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http://thenewsdispatch.com/articles/2011/0...59920144569.txt

Entrepreneur Center to close next month



Bob Schaefer, volunteer executive director of The Entrepreneur Center of Michigan City, sits in his office at the center, 422 Franklin St. Photo by Alicia Ebaugh
By Alicia Ebaugh
Staff Writer
Published: Tuesday, February 22, 2011 5:09 PM CST
MICHIGAN CITY — The Entrepreneur Center of Michigan City will close its doors at the end of March, yet its organizers hope to continue nurturing startups by expanding training and learning opportunities.

“It will simply be a situation where we won’t be a landlord in that space anymore,” said Ann Dahm, president of the Michigan City Area Chamber of Commerce, which has operated the center at 422 Franklin St. since 2006.

“It has served a useful purpose, (but) it is also important to adapt to changing conditions. Now, we are re-evaluating how best to meet the needs of small businesses.”

The Entrepreneur Center was designed to provide small business support services and affordable office space. Since it opened, the center has housed 35 small businesses that employed a total of 75 people. In addition, it provided training classes to almost 1,000 participants.

The Northern Indiana Education Foundation allowed the center to use the space for free for the past five years, Dahm said, and other support came from the city, Michigan City Urban Enterprise Association, Michigan City Economic Development Corp., La Porte County Economic Alliance and the La Porte County commissioners and council. The arrangement allowed new businesses to rent office space starting at $135 a month and existing businesses starting at $160 a month.

The Entrepreneur Center’s existence was important because finances are such a big part of starting a business and keeping it alive, said Bob Schaefer, the center’s volunteer executive director. Schaefer ran his consulting company, Community Dynamics, out of an office there in exchange for his services.

“Having a place where rent is lower than normal made a difference in people being able to operate,” he said. “Now, people might have to work with landlords to see if something can be worked out. Several of our tenants have already found new locations.”

Melissa Peiffer, a counselor for Christian-based Family Concern Counseling in Valparaiso, opened a satellite office in The Entrepreneur Center six months ago to provide her services locally. Since all the businesses there have known about the closure since the beginning of the month, she said it was easy for her to find another office downtown. She will move two blocks to 619 Franklin St., while Schaefer is moving his office back into his home.

“Now, when I answer the phone, people will hear my dogs barking,” he joked.

The Entrepreneur Center has helped businesses move out and find new spaces to expand during its existence, Schaefer said, including Marathon Insurance, now at 218 W. Fourth St., and local vacation rental company Cottage Connections, now at 113 York St.

Dahm said all businesses that began or relocated to the center did so with the understanding they would move on at some point.

“In a way, what is happening is a model for the center itself,” she said. “It was intended to be an incubator for businesses that would eventually hatch and grow on their own.”

Dahm said she feels the chamber can better serve its members in ways other than continuing to operate The Entrepreneur Center.

“Sometimes, once you try things, you discover better ways to do it,” she explained.

Schaefer said he is extremely proud of what The Entrepreneur Center has accomplished and has mixed emotions about seeing it go.

“It’s a success story in itself that folks were provided with that kind of atmosphere to get their businesses up and running. It served its purpose very well,” he said. “We really were the only community who had an incubator like this in northwest Indiana. We were visited by numerous other communities to see how we did it, but others that have been developed are more focused on high-tech. Ours was very grassroots-based.”

Heather Melnyk, manager of The Entrepreneur Center, will continue supporting small businesses through the chamber’s programs.

Free for chamber members starting March 29 will be morning “eye opener meetings,” designed to help businesses find resources available to them for instituting “environmentally green” practices. Business classes will continue to be held at The Entrepreneur Center through March.

Businesses now at The Entrepreneur Center

Backflow Water Solutions.

C. Streicher Homes.

Community Dynamics.

David Cuerdon Photography.

Family Concern Counseling.

Figment Creative Group.

Horizon Enterprises.

KSN Technologies.

Lightning Communication Systems.

Small Business Development Center.

Urban Enterprise Association.

Visiting Angels of Michiana.