Syracuse's Tech Gardenhad a good problem on its hands - too many entrepreneurs who wanted to use the start-up space. So Tuesday they announce an expansion. Innovation Vice President Seth Mulligan at Centerstate CEO helps run the Tech Garden...he says they had a 24-month backlog of people wanting to get in.
"I think this demand that we saw at the Tech Garden is just indicative of the robustness of the entrepreneurial eco-system. It's all showing to me that there are more entrepreneurs that are growing and scaling in different ways, and that is usually a very positive indicator in your economy"
The Tech Garden offers business services and office space to tenants, as well as flexible leases and business coaching. But Mulligan says a bigger benefit might be the proximity to other creative and energetic people.
"These companies may not realize it at first, but they need each other more than they realize. What we see is a lot of talent exchange. People find other people and they can hire and bring on their team. They flat out start cross-selling for each other, (saying) 'oh I don't do that, but I know Bob down the hall can do that.' It's really helpful to bump elbows with like-minded entrepreneurs."
Some of the new tenants in the expanded space include: an on-line and mobile advertising company; a high-tech gaming developer; and clean energy developers.
The Tech Garden also announced new "Grants for Growth" to seven companies, from an on-line grocery service, to a solar power start-up, to a company trying to fight vision loss in older people.
CENTERSTATE CEO ANNOUNCED $425,000 IN GRANTS FOR GROWTH AWARDS:
$150,000 Concept to Marketplace Investments
- tuzag, Inc. is advancing a full-scale trial of its Anonymous Tailored Advertising System, delivering individually tailored display ads within a consumer health care ecosystem that includes key publishers, brands and ad networks.
- Skinny Eats, LLC will expand into a new specialty food manufacturing facility in Binghamton, NY, as well as launch into additional grocery stores in Upstate NY.
$25,000 Proof of Concept Grants
- Solstice Power will construct a field test prototype of its Solstice Hybrid System, a new solar technology which produces three times the electrical energy efficiency of traditional flat solar panels and generates both electricity and heat from a single system.
- Ichor Therapeutics will develop recombinant enzymes to treat age-related macular degeneration, the leading cause of vision loss and blindness in people over age 50.
- Gyro Heat Technologies is advancing its revolutionary gas burner that creates electricity while in use and mechanically distributes the heat by rotating the flame.
- Azeer Intimates is a specialty swimwear retail and design company focused on developing on-trend products for women who are underrepresented in today’s market, while improving the online shopping experience through imaging technology.
- Gridstream makes use of the Wireless Grids Corporation’s advanced networking and data communications platforms to deliver monitoring and control of energy and mechanical systems in buildings.
