WESST Opens New Business Incubator

WESST Enterprise Center

April 17, 2009 | Reprinted with permission of the New Mexico Business Weekly Copyright 2009; by Megan Kamerick, NMBW Staff

A slew of politicians, business leaders and economic development officials celebrated the opening of the state’s newest business incubator Friday in Albuquerque.

The WESST Enterprise Center at 609 Broadway NE has been six years in the making. WESST is a staple of New Mexico’s small business sector, offering business assistance, loans and other services to entrepreneurs.

The opening is even more timely given the recession, said Carol Radosevich, chairwoman of the WESST board of directors, because the group supports the state’s creative class of entrepreneurs.

Business incubators work with entrepreneurs and new companies to help them grow during the crucial start-up period when so many fail. They offer coaching and mentoring as well as discounted infrastructure services.

The new center offers the nonprofit the ability to reach rural areas more effectively through distance programs. It will also focus on light manufacturing, technology, service companies, artisan industries and digital media.

Agnes Noonan, executive director of WESST, received a standing ovation from the crowd and was visibly overwhelmed with emotion over an event that has been in the works for years. She related her love of “Star Trek” growing up, particularly the ability of the ship’s crew members to “beam up” at a moment’s notice.

“There have been moments in the last five years when I wished I could press a button and be where we are today,” Noonan said.

Noonan also cited former WESST staffer Nancy Mahoney as the one who initially envisioned the center.

“She walked into my office six years ago and said, ‘I know what we need to do!’” Noonan said.

Mayor Martin Chávez acknowledged that the economy is in a “real mess.”

“But Albuquerque is not waiting and New Mexico is not waiting to lift ourselves up,” he said. “The best reward we’ll get … is when companies grow from here and succeed and prosper.”

Lt. Gov. Diane Denish, who has been holding rural town halls on the federal stimulus plan and economic development, said many entrepreneurs in the state are trying to take advantage of the economic downturn.

State Sen. Gerry Ortiz y Piño said the center would be a “guiding light” in Albuquerque and compared the center’s role to that of cathedrals in medieval towns, which embodied the hopes and values of the community. He recalled a recent informal debate on the Senate floor during a lull in activity over whether the private sector or government was primarily responsible for job creation.

“This project shows how pointless that debate is,” he said. “It takes both private and public sectors working cooperatively to create this kind of project.”

Early advocates of the Enterprise Center included PNM Resources, the city of Albuquerque, the state of New Mexico and the federal Economic Development Agency. That helped leverage other private sector support. Jeff Sterba, chairman and CEO of PNM Resources, said saying “no” to Noonan is nearly impossible, but added that “no army can withstand the power of an idea whose time has come.”

Pedro Garza, regional director of the Economic Development Administration, pledged to work with WESST on a second phase of the center.

U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., said such a project also proves what a powerful catalyst the Economic Development Administration can be, despite the many attempts in the Senate to eliminate its budget.

The 37,000-square-foot building is on a remediated toxic waste site and is the first LEED-certified building (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) in downtown Albuquerque.

One of the more visible green elements is a bio-filter wall in the lobby with lush green plants and colorful flowers snaking from floor to ceiling. The building was designed by Studio Southwest Architects and built by Gerald Martin General Contractor.

There are four tenants now in the space and two more in the queue, said Doug Lee, managing director of the center, which has the capacity to house about 18 firms, depending on their space requirements.

“We’re right on target with our growth plans,” he said.