Will help provide capital, fund building renovations

TechTown, Wayne State University’s research and technology park and new business incubator located between the Midtown and New Center areas of Detroit, has received a $1.5 million grant from the Kresge Foundation. The funds will be used for ongoing renovations to TechOne, the signature building in the entrepreneurial village, and for working capital, according to TechTown Director, Randal Charlton.

TechTown, a product of the vision and leadership of Wayne State University President Irvin D. Reid, is home to more than 30 entrepreneurial, technologically oriented companies, many with significant growth potential. Its primary areas of focus are life sciences and sustainable energy, and one early tenant, Asterand, has become an international, publicly traded company.

“TechTown has enormous potential to power Michigan’s economic resurgence, and this generous gift from the Kresge Foundation will help turn that potential into reality,” said Reid, who is also chair of TechTown’s board of directors. “Such support from community-minded organizations and corporations is vital to the continuing development of TechTown as a high-technology business incubator that is at the forefront of creating a new economic model for the state.”

In making the grant, Kresge Foundation President Rip Rapson said, “We applaud Wayne State University and TechTown for the effort to build paths of opportunity within your community. Ensuring the health and vitality of nonprofit organizations such as yours is central to building strong, vibrant communities. We are proud to help advance your very important work.”

Charlton, who also is special assistant for economic development to Reid, added, “This grant will help us build on the successes that TechTown and its tenants have achieved during the past three-and-a-half years. Our primary mission is to help create new companies by leveraging research being conducted at Wayne State University and in southeast Michigan, which will in turn produce the well-paying jobs and attract the talent necessary to drive Michigan forward. We are exceedingly grateful to the Kresge foundation for their generosity and support.”

TechTown, located just north of the WSU campus, is one of the most ambitious urban business incubator projects in the nation, Charlton pointed out. An example is NextEnergy, a nonprofit corporation whose 45,000 square foot headquarters – built across from TechOne in 2005 – is home to research aimed at advancing the alternative energy technology industry in Michigan.

Wayne State University is a premier institution of higher education offering more than 350 academic programs through 11 schools and colleges to more than 33,000 students.