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Innovate ABQ, already more than one year in the making, might take a bigger step forward by the end of this week.
UNM’s Board of Regents will hold a meeting from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Friday in Scholes Hall’s Roberts Room. The board will conduct an “Innovate ABQ Examination,” which will include looking at the economics of the project, purchasing contracts, the legal structure and private participation, according to a notice from UNM.
But Lisa Kuuttila, president and CEO of UNM’s Science and Technology Corporation, said that while Innovate ABQ will be the main focus of the meeting, the actual vote on the project may not take place that day.
“There is a regents meeting next Tuesday, too,” she said. “So it could be that the actual vote takes place next Tuesday. But this is a meeting where a lot of the evaluation will take place.”
According to the website of UNM’s Science and Technology Corporation, Innovate ABQ is a multi-dimensional integrated community that would serve as a business incubator and educational space for Albuquerque. It is a collaborative initiative between UNM, STC, federal and local governments and the business community, according to the site.
The meeting will evaluate every aspect of Innovate ABQ, Kuuttila said.
“They’re looking at everything,” she said. “They’re looking at the budget. They’re looking at the plan. They’re looking at the potential legal structure. They’re looking at the whole project.”
According to the Albuquerque Journal, University administrators want to invest $13 million in the project.
The project has already attracted funding, including a $3 million donation from the New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union and a $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration.
In an email sent to the Daily Lobo, Wendy Antonio, associate vice president for special projects of the UNM Foundation, said her organization helped gather some of the funding.
“We were able to assist Dr. Frank with the recent successful request to New Mexico Educators Federal Credit Union, and … they generously provided a founding gift for Innovate ABQ of $3 million,” she said.
Kuuttila said she feels positive about the initiative. She said innovative centers are scattered across the city, and Innovate ABQ would provide a central area for innovation.
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“It’s not my decision to make, so I don’t want to speak for the regents, of course,” she said. “But I feel really confident about the project. I think it’s a very good investment in the future because we definitely need to find ways to catalyze more of our innovative efforts.”
Innovate ABQ would also create opportunities for students, Kuuttila said.
“It would provide a place where students can interact with companies more easily,” she said, “and have opportunities for internships and more of a focus on entrepreneurial training programs, which will be part of the Innovate ABQ program long term as we get underway with an innovation academy and an entrepreneurial dorm.”
Kuuttila said there has been a wide variety of organizations and faculty across the University who helped work on the project, such as the Lobo Development Corporation, the UNM Foundation and an economic development council.
In an email statement, Betsy Till, senior director of corporate and foundation relations at the UNM Foundation, said her organization is hopeful that the initiative will be able to help boost the Albuquerque economy.
“Our university and community partners are excited about Innovate ABQ’s potential to spark economic growth and new employment in our community,” she said.
