County's New Technology Incubator Nears Completion; County officials Celebrate

Header--Montgomery County, Maryland. Press Releases

SS/pr-tech 98-279

Contact: David Edgerley, 301-217-2345
For Immediate Release: September 1, 1998

County's New Technology Incubator
Nears Completion; County Officials
Celebrate "Topping Off" Ceremony

The Maryland Technology Development Center - a business "incubator" which will house start-up and emerging biotechnology and information technology companies - today moved one step closer to completion as County and State officials, and local business leaders gathered to celebrate the building's ceremonial "topping-off." Located on the Shady Grove Life Sciences Center, a County-operated research and development village, the $4.5 million Technology Development Center is expected to open its doors to the first tenants by January.

"We're very proud of our high technology community in Montgomery County and have worked long and hard to promote and nurture its growth," said Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan. "We have become a magnet for some of the nation's leading technology firms, but I think more importantly, we have become a place where small companies with big ideas can emerge, evolve and prosper. The Maryland Technology Development Center will make it possible for even more start-up firms to do just that."

"The high technology community in Montgomery County has been anxiously awaiting the completion of this center," said J.D. Murphy, Chairman of the High Technology Council of Maryland. "It is a technology incubator that will make a difference in the success of young technology enterprises and that will strengthen Montgomery County's reputation as a hotbed for technology development."

A joint project of the County and the State of Maryland, the Technology Development Center will feature 22,000-square-feet of laboratory space for biotechnology companies, 20,000-square-feet of office space and 10,000-square-feet of conference, meeting and common facilities.

The State provided funding for the planning, design and construction of the facility. The project is being managed by the Maryland Economic Development Corporation. Montgomery County contributed the land for the project and will provide approximately $250,000 annually for operating costs.

Day-to-day operations of the center will be directed by the High Technology Council of Maryland, which will also move into the new facility once it is completed. The County's Department of Economic Development will market the center and provide various services for its tenants. Tenant selection and review, as well as the establishment of the center's operational policies, will be handled by an advisory committee.

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