Commissioners agree to help fund entrepreneurship program
June 24, 2016
Commissioners agree to help fund entrepreneurship program
Allen County Commissioners agreed this morning to help fund a community-based entrepreneurship program and a multi-agency effort to promote the region's orthopedic manufacturing industry.
The commissioners agreed to continue a $100,000 annual appropriation for the Northeast Indiana Innovation Center (NIIC) after hearing a presentation by Karl LaPan, the center's president and CEO.
NIIC provides mentorships, coworking space and access to capital and resources to developing entrepreneurs, LaPan said. The center is also collaborating with USF to start programming at the new location of the Keith Busse School of Entrepreneurial Leadership on the downtown campus of the University of Saint Francis.
The center will provide entreneurship classes and programming this fall at the university's newly renovated building at 826 Ewing St., he said, formerly occupied by the Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce.
Commissioners also approved a fee-for-service agreement for $150,000 with Orthoworx Inc. of Warsaw, which promotes the region's orthopedics industry. The agreement would provide $25,000 per year through 2021.
