Danbury Among Finalists for Innovation Grant

DANBURY, CT — The city is one step closer to a grant that it hopes will spawn innovation in downtown Danbury. City Hall announced Thursday that Innovation Places, a CTNext-run program, has announced Danbury as one of the seven finalists in their grant application process.

Several city groups hope to utilize the grant, which the city says would create a hub for innovative "thinkers to work and grow, and begin a path to starting their own businesses." Winning cities and communities will receive $30 million over five years to support innovation.

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“This will be an incredible opportunity for the City of Danbury,” said Mayor Mark Boughton in a statement. “As a city we are blessed with great minds and big ideas. Receiving this grant will showcase our talent, put these ideas in motion, and attract even more of this type of development to Danbury and our downtown.”

Among those groups are the City of Danbury, CityCenter Danbury, Western Connecticut State University, Cultural Alliance of Western CT, Danbury Hackerspace, Western CT Health Network, Danbury Library, Small Business Development Center, and several entrepreneurs.

The city hopes to create a collective impact infrastructure, sustainable fashion retail incubator, street art projects, startup & business services with development series, and develop a market plan for promoting Downtown Danbury as an Innovation Place.

Within the next two weeks, CTNext will conduct site visits to Danbury and the other finalists and ultimately decide the grant's winners.

Image via Joe Lipovich, Patch Staff