two years ago to boost economic development,” said college president Jim Lindenmayer.
Martha Wick, associate dean of governmental affairs and information, said they were lucky to have not only Loebsack’s support, but U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin and U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley’s. The college also received support from Ottumwa Rotary, Wapello County Supervisors and Ottumwa Regional Legacy Foundation, she said.
Since local matches are always required for federal grants, Wick said the college will match with $750,000.
“We’re hoping it’s a catalyst for great economic advancement in the region,” Wick said.
Lindenmayer said the combination of the business incubator, Iowa Workforce Development, Job Corps, the college and other organizations is something southeast Iowa can bundle to market and sell to the rest of the country.
“This fits into my sectors bill ... you’re bringing stakeholders together to talk about how to move the region forward,” Loebsack said. “Ottumwa can be an example of how we ought to be doing this around the country.”
Lindenmayer said the business incubator builds on what was done in the Cargill corridor.
“The Cargill corridor ... was an effort similar to this,” Lindenmayer said. “Cargill and Indian Hills and two sets of supervisors worked on an EDA grant to build the training facility to allow for expansion. I’ve been told Cargill would have come here anyway, but they wouldn’t have expanded.”
Kelly Poppe-Gale, Rural Entrepreneurship and Leadership Institute (RELI) coordinator, said the building will be 10,000 square feet and will be mixed-use.
“It will be flexible so whatever types of businesses are interested, we can amend it,” Poppe-Gale said.
Wick said while the bioprocessing emphasis is due to the building’s close proximity to the bioprocessing center, the center will not be limited to that field.
Gale also hopes several businesses will be incubating at the same time.
Loebsack said while unemployment remains high in southeast Iowa, he also knows there are plenty of “trainable” people in the area.
“You have the pieces of the puzzle already and you’ve been building it already,” Loebsack said. “This is just another piece of the economic development puzzle.”
Local News
Related Photos
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Indian Hills President Jim Lindenmayer explains to U.S. Rep. Dave Loebsack the layout of the business incubator, which will be built on the college’s north campus. Chelsea Davis/The Courier
October 1, 2012
Indian Hills officials gather to discuss business incubator
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