OU Innovation Center receives $1 million grant for facility upgrades
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration has awarded a $1.15 million grant to the Ohio University Innovation Center to support facility improvements at the internationally renowned business incubator.
The grant will allow the Innovation Center to add new biotechnology laboratories and light manufacturing spaces as well as improve several features of the building, including the heating system, flooring, access control and virtual conferencing technology. The upgrades will enhance the incubator’s ability to provide service to entrepreneurs in southeastern Ohio.
In addition to supporting the retention of more than 300 jobs supported by the Innovation Center, the infrastructure improvements are expected to result in the creation of 10 new businesses and 100 new jobs within three years of project completion. Based on exhaustive data research completed as part of the project’s feasibility study, it is expected that these new jobs will pay a higher than average wage for the region.
The Innovation Center currently has seven fully occupied biotechnology laboratories. Demand for lab space from biotechnology and life science companies is on the rise, said Stacy Strauss, director of the Innovation Center.
Click here to read the rest of the story in the Athens Messenger.
