Entrepreneurs will be able to get the knowledge they need to develop and grow their businesses through Accelerate Augusta, a partnership between Augusta Technical College and the Downtown Development Authority of Augusta.
On Tuesday, officials with Augusta Tech, the Downtown Development Authority and City of Augusta turned ceremonial dirt outside the building designed by famed architect I.M. Pei.
According to Augusta Tech president Jermaine Whirl, the center should be ready in spring 2025 to provide business owners with an array of classes designed to help those at various stages in their business.
“It will offer a cafeteria style approach” allowing businesses to choose classes to cater to their needs, he said.
Some established business owners may need a couple of hours with an HR professional or attorney to ask business-related questions. Others may only have an idea and need weeks or months of courses to help them get that idea off the ground.
And others may have an established business and want to expand but need capital. Connecting them with an “angel investor” or venture capitalist may be what those entrepreneurs need.
There will be “lunch and learn” type of events, he said. And he’d love to bring in a well-known entrepreneur to inspire leaders even more.
Tuesday’s event marks the beginning of construction for Accelerate Augusta, which is the region’s newest small business incubator and microenterprise center, a transformative project aimed at boosting local economic growth and innovation, according to a news release.
The initiative was announced in December 2023 and made possible through the allocation of $2.3 million in congressional funding.
Whirl said the I.M. Pei Building is in good structural condition. One of the biggest needs was the installation of an elevator.
I.M. Pei was a Chinese American architect who designed buildings such as the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, and the Grand Louvre and the Louvre Pyramid in Paris. He died at the age of 102 in 2019.
Whirl called the building the “perfect space” for business innovators to create.
Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for more than 35 years and is a Georgia Press Association award winner. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.
I’m happy to see this structure is being used for such a forward thinking venture. Thank you for drawing attention to the building being designed by I.M. Pei. Augusta is fortunate to have several of his structures. It is unfortunate that they don’t appreciate them and they are going away (James Brown Arena, the vandalism of the Lamar penthouse, the center parking wells on Broad St.). Looking forward to seeing the old Chamber of Commerce building briught back to its full potential.