Press release:
divineinterventures.com
Mayor Daley, divine interVentures Unveil Plans for City's First Incubator Campus for Internet Businesses
Industry leaders join Mayor to announce new initiatives to position Chicago as high-tech hub in 21st century
CHICAGO ? December 9, 1999 ? Mayor Richard M. Daley today announced three initiatives that will help Chicago enhance its "unmatched potential" as a technology economy leader in the next century.
The initiatives are: a new state-of-the-art incubator campus for Internet businesses proposed by the Chicago-based divine interVentures, inc; the city's first strategic technology action plan, developed by the Mayor's Council of Technology Advisors; and the Big Shoulders InterTech Fund, one of the largest Chicago-based early-stage seed capital funds.
"Chicago has unmatched potential to become a powerhouse in the technology economy of the next century, but we need to be positioned to capitalize on our advantages over other metropolitan areas," Mayor Daley said.
"With the leadership represented on my Council of Technology Advisors, and developments such as divine's incubator campus, we will make Chicago a world leader in high technology," the Mayor said.
Mayor Daley made the announcement at the Goose Island site of the proposed incubator campus. He was joined by key technology business leaders, educators and entrepreneurs from throughout the Chicago area, including divine interVentures Chairman & CEO, Andrew "Flip" Filipowski.
divine is proposing to develop Habitat Goose Island, a $62.9 million, state-of-the-art facility, on a 7.2 acre parcel at the northern end of the Goose Island Industrial Park. divine's partner on the construction of the project will be Colliers, Bennett & Kahnweiler Inc. The City will commit up to $14 million in Tax Increment Financing for eligible expenses. The project is expected to initially create and retain at least 600 high-tech jobs.
divine is an Internet holding company that provides entrepreneurs and corporate spin-offs with strategic guidance, operational support and business services to create dynamic business-to-business Internet commerce leaders.
As the future home of divine and its partner companies, Habitat Goose Island is designed to provide a nurturing environment that helps startup Internet businesses grow rapidly. The incubator campus will feature state-of-the-art information technology and telecommunications, video conferencing services, food services, daycare, health club and a 500-car parking garage.
"Through our efforts with the City, Habitat Goose Island will not only be a model technology development for Chicago, but a model for the nation," said Filipowski. "By providing state-of-the-art facilities, operational support and a highly collaborative environment, the campus will enable unprecedented growth of Internet businesses. Habitat Goose Island will forever change the way that communities foster economic growth in the digital world. It will help establish Chicago as the leader in Internet business-to-business commerce and the tech mecca of the 21st Century."
Whiplash, Inc. is among the first Internet startup companies to launch its business in Chicago and will be housed in Habitat Goose Island. Whiplash is creating the first digital marketplace and community for the leisure travel industry. "As with many Midwest Internet startups, we had great opportunities in Silicon Valley," said Rich Earley, CEO of Whiplash. "We remained in Chicago to align with divine, which is enabling us to take advantage of their extensive resources and expertise. As part of their incubator, we have immediate access to a unique and strong service-oriented infrastructure model to support our aggressive startup needs and shorten our time to market. divine's local support and global influence will be critical as we grow."
Mayor Daley and his technology council also unveiled the "Chicago Technology Action Plan: Positioning the City for Leadership in the Digital Economy." This is the City's first strategic technology plan, which recommends short-term and long-term initiatives on key areas. They include:
----Stimulating the growth of technology startup firms by developing the tools and business climate necessary for them to be engines of new economic growth
----Developing a digital infrastructure that stimulates growth in the technology industry
----Educating a highly skilled workforce, which is vital to supporting our fast-growing technology job sector and enhancing opportunities for all in the digital economy
----Increasing awareness of, and exposure and access to, technology for all Chicagoans
"This technology action plan is more than just a 'plan' -- it is the foundation from which our industry can build in order to capture and maintain our leadership throughout the world for generations to come," said Stephen Mitchell, co-chair for Mayor Daley's Council of Technology Advisors.
The action plan recommends that a privately managed venture investment fund be created specifically to focus on making seed-stage investments in promising companies.
Mayor Daley and his technology council unveiled plans for the Big Shoulders InterTech Fund, which will be a privately managed venture investment fund for technology companies. A collaborative effort among the City of Chicago, Mesirow Financial and divine, the Big Shoulders fund will represent a unique public-private partnership. The fund, which will be managed by divine, will invest in startup and early-stage technology companies located primarily in Illinois or those committed to relocating their operations to Illinois. Individual investments from the fund are expected to range from $250,000 to $2 million.
The fund is one of the most unusual public-private partnerships in the history of providing capital to startup firms and has generated great interest from the private sector. It will substantially advance the effort to promote the formation, growth and retention of technology companies in Chicago and throughout Illinois.
Mayor Daley also thanked Northwestern University's Kellogg Graduate School of Management for creating a new Technology and Electronic Commerce management program. This curriculum is expected to attract world-class talent to Chicago and expose the city's leading academic institutions to technology leaders from across the nation.
Since February, when Mayor Daley launched Chicago's Technology Development Initiative, the City has announced several developments to help Chicago become the high-tech hub of the 21st Century:
In the Loop, the landmark Lytton Building at 247 S. State St. will be renovated for information technology businesses and will become known as the Chicago Information Technology Exchange.
Whittman-Hart, Inc., a nationally known information technology consulting firm, will build a new headquarters and training facility in Chicago's West Loop.
And near McCormick Place, the historic R.R. Donnelley Lakeside Press building is being converted into the new Lakeside Technology Center. At 1 million square feet, it will be the nation's largest "carrier hotel" to house telecommunications equipment and Internet servers. |
