A $25,000 grant from Innovate Indiana will help Kokomo’s Inventrek Technology Park launch Howard County’s first “co-worker” space.
The 3,000-square-foot allotment will offer members access at any time to work and meeting space, desk and lounge areas, conference rooms and fiber and WiFi connections. It also will have copy/print/scan capabilities, secure storage, a CAD lab, mail room and coffee bar access. Members pay month-to-month or yearly rates, with students receiving a discount.
The space is scheduled to open sometime in September.
“In 2005, only one co-working space existed in the United States. Today, 781 facilities like this exist, including 20 in Indiana,” said Mike McCool, manager of economic development for the Greater Kokomo Economic Development Alliance. “Co-working space is the ideal situation for an entrepreneur who needs a more professional work environment than your local coffeehouse or home office, but isn’t ready for dedicated office space and other amenities yet.”
Indiana University Kokomo has been involved with Inventrek since its inception in 2004, as Chancellor Emerita Ruth Person helped seek initial funding for the business incubator, current Chancellor Susan Sciame-Giesecke said.
“With this next step, it makes sense for us to be in on the ground floor of this new venture. It’s a call from IU’s strategic plan to create a culture of building and making.”
— IU Kokomo Chancellor Susan Sciame-Giesecke
Alliance President and CEO Charles Sparks said the space is the latest effort in a strategic program to encourage economic development through entrepreneurial growth in Kokomo and Howard County.
“We are grateful for (our) partnership with Indiana University Kokomo to help move this initiative forward,” Sparks said.
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