16 Tech at Center of Upcoming Regional Plan

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The head of the Indy Chamber’s Business Ownership Initiative says a grant announced today will provide an economic spark in the area around the centerpiece of the city’s tech strategy. The $100,000 grant will fund coaching and lending programs in a neighborhood near 16 Tech, During an interview with Inside INdiana Business, Carrie Henderson said the chamber is looking to grow the strategy by thinking regionally.

Henderson says, while the chamber’s strategy currently focuses only on Marion County, it plans to roll out a regional strategy encompassing a nine-county area.

The funding is from the JPMorgan Chase Foundation and will fund programs that will be offered through the new Source River West Entrepreneurship Center on the city’s near west side. It will include one-on-one coaching for business owners and entrepreneurs and loans of up to $50,000.

The Business Ownership Initiative provided around $280,000 in microloans last year, supporting 85 new startups. The chamber also says its Entrepreneurship Services team provided nearly 5,000 hours of free business coaching in 2015.