A Model for Downtown Jacksonville?

[simms3]

Thought this was interesting.

http://academicvc.com/2013/10/31/happy-birthday-tech-square/

Happy 10th Anniversary Tech Square

I've been travelling a bit lately, visiting innovation communities in Austin, Portland, and Saõ Paulo. I've also had a chance to compare notes with venture capitalists and angel investors from all over the U.S. at the Venture Atlanta conference held last week, and with city planners in my role as a team leader for the Atlanta co(lab) conference in September.

I'm happy to report that the grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence.

We have a unique asset at Georgia Tech — one that other communities would love to have. And that's Tech Square. We celebrated the tenth anniversary of Tech Square on October 17. Let's look back:

"The 13 acres that now support the 1.1 million square feet of Tech Square facilities was a desolate place... a small music venue/bar called 'Cafe Erehwon' was located just across the 5th Street bridge. Interestingly enough, the name 'Erehwon' was chosen by owner/musician Cy Timmons as it was 'nowhere' spelled backward."

"Immediately before Tech Square was built, there were a bunch of parking lots where drug deals and prostitution were rampant. It was not really safe in the evening." [1]

And as then-President Wayne Clough said in a video address at the Technology Square 10th Anniversary Symposium,

"In 2000, nobody wanted to claim Georgia Tech. The boundaries of Central Atlanta Progress ended at North Avenue. And the western boundary of the Midtown Alliance ended at the Downtown Connector." [2]

The leap across the Downtown Connector was truly a gamble for the Georgia Tech administration (led at that time by President Clough). Georgia Tech had been landlocked on the west side of the highway for decades, and growth in any direction would be challenging and expensive. By choosing to move east, we didn't just gain new classrooms and office space. We created an entire new relationship between Georgia Tech, the state government, and the business community. And in the process, we created an "innovation ecosystem" that's the envy of universities across the country.



What's the secret?

I'm typing this at my desk in Centergy. Looking out my window and walking through my mental map of Tech Square, I'm within two blocks of (in mostly-alphabetical order):

•AT&T Foundry
•Augmented Environments Lab
•Barnes & Noble campus bookstore
•Broadband Institute
•Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems
•Center for Education Integrating Science, Mathematics, and Computing (CEISMC)
•Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development
•Digital Media Center
•Experimental Game Lab
•Ferris-Goldsmith Trading Floor
•Flashpoint
•GE Energy innovation center
•Georgia Department of Economic Development
•Georgia Electric Membership Corp.
•Georgia Electronic Design Center (GEDC)
•Georgia Tech Foundation
•Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI)
•Global Learning Center
•Graphics, Visualization and Usability (GVU) Center
•Health Systems Institute
•Hotel and Conference Center
•Huang Executive Education Center
•Hypepotamus
•Information and Communications Laboratory
•Institute for People and Technology
•Institute of Leadership and Entrepreneurship
•Institute of Electronics and Nanotechnology
•Interactive Media Technology Center (IMTC)
•Interoperability & Integration Innovation Lab
•Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia
•NCR innovation center
•Office of Legal Affairs and Risk Management
•Panasonic innovation center
•Parking and Transportation
•Professional Education
•QuickStart: Technical College System of Georgia
•Research Network Operations Center (GT-RNOC)
•Scheller College of Business
•School of Electrical and Computer Engineering
•School of Interactive Computing
•School of Literature, Media, and Communications
•Select Georgia, Georgia Power's economic development center
•Technology Association of Georgia (TAG)
•The Biltmore – offices and conference spaces
•Thyssen-Krupp innovation center
•TSRB conference center
•UGA Department of Economic Development
•US Export Assistance Center
•...and a mix of investors, attorneys, and consulting firms

And, of course, the Enterprise Innovation Institute (that's us!):

•Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), including 40+ startup companies
•Contracting Education Academy
•Energy Management and Technology Program
•Georgia Manufacturing Extension Partnership (GaMEP)
•Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center (GTPAC)
•Health IT Extension Program
•Hodges Connection Room
•Innovation Strategy and Impact Group
•Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) Business Center
•NSF Innovation Corps node
•Southeastern Trade Adjustment Assistance Center (SETAAC)
•Startup Ecosystems
•VentureLab

Plus:

•Every fiber optic route in the Southeast
•Nearby condos, apartments, and — soon — student housing
•Ample parking
•Bike racks
•Three trolley stops
•Two MARTA stations
•Commuter express bus stop
•Eleven restaurants
•Three bars
•Two banks
•LA Fitness
•The world's smallest Wal-Mart
•Random retail spaces
•...and the indispensable Starbucks.

And, soon, the 600,000 square foot ARCA (Advanced Research, Computation, and Analytics) building at 777 Spring Street:



Great jumping Jehoshaphat.

Since we're immersed in all this, it's easy to forget just how unique it is... a confluence of public and private entities, major corporations and not-for-profits, students and entrepreneurs, and more. As a historical aside: Georgia Tech was founded by a partnership between the government of Georgia, Atlanta's business community, and academics. We had the right mix in 1885... but then, like so many universities, we walled ourselves off on campus and ignored our former partners! Now, with Tech Square, we've brought those three communities back together, with incredible results.

The magic is in the mix. As I walked to lunch at the Barrelhouse today, I had three brief conversations with people in the community whom I probably wouldn't even have thought about today. Multiply that by thousands of people, with multiple interactions every day. The laundry list of organizations up above is impressive, but people do business with people. Person by person, link by link, our physical proximity knits all of us into a community that's far stronger than any individual organization.

Many of you have seen me present Jan Youtie's work on "Building an Innovation Hub." I believe that building these linkages between disparate individuals, organizations, and communities will be a core responsibility of research universities in the 21st century. Many universities are exploring ways to build virtual innovation hubs, with varying degrees of success. With Tech Square, Georgia Tech invested in a physical bricks-and-mortar manifestation of an innovation hub. And it's working.

Tech Square offers the resources that startups and established companies need, including Georgia Tech students who will be our future innovators and leaders. We will continue to work with the state, the city of Atlanta, and others to attract business and industry to Georgia, to retain the companies that are already here, and to create the innovative new companies that will power the 21st century.

This is an incredibly cool place to work. Happy Birthday, Tech Square! I can't wait to see what you look like when you turn twenty!



PS: I've launched a Twitter feed that you should follow at @techsquaregt. Not quite sure what I'm going to do with it, so send me ideas


Dene Sheheane, Catherine Ross, Brian McGowan, and Stephen Fleming at the Tech Square 10th Anniversary Symposium, 17 October 2013

[thelakelander]

My investment group meetings are typically held at an office pretty close to Tech Square. Seems the key here is Georgia Tech and being in the heart of a metro with +5 million residents. Compared to that, DT Jax is Flint, MI. What's the model?  Am I missing something that would make this applicable to DT Jax?

[CityLife]

My investment group meetings are typically held at an office pretty close to Tech Square. Seems the key here is Georgia Tech and being in the heart of a metro with +5 million residents. Compared to that, DT Jax is Flint, MI. What's the model?  Am I missing something that would make this applicable to DT Jax?

He's saying we turn UNF into Georgia Tech, get them to open move their campus downtown, then open a tech center. Piece of cake.

[thelakelander]

There's a community college turned state college downtown that I agree we should take advantage of.  However, I don't see FSCJ's presence remotely applicable to GT/Tech Square situation unless we're just talking about doing things that support and feed the programs already established/desired at FSCJ.

[CityLife]

My investment group meetings are typically held at an office pretty close to Tech Square. Seems the key here is Georgia Tech and being in the heart of a metro with +5 million residents. Compared to that, DT Jax is Flint, MI. What's the model?  Am I missing something that would make this applicable to DT Jax?

He's saying we turn UNF into Georgia Tech, get them to open move their campus downtown, then open a tech center. Piece of cake.

Why does everyone ignore the fact that there is a seven block, giant state college already downtown?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_Tech

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florida_State_College_at_Jacksonville

One has an endowment of $1.6 billion, the other $32 million

[thelakelander]

FSCJ does have a master plan that will give people a good idea of what their intentions during the timeline of that plan may be.  I've posted it before.  I'll see if I can dig up the map.

[thelakelander]

FSCJ does have a master plan that will give people a good idea of what their intentions during the timeline of that plan may be.  I've posted it before.  I'll see if I can dig up the map.

It doesnt address the educational goals of the college.  Its really kind of amazing the lack of curiosity that the community has about its largest educational system--which is what I was referring to, rather than the present physical plans.

A decent master plan should address the educational goals.  UCF was a stakeholder in a nearby transportation project I worked on last year, and their's certainly did.  If they don't already have one (which I doubt), they'll need one. Anyway, all I have on file at the moment is the map from their facilities master plan.



They also have plans for an Institute for Food Safety building on campus.

According to RS&H's website, the FSCJ Institute for Food Safety will be a new three-story, steel frame, building will be situated on an existing 2.96-acre site on the downtown campus. The program includes two floors dedicated to the academic laboratories, the biotechnology program and a private commercial client which will be operating microbiology labs for food testing and analytical chemistry.

Does anyone know exactly where this building will be on FSCJ's campus?  Hopefully, its located along public street instead of the middle of a parking lot.

FSCJ eyes multibillion-dollar food-testing market

Florida State College at Jacksonville is biting into the multibillion-dollar food-testing market.
A year after the Institute for Food Safety opened at its downtown campus, the college has launched a campaign for private donations and gain state funding for a new three-story building.

The $14.4 million structure would contain bigger laboratories where the college’s corporate partner, Eurofins U.S., would test food for its clients while giving hands-on training to students.

http://jacksonville.com/news/metro/2011-10-20/story/fscj-eyes-multibillion-dollar-food-testing-market

All in all, it would be smart (assuming if it hasn't already happened) for the DIA and their CRA consultants to figure out how both entities can work together to meet whatever goals they may have.  At this point, I do consider FSCJ's downtown campus, student/employment base, and programs huge economic opportunities that most ignore.  Nevertheless, you're not getting Tech Square in DT Jax. However, we might want to start small with some student housing, coordination of local industry/workforce with college programs, enhancing multimodal transportation connectivity between DT, the campus, Springfield, etc.

[CityLife]

this is how Harvard started.

LOL Stephen. Lol

The year was 1636, a whole 140 years before the US was even a country.

[CityLife]

Agreed Lake. Those are the type of things that are realistic and attainable for FSCJ. Student housing, a culinary institute, art studios, etc. FSCJ is not and will never be a research university. It will never even remotely be in the same game as a Georgia Tech, let alone UF, FSU, UCF, and USF. It should focus on workforce development type programs. It can still be an asset to DT Jax, but has nowhere near the money or political clout to make anything big happen.

[CityLife]

So one just needs buildings to make a great college? You are very naïve to how higher education actually works.

Harvard is what it is because it has been where the elite in this country have gone since its inception. Which in turn means it is a very wealthy institution...due to significant donations and subsequent research dollars. It can now pay for the best professors and researchers in the country. Attract the best and brightest students. It has an endowment of $30 Billion dollars. FSCJ's is $32 million.

[CityLife]

Agreed Lake. Those are the type of things that are realistic and attainable for FSCJ. Student housing, a culinary institute, art studios, etc. FSCJ is not and will never be a research university. It will never even remotely be in the same game as a Georgia Tech, let alone UF, FSU, UCF, and USF. It should focus on workforce development type programs. It can still be an asset to DT Jax, but has nowhere near the money or political clout to make anything big happen.

lol.  thats a pretty bold vision statement, citylife.  When do you take office as the college president again?  Or was there some shake up on the board of directors that I havent been told about?

What are you even talking about? You might want to brush up on Florida's State University System before you throw out pie in the sky ideas about FSCJ turning into some great university or whatever you are suggesting in this thread.

[simms3]

My investment group meetings are typically held at an office pretty close to Tech Square. Seems the key here is Georgia Tech and being in the heart of a metro with +5 million residents. Compared to that, DT Jax is Flint, MI. What's the model?  Am I missing something that would make this applicable to DT Jax?

There is no difference here in pointing out what's been done with this particular institution in this particular city and what MetroJacksonville has already shared and examined with the MJ community that other institutions in other cities have done.

Richmond - talk about VCU is the most recent
Charlotte - J&W
Savannah - SCAD

the list goes on...

To address your second point, I don't see how Atlanta being a metro of 5+ million people has anything to do with Tech Square or how it turned out.

Thirdly, often there is discussion on this site about how to seed companies, create investment, "economy" of innovation, etc.  Orlando has been talked about a lot, as has Raleigh.  Both of those cities have concentrated their 21st century economies in select suburban areas.  Atlanta has too (suburban N Fulton and Gwinnett in particular), but Tech Square has become the de facto fundraising center for the SE and a startup incubator, because it is concentrated and has direct access to GT.  Concentration and access the key.  I don't see the same possibilities in Jax, BUT -

My last point is that it doesn't matter the institution or its goals, any institution in Jax with enough money and will can help turnaround downtown.  Could be FCCJ with its presence already downtown (I look at the Art Institute where I live and it has a major presence in one part of downtown, putting thousands of students on the sidewalks and in local businesses and occupying several buildings).  Could be the Baptist Church with all of its structures and control over downtown.  Could be something else.

Georgia Tech as an institution has simply created another MODEL for Jacksonville to follow if it cares to in turning around a blighted area, activating a section of a downtown area, and serving a community purpose that puts more focus on a city's central core, utilizing assets it has at its disposal.

[CityLife]

Agreed Lake. Those are the type of things that are realistic and attainable for FSCJ. Student housing, a culinary institute, art studios, etc. FSCJ is not and will never be a research university. It will never even remotely be in the same game as a Georgia Tech, let alone UF, FSU, UCF, and USF. It should focus on workforce development type programs. It can still be an asset to DT Jax, but has nowhere near the money or political clout to make anything big happen.

lol.  thats a pretty bold vision statement, citylife.  When do you take office as the college president again?  Or was there some shake up on the board of directors that I havent been told about?

What are you even talking about? You might want to brush up on Florida's State University System before you throw out pie in the sky ideas about FSCJ turning into some great university or whatever you are suggesting in this thread.

Actually, Im pretty acquainted with the history and possibilities of the community college.  It is whatever this community decides for it to be.  Its kind of bizarre to suggest otherwise, actually.

Harvard was a simple Divinity college once upon a time.

Actually, as a state school in Florida, it is whatever the state decides it will be. Our state currently has a tiered system of higher education, where the universities are a part of the "State University System" and the former community colleges are part of the "Florida College System".

The universities in the State University System are heavily geared towards research, graduate programs, and higher levels of undergraduate education. The Florida College System schools provide some bachelor degrees, but are much more focused on vocational and workforce training.

Again, do you not understand how Harvard and countless other schools got to where they are? Like Lake, Simms, and myself have pointed out, FSCJ will never be a research type of school, heck it doesn't even offer masters degrees. It can however help out DT significantly...but through more realistic and attainable types of programs. Arts, culinary programs, graphic design, media productions, etc.

[tufsu1]

there would need to be some dramatic changes at the state government level.  FSCJ  is part of the state college system. UNF is one of 11 State universities.  only  FSU and UF are considered premium universities that would compete with Georgia Tech