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YBI gets $3M from US, moves closer to buying original Vindy building
YOUNGSTOWN
The Youngstown Business Incubator has moved a step closer to expanding its campus in downtown Youngstown.
YBI, which owns four buildings, received $3 million from the U.S. Economic Development Administration today to renovate the old Vindicator newspaper office building to expand its focus on additive manufacturing and business-to-business software.
The cost of the project to renovate the building at Vindicator Square and West Boardman Street is $5 million. The organization received $1.5 million from the Ohio Capital Appropriations budget and $500,000 from the City of Youngstown for renovations.
The space will be used for start-up space for additive manufacturing companies and graduate space for start-up firms that have entered the market.
“Right now, YBI’s graduate space on our campus is fully occupied. This is an investment that we have to make if we want to retain – and attract – the best and brightest to downtown Youngstown,” Jim Cossler, CEO of YBI, said in a statement.
“We sincerely appreciate the assistance of the EDA staff in turning the application around so quickly, as well as the financial support from the State of Ohio and the City of Youngstown,” said Barb Ewing, chief operating officer of YBI. “We also need to thank the Youngstown Area Community Improvement Corporation and Eastgate Regional Council of Governments for their help with the application.”
Ewing said the $3 million was the “last piece of funding” for the renovations of the older Vindicator office building.
“Without this piece of funding we couldn’t have moved forward,” she said.
Furthermore, YBI is seeking funding for the actual purchase of the building and has applied for the funds from a community development finance institution based in Cleveland, Ewing said.
They expect to have the funding by November, she added.
The news has caught the attention of Ohio’s local and national leaders, after last week when YBI was ranked No. 1 among university associated business incubators in the world by University Business Incubator Index, based in Stockholm, Sweden.
“The Youngstown Business Incubator provides essential tools to encourage the growth of Mahoning Valley businesses,” U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown said in a statement. “I’ve been impressed with the work being done there every time I have visited, and this federal investment will help YBI do even more.”
“I am thrilled that the Youngstown Business Incubator will receive this money to expand its campus,” Youngstown Mayor John McNally said in a statement. “The city is proud to be a partner in helping the YBI continue its growth in downtown Youngstown.”
“On an almost daily basis we see the talent and hard work of the Youngstown Business Incubator paying off in big ways for our community,” said U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan of Howland, D-13th, in a statement.
The Vindicator owns a newer building at Vindicator Square and West Front Street. It houses its newsroom, printing press and loading docks.