Posted October 14, 200420 yr Daytonians, what's the latest on this project? http://www.citywidedev.com/techtown.php
October 14, 200420 yr Interesting... I had heard of "Tech Town" but I didn't realize it referred to a specific project. I thought it was just some grand idea of making Dayton an overall high-tech city. Learn something new every day, I guess. As for relevant information, I obviously have none.
October 14, 200420 yr I learned of Tool Town years ago but now I suppose they changed it to TechTown. Hell, I have no clue now. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
October 14, 200420 yr Yes, it originally was proposed as Tool Town, but when the tool and die industry nose-dived, they changed the plan to Tech Town. I think I remember reading recently that they have received some funding to start cleanup at one of the sites. If I have time, I'll try to dig up an article about it.
October 14, 200420 yr ^ Dang, beat me to it. Yea, Dayton was a big tool and die industry base. About 3 years ago, they abandoned the idea of Tool Town and went with Tech Town to try and establish Dayton as a technology leader for the new millennia. I think this is the latest article on the deveopment... August 19, 2004 City hires firm to prepare site for Tech Town The Dayton City Commission has tapped Weston Solutions Inc. to begin demolition for Tech Town. No link for the article
October 14, 200420 yr I was just getting ready to post that article, but you beat me to it. Here are a couple other articles that talk about the project: http://www.netwmd.com/articles/article314.html http://www.daytoncitypaper.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=1222&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0
November 15, 200420 yr Missed this by a couple of weeks, but I haven't seen it posted anywhere else. Looks like the project is gaining momentum. City, County to Accept Check for Tech Town Development Congressman Turner to Present Check Wednesday Release Date: Tuesday, October 26, 2004 Contact: City of Dayton, 333-3616; Montgomery County, 224-3831 Officials from the City of Dayton and Montgomery County will be accepting a $2.5 million check presented by U.S. Congressman Mike Turner to be used for redevelopment of the Tech Town site in downtown Dayton. Congressman Turner will present the check on Wednesday, October 27, 2004 at 1:00 p.m. on the grounds of the proposed Tech Town Campus near the intersection of Taylor Street & Monument Avenue (across the street from The Entrepreneurs Center, 714 E. Monument Ave.). The funds, provided by the Army Corps of Engineers, will be used for the design and construction of roadway, sewer and water infrastructure, including water supply lines, sewer lines, storm water control systems, surface water protection systems, and related underground utilities for Tech Town. Read More...
November 15, 200420 yr Why did they abandon the idea of working with their tool & die industry? It seems this is a type of technology or industry where Dayton has been historically strong, and I recall Sinclair had a pretty good training program for tool & die makers. In any case it looks like what this is about is Dayton redevelops a brownfield site into an in-town industrial or office site, which at least brings abandoned real estate back into the market.
November 15, 200420 yr ^ The tool & die in Dayton is a slowley declining with the pullout and closing of many manufacturing plants in and around the area. Dayton abandoned the idea and went with a technical approach to boost the economy and help attract technical firms to the region.
November 15, 200420 yr ^ ..thats too bad, as these tool & die jobs are skilled manufacturing that pay pretty good wages. I guess that is the problem. Good wages--->poor competitive position in the global economy...and Daytons industry is playing in the global economy, not just w. local customer firms. Though I think redevelopement of abandonded industrial sites is a good idea (something Dayton needs to do more of), I am somewhat skeptical of fluffing it with this "Tech Town" concept (tho I can see this as a marketing strategy).
April 4, 200520 yr Any news on this? That CityWide website lacks any significant information of any kind.
April 5, 200520 yr A week or so I ago, I heard that the city is still committed to the project and moving forward with it, despite the state of the city budget. But as far as any real news about it, I haven’t heard anything.
April 20, 200520 yr 'Tech Town' vision revealed By Jim Bebbington Dayton Daily News DAYTON | The city is preparing to move from the industrial-era to the high-tech era. Dayton this week is unveiling its proposed vision for a 30-acre industrial site east of downtown called "Tech Town." The campus would include 500,000 square feet of office space in environmentally friendly buildings, parking for 1,500 employees and tree-lined streets. The high-tech cluster would be built around a small park along the Mad River. The development would be a stark change from the empty industrial complex there now, and it won't come cheap. The city has estimated it will cost $23.5 million just to clear the land, begin reclamation of the one building that will not be razed, and put in utilities and roads. The city is marketing the site as a perfect locale for contractors doing work at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. It will also try to entice companies that got their start at the Entrepreneur's Center, a business incubator on Monument Avenue, to move across the street and join the site. Read More...
April 20, 200520 yr Also, here is a video of a presentation about the project at one of the Dayton City Commission Meetings. Sounds like they had a lot of good things to say...some small surface lots but mostly parking garages, committed to an urban design opposed to a suburban office park type design, etc. (although IMHO it's difficult to see some of this on the rendering) http://rrcs-24-123-76-219.central.biz.rr.com/~cdtn/html/Presentation1High.html
April 20, 200520 yr I see they are going to save that one big old Frigidaire building. Thats good! I wonder if Dayton will succeed, once again, in reinventing itself economically. Thats really what this is about...economic re-invention and repositioning.
April 20, 200520 yr Also, the concept is appealing...live in the lofts in Webster Station, work in Tech Town...
April 28, 200520 yr From the 4/27/05 Dayton Business Journal: City approves Tech Town demolition The Dayton City Commission has agreed to the initial demolition contract to begin clearing way for Tech Town. At its Wednesday meeting, the commission voted to accept a nearly $976,000 contract with Dayton-based Charles F. Jergens Construction for demolition services for the redevelopment project. The city had planned an event to kick off the demolition Wednesday afternoon, but it had to be canceled because of a scheduling conflict. Read More...
May 10, 200520 yr Demolition is underway! From the 5/9/05 Dayton Business Journal: Demolition under way at Tech Town site John Wilfong DBJ Staff Reporter Dayton City Commissioner Matt Joseph asked the small crowd gathered at the future site of Tech Town to remember the dilapidated, decaying buildings there now. And moments before a back hoe ripped into the side of a building sending a shower of old brick cascading to the ground, Joseph said that in a few years, without that lasting memory, it's going to be hard to recognize the former General Motors plant downtown. "You're going to come back here in a few years and be amazed," he said. Read More...
May 12, 200520 yr Historic rehab under way By Benjamin Kline Dayton Daily News DAYTON | A leading preservation architect and the developer of a downtown loft housing project are partners in a commercial-residential venture that would transform two empty old buildings into a spectacular commercial-residential site named "the Merc." Architect Jeffrey Wray, best known for the Old Court House restoration, and developer Matt Stoermer of the Cooper Lofts have acquired and are clearing out the Lotz Paper Co. building at 607 E. Third St. and the abandoned Dayton Power and Light Co. steam plant east of it. The DP&L building was built in 1907 with additions in 1917 and 1948. It served as a backup for the utility's downtown steam-heating system.
May 12, 200520 yr After what happened to the old Longworth plant, I thought for sure this E. Third plant was a goner too, but it looks not.
May 16, 200520 yr Same here. I went by there this week, saw the equipment and dumpsters out front and thought "no, dammit!" What a pleasant suprise. I'm particularly intrigued by the decision to preserve the industrial fixtures inside.
May 16, 200520 yr I went by this on Saturday after the Dragon's game. Ambitious . . . Environmental issues have to be a concern but good for them for taking on the project.
June 7, 200520 yr The whole TechTown plan document (WARNING: 19.44 MB PDF doc): http://www.cityofdayton.org/download/HOK%20FINAL%204-12-05.pdf The first pic can be found on page 16. The second one can be found on page 18. Also, see especially "zero lot line". Thumbs-up.
August 13, 200519 yr An update from the 8/10/05 Dayton Business Journal: City holds hearing on Tech Town Suzelle Tempero DBJ Staff Reporter The city of Dayton's application for $3 million from the Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund to redevelop the former GM Harrison Delphi site into a business park took another step forward Tuesday night. The park, called Tech Town, is a key element of Dayton's 20/20 Plan and will result in the redevelopment of more than 30 acres along the Mad River downtown into a high-tech business and research park. The area had been used for industrial purposes since 1919. The city held a public hearing on its application, which has been on file at the library for 45 days. Now the application will be submitted to a Montgomery County committee that will evaluate it before sending it to the state. At the state level, the Tech Town project will compete against other projects from across Ohio, including another local brownfield redevelopment project at the University of Dayton. "That's the good and bad part of this project and the (fund)," said Gwen Eberly, development services manager for the city. "It really attracts a lot of high-quality development projects throughout the state. It's a very healthy competition." Read More...
October 24, 200519 yr From the 10/23/05 Dayton Daily News: Green is good at TechTown Building: GM's industrial downtown site to be eco-friendly By Jaclyn Giovis Dayton Daily News DAYTON | The city of Dayton is getting ready to paint the town green. TechTown — the 30-acre General Motors industrial site that city officials are transforming into a downtown campus for emerging technology companies will have green buildings. But you won't notice the color as you drive by the complex. Green building refers to eco-friendly, sustainable development. It involves design and construction standards that aim to lessen impacts to the environment and prolong a building's lifespan. Read More...
November 15, 200519 yr From the 11/14/05 Dayton Business Journal: Tech Town should see its first tenant soon John Wilfong DBJ Staff Reporter Tech Town has lined up its first tenant as Dayton officials look to start the ambitious project's next phase of development. The $7.2 million second phase of the high-tech park includes demolishing more of the dilapidated buildings of the former General Motors Harrison Radiator facility, renovating the interior of others and constructing a new 40,000-square-foot office building. West Chester, Pa.-based Weston Solutions Inc., which has been overseeing the environmental cleanup of the site from its Miamisburg office, will move about 30 workers to the new building by spring 2007. City officials said the building, to go up in the empty parking lot across Monument Avenue from the Entrepreneur's Center, will be able to accommodate about 100 jobs. Read More...
November 25, 200519 yr From the 11/21/05 Dayton Business Journal: Tech Town, UD land federal funds The U.S. House of Representatives OK'd $750,000 in transportation funding for Tech Town Monday, bringing the total of federal funding for the project to $4.25 million. U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville, announced the money was included in the House's Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, Judiciary and District of Columbia Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2006. The money is intended to help develop and build the Tech Town Transportation Center that will accommodate regular vehicle parking, as well as potentially serving as a hub for the Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority. The center is would be used by employees in Tech Town, as well as people visiting RiverScape, according to Turner's news release. Read More...
December 13, 200519 yr Update: Montgomery County approved $500,000 in ED/GE (Economic Development/Government Equity) grant money to aid in the cleanup. Every little bit helps.
February 2, 200619 yr From the 1/30/06 Dayton Business Journal: Demolition to begin for Tech Town Yvonne Teems DBJ Staff Reporter Phase two of the Tech Town project moves ahead as city officials Wednesday voted to sign a contract with a Dayton company to demolish more buildings on the site. Jergens-Bales Contractors Inc. will get $924,865 to remove the footers and foundations of the additional buildings. The project should be finished within 40 working days, said Norm Essman, city economic development director, at the commission meeting. The demolition project is part of Tech Town's $7.2 million second phase, which will demolish more dilapidated buildings of the former General Motors Harrison Radiator facility, renovate the interior of others and construct a new 40,000-square-foot office building. Read More...
February 23, 200619 yr wahoo!!! "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
February 23, 200619 yr Whats neat about the upper photo is that it shows how much housing was in the Webster Station area ..looks lke the pix is maybe from the 1930s?
July 21, 200618 yr From the 7/21/06 DDN: Three business interested in Tech Town Companies may move into Dayton's developing high-tech park; city looks at Wright-Pat for other tenants. By Joanne Huist Smith Staff Writer DAYTON — Three businesses say they're interested in moving into Tech Town, Dayton's developing high-tech park, and the city has its eye on Wright-Patterson Air Force Base as a source of other possible tenants. The former Harrison Radiator site on East Monument Avenue is being developed at the perfect time to provide space for the base's growth as part of the defense department's base realignment plans, said Rashad Young, Dayton interim city manager. "That's why it is so important that we do it right," he said. Read More...
July 29, 200618 yr From the 7/29/06 DDN: Officials see green future for ex-brownfields Voinovich tours Dayton's Tech Town, on its way to becoming home to companies, new jobs. By Nakeisha Rowe Staff Writer DAYTON | U.S. Sen. George Voinovich R-Ohio, toured Tech Town on Friday, and said he was excited to see the project under way. Tech Town is one of 10 old contaminated industrial sites, called "brownfields," in the area. It is being developed by several companies, including General Motors, which formerly owned the 35-acre Harrison Radiator plant site on East Monument Avenue, and CityWide Development Corp., to bring in new companies and create jobs. Read More...
August 15, 200618 yr From the 8/11/06 Dayton Business Journal: $3.3M grant to bolster Tech Town Dayton Business Journal - August 11, 2006 by Yvonne Teems DBJ Staff Report The city of Dayton is one step closer to building a home for Tech Town's first tenants. The city applied for a $3.3 million Economic Development Administration Grant to help erect the high-tech industrial park's first building, slated to break ground in the spring. CityWide Development Corp., part of the city's economic development arm that's managing the park, has contracted with the city's former economic development director Norm Essman to lead the Tech Town project. Along with helping to amass funds to build out the park, Essman is looking to create a board of directors to make decisions on the park's direction. Read More...
September 24, 200618 yr From the 9/23/06 DDN: City wins $2.5M for tech center unit The two-story building will go to Dayton's Tech Town development on East Monument. By Jim DeBrosse Staff Writer Saturday, September 23, 2006 DAYTON — The city has received a $2.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce for building a Creative Technology Accelerator to help launch high-tech companies in the area. The 48,000 square-foot, two-story building will accommodate five to seven businesses and will be on East Monument Avenue in the city's Tech Town redevelopment area, the former Harrison Radiator site. The accelerator is the first of nine to 10 buildings planned for Tech Town and will open in 2008, said Chris Lipson of the city's economic development office. Read More...
October 21, 200618 yr Just cleaning up the site has made a huge improvement. I can't wait until construction begins... [
October 31, 200618 yr From the 10/19/06 Dayton Business Journal: Tech Town lands $2.5M grant Dayton Business Journal - October 19, 2006 by Yvonne Teems DBJ Staff Reporter The Tech Town project will receive a $2.5 million grant to help construct its first building. The city of Dayton at its commission meeting Wednesday night accepted the $2.55 million grant from the United States Economic Development Administration and will use it to build the Creative Technology Accelerator. The accelerator is the high-tech industrial park's first building, expected to break ground in the spring. The $5 million, 48,000-square-foot structure is expected to be finished in early 2008. Read More...
November 20, 200618 yr The developer of the Merc is Matt Stoermer (developed the warehouse conversion side of the Cooper Lofts, which is where I live), and the architect is Jeff Wray (he's done many local restoration projects: http://www.jeffwrayarch.com/current_projects.htm#merc) dfly is correct - they are waiting for construction financing to come through. The buildings are quite stunning; the old power plant (DP&L Steam Plant) is very interesting in terms of reuse (not to mention quite ambitious), and the building next door (Lotz Building) has already been gutted and is ready for interior work to start - it too has a ton of potential. The location remains the project's biggest challenge - it is on the outskirts of all of the current and planned development. If the the Cannery or the city could figure out how to do a parking garage over in that area, it could help connect Webster Station with the Oregon District. And that is the biggest problem I see with Dayton - lots of islands of fantastic development, but nothing connected very well. I hope we can figure out how to overcome that problem. <a href="http://www.dayton.mostmetro.com/localpointdetail.asp?LocalPointID=251&DistrictID=3">Click Here</a> to see more details and photos of The Merc (I'll try to post pics on this forum today....)
January 23, 200718 yr January 19, 2007 Tech Town Project Receives Million Dollar Grant No link for article
January 25, 200718 yr Here is more on that sensor technologies center mentioned in that BizBites article from 1-19. These appeared in the 12/16/06 DDN: Dayton tech site awarded $28 million Grant to create center to develop sensors at Tech Town expected to create 364 jobs. By Jim DeBrosse Staff Writer Saturday, December 16, 2006 Dayton's new Tech Town research park and the area's economy got a major boost Friday when Gov. Bob Taft's Third Frontier Commission awarded a $28 million grant to create a center at the park devoted to researching and commercializing sensor technologies. Proponents say the center, led by the University of Dayton Research Institute, will create 364 high-paying jobs within eight years, add $238 million to the local economy and make the Dayton area the world center for the latest advances in radar, infrared detection and long-range cameras for mapping, surveillance and targeting. The center also will develop sensor equipment for detecting pollution and for medical uses such as blood tests. It will anchor the city's 48,000-square-foot building for launching high-tech companies being built on East Monument Avenue in the Tech Town redevelopment area, the former Harrison Radiator site. Read More... Grant may be leading edge of sensor boom Third Frontier funding will allow universities, base to work on remote-sensing advances. By Jim DeBrosse Staff Writer Saturday, December 16, 2006 Someday Dayton could be the place that gives the world its latest set of eyes, ears and other sensor equipment for every purpose from fighting terrorism to fighting microbes. That's the hope of proponents behind Dayton's new Institute for Development and Commercialization of Advanced Sensor Technology, or IDCAST, which won a $28 million grant Friday from the state's Third Frontier Commission. Read More...
February 22, 200718 yr From the City of Dayton... Tech Town Building Construction Moves Forward No link for article
March 27, 200718 yr It looks Citywide is going to help out some with the financing of the Merc. Here's a little <a href="http://dayton.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2007/01/22/story4.html " target="_blank">snippet from the Business Courier</a>.
May 29, 200718 yr From Miami University, 3/20/07: Miami part of Ohio third frontier grant for IDCAST 03/20/2007 Miami University is a collaborative partner with lead institution the University of Dayton and a host of other partner organizations in a $28 million Ohio Third Frontier Wright Center of Innovation Grant awarded recently to establish the Institute for Development and Commercialization of Advanced Sensor Technology (IDCAST). Miami's share of IDCAST is $1 million in equipment. Miami has committed to a 4,000 square foot research space at a facility in Dayton's new Tech Town 2020 development. The 20,000 square foot IDCAST facility - the anchor tenant of Tech Town - will house academic, industry, and federal labs, to spur sensor technology research, development and commercialization. "IDCAST is projected to have a $238.3 million economic impact in Ohio and create 364 high-paying jobs within eight years," says Larrell Walters, director of technology partnerships at the University of Dayton Research Institute. Read More...
July 13, 200717 yr Here's a rendering of the Institute for Development and Commercialization of Advanced Sensor Technology (IDCAST) facility....
July 14, 200717 yr Looks interesting. At night that corner peice will be great, with the windows lit up while people are working late, like in the old factorys that were in that area. You'd expect something like this to be over in the Research Park, but its right in town.
Create an account or sign in to comment