Innovation District in Spotlight
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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowIn advance of a key funding vote next month, plans for a 60-acre development designed to attract global life sciences and technology companies will be presented to a committee of the City-County Council tonight in Indianapolis. The 16 Tech Community Corp., which was formed by local stakeholders to lead the effort, says the so-called innovation district would include space for large companies and startups alike, as well as room for residential and retail development. President Betsy McCaw says the state currently lacks "that place" for major biosciences and technology players to collaborate and nurture a talent pipeline. During a recent interview on Inside INdiana Business Television, McCaw says the project has come along at "a perfect moment of serendipity" for central Indiana.
McCaw says 16 Tech will be an all-in-one boost for regional talent retention, attraction and development efforts. BioCrossroads, the state’s biosciences initiative, has targeted 16 Tech as the location of the proposed $360 million Indiana Biosciences Research Institute. A report from the Ohio-based Battelle Memorial Institute pointed to the establishment of an innovation district as a key regional growth strategy. McCaw says 16 Tech could also be poised for investment from some big names in the state, including Cook Group and Lilly, and could eventually be home to 9,000 workers over the next 10-20 years. She expects around 5.5 million square-feet of space to be constructed on-site at its peak.
16 Tech is asking the city-county council to kick in $75 million in bonds to help with improved infrastructure in and around 16 Tech, which is just north of the IUPUI campus. That issue could go before the council for a vote November 9.