City Universities Are Part of Bloomberg's Green Jobs Vision
- Scott Vincent for The Village Voice January 12th, 2010
- Source: http://www.villagevoice.com/2010-01-12/news/city-universities-are-part-of-bloomberg-s-green-jobs-vision/1
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In his third-term inaugural speech, Bloomberg pledged to "find innovative ways to create jobs in the industries of the future," including, specifically, green technology.
The mayor campaigned on a slate of "30 initiatives to grow New York City's Green Economy," and local universities are a prominent part of that plan.
...there's New York University–Polytechnic's green jobs incubator. With a $1.5 million NYSERDA grant, NYU-Poly expanded its existing incubator for small-business entrepreneurs to include a renewable energy-focused incubator called NYC ACRE (Accelerator for a Clean and Renewable Economy).
A three-year agreement was hammered out, in which NYU-Poly would cover the utility, tax, and upkeep costs on the 12th floor of 160 Varick Street in exchange for free rent from owner Trinity Real Estate. NYU-Poly charges its incubator tenants cheap rent; AeroCity, for example, pays $250 a month per cubicle, "a bill that's hard to beat," Tencer says. The seven NYC ACRE tenants—including an eco-friendly cleaning-products company, a firm that looks to convert excess pressure from water mains into electric power, and a company involved in developing biodegradable plastics—are also able to avail themselves of the resources of universities involved in the program (including the Pratt Institute, NYU, Columbia, and NYU-Poly), whether it's professorial advice or a supply of student interns.
Read the full article at VillageVoice.com
