City Council, Administration Talk Options For Mentor Technology Greenhouse

The Mentor Technology Greenhouse, a public-private business accelerator program to help grow start-up companies, has struggled to find interested businesses since its inception in August 2010.

To date, .

But that doesn't mean the incubator is dead.

City Manager Kenneth Filipiak talked with City Council about some options MTG has during a work session Tuesday at . Filipiak began by noting what most successful business incubators have in common.

He noted they usually have strong management, dedicated space and staff "and they have significant budgets, frankly."

The city has not spent much money on MTG. It invested $10,000 to renovate the accelerator’s office suites at at 7200 Center Street (Polo Building.)

MTG was formed as a public-private economic development program by the city of Mentor, CADVenture Inc., Lake Erie College and Mentor Economic Assistance Corporation. The city hoped to draw fledgling manufacturers to the incubator because of CADVenture's technical design expertise.

However, that has not happened yet.

Filipiak said the city has good partners but it might not have invested enough resources to compete with better heeled incubators in Lorain County and Shaker Heights.

"What we didn't have is that on-site management and training," he said. "We didn't have access to capital, which is a big, big motivator to those who would participate in these incubators."

Filipiak also noted that the country's recent economic woes also hamstrung MTG.

"At the time it was created, it looked like a good idea," Councilwoman Janet Dowling agreed. "The economy didn't cooperate."

The city manager suggested reaching out to regional or county partners to create a stronger business incubator.

"I like the idea of pursuing conversations with the county and other area resources," Filipiak said. "I don't know where that will lead."

He added that a better funded incubator would be a "big investment" for Mentor to take on alone. He said that, if Mentor could not find more partners, the city might be better served spending its money on other economic development programs besides an incubator.

Filipiak noted that, while the MTG has struggled to attract interest, the city still does a good job of attracting and growing businesses through other mean.