Centre County commissioner proposes economic startup grants

Board of Commissioners Vice Chairman Mark Higgins ran in November’s election on a platform to increase the economic diversity of Centre County.

On Tuesday, he proposed adding $75,000 in economic development grants to the county budget, citing several projects that can be funded this year and “will make a big difference for Centre County” in the long run. The grants will focus on the Moshannon Valley and greater Bellefonte area.

Higgins first asked the board to consider a $5,000 grant to the Moshannon Valley Economic Development Partnership to market development sites both locally and regionally. He cited the new Keystone Opportunity Expansion Zone situated at the former site of the Philipsburg Area Hospital.

A Keystone Opportunity Zone eliminates “specific state and local taxes within specific underdeveloped and underutilized areas,” according to the state Department of Community and Economic Development.

The one-time $5,000 grant would be in addition to the $5,000 in level funding given to the partnership in past years, Higgins said. The one-time grant would help market the zone, bringing employers to that side of the county.

The second grant Higgins proposed continued to focus on the Philipsburg area and the potential for economic incubators in the county. By allotting another $5,000 grant, a scholarship could be established aimed at Philipsburg businesses.

The incubator would focus on a suite of offices in downtown Philipsburg provided by Dixoncom, he said. The facility can provide desks, utilities, Internet, reception services and conference space for a business that’s grown to the point that a home office is too small, but a suite of offices is not affordable.

Rent for the office would be subsidized by the loan, he said. Higgins also said he was in contact with Moshannon Valley partnership Executive Director Stan LaFuria discussing mentoring local startups and business expansions in the area.

In order to receive funding, a business would have to meet as-yet-unspecified criteria, Higgins said. He said he hoped the grant would be ongoing and be able to help a new business every year or two.

The remaining two grants would focus on the Bellefonte area, he said. First, he proposed a one-time $5,000 grant for new historic signage promoting historical appreciation and tourism in the borough.

“Bellefonte has an amazing amount of history, especially for a borough of its size,” he said. “We have a number of parts of history that are greatly represented.”

Higgins noted Bellefonte’s role in the Underground Railroad, and how many would find that a draw. New signage could be played up by the visitor’s bureau and could bring a whole new stream of tourists to the borough.

He mentioned his desire to see at least three signs go up, and maybe as many as a dozen. Additional funding for signage could come from the visitor’s bureau and other stakeholders as well as donations.

Finally, as the largest grant of the day, Higgins proposed $60,000 to develop a graduate incubator in Bellefonte.

“These would be for businesses that have outgrown the incubators in the State College area and have, say, a dozen employees,” he said. “At that point, they’re not quite large enough to make it on their own.”

Space in Bellefonte would be more affordable than State College, he said, and the $60,000 would work toward establishing an incubator that would benefit the greater Bellefonte area.

Funds would be used for a variety of purposes, he said — consultants, remodeling, furniture and local match dollars needed to get state and federal grants. Approval of the grant could potentially allow for a physical facility before the end of 2016.

The $60,000 figure was developed after speaking with several groups around the state that have incubators running in towns with similar populations as Bellefonte, he said. A board would need to be put together to decide what is allocated to whom, and Higgins said he’s envisioned a board of at least 12 from across the county in various walks of life.

This would be a major initiative, he said, meaning the grant would be ongoing possibly until 2018. By that time, he said, he hoped between state and federal grants, businesses occupying spaces and stakeholders underwriting costs, the county could pull back and focus on a different area.

Acting County Administrator Denise Elbell added the $75,000 under the county’s contingency funds, which she said totaled about $500,000. The grants would be added to next week’s board agenda for further discussion and action.

This story was originally published January 19, 2016 at 5:38 PM with the headline "Centre County commissioner proposes economic startup grants."