By Eric Stock
BLOOMINGTON – A local small business development center that was a casualty of the year-long Illinois budget stalemate could be coming back at a new location.
The Bloomington-Normal Economic Development Council is in talks with the state and Illinois Wesleyan University to relaunch on the Wesleyan campus.
PODCAST: Listen to Scott’s interview with Ham on WJBC.
CEO of the EDC, Kyle Ham, told WJBC’s Scott Laughlin, officials with the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity have indicated there is some funding available for the center.
“We are working to bring back that opportunity so that we have a place that businesses can go and get the resources they need to start a business,” Ham said. “It’s critical.
Illinois State University had hosted the business center for more than a decade but pulled the plug after the state pulled its matching funds.
“Illinois State did a great job hosting it for the last 10 years but we are going to in a little different model this year with Illinois Wesleyan,” Ham said. “They’ve got some professors and some expertise there that can help get this launched.”
Under the new plan, the SBDC would be run by the EDC. Ham said he hopes to have it open by the end of the year.
Ham added a lower-profile part of the EDC’s job is to help existing businesses grow noting the new $14 million Destihl Brewery in Normal and the $1.5 million expansion of lens maker H.W. Holdings in Bloomington.
Eric Stock can be reached at [email protected].
