Opportunity Newark - Initiative for a Competitive Inner City

• Create an “Innovation/Business Accelerator”
To facilitate the transition of nascent technology from
the lab to the marketplace, entrepreneurs, professors, and
scientists need guidance on business strategy, regulatory
issues, and funding sources. Further, they need access to
the business community, particularly CEOs and successful
entrepreneurs, who can provide hands-on assistance
as well as proof-of-concept support. The EKC Action Team
recommends establishing a small “Accelerator,” or commercialization
engine, consisting of two to three experienced
professionals with connections throughout the business
and academic communities. The “Accelerator”, a collaborative
effort among Newark’s research universities, will
support each school and assist high-potential entrepreneurs
who are spinning out from larger corporations. It will
strengthen the universities’ technology-transfer offices
and provide scientists and entrepreneurs with world-class
guidance, business support, proof-of-concept reviews,
mentors, and pre-seed funds. With additional resources,
Newark’s university-based technology-transfer staff will be
able to support research, product development, and commercialization
efforts more effectively.
In the long term, the “Accelerator” will increase the number of
start-ups, spin-outs and spin-ins; improve and promote UHSP’s
reputation; increase federal and private-sector R&D investments
in Newark; create relationships between businesses
and the universities; and fuel Newark’s business recruitment
efforts. The Innovation/Business Accelerator will be part of
the Innovation Zone with oversight by the Innovation Zone
Board. The EKC Action Team recommends running a threeyear
pilot to determine the Accelerator’s effectiveness.
• Build the advanced technology resources and skills of
the Greater Newark Business Development Consortium
Newark’s small businesses have access to a number of business
and technology advisory services. To provide the
best support to their clients, these intermediaries need
advanced technological resources. The EKC Action Team
recommends building the advanced technology resources
and skills of the GNBDC so that it can manage its own complex
business more effectively and provide higher levels
of technology support to its clients. With help from major
technology vendors in Newark and BCT Partners, the GNBDC
will achieve the necessary level of technological sophistication
required to better support Newark’s businesses.
Digital Divide
To close the digital divide in Newark, the EKC Action Team
recommends establishing wireless hotspots in Newark, creating
a Community Technology Center, and launching a
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM)
communications campaign.
• Rapidly implement wireless hotspots in Newark’s key
business centers, such as the Downtown and within
UHSP, then throughout all of Newark’s neighborhoods
Communities around the country are deploying wireless
networking strategies to attract businesses and to position
themselves as high-tech centers. Wireless networking
offers many advantages to the communities, which deploy
this technology. First, wireless broadband Internet
improves the educational, medical and business capacity
of inner-city communities. Second, Internet access allows
businesses to provide better customer service and employee
training. Third, it streamlines communication between suppliers
and customers by allowing for on-line ordering and
the customization of products. By decreasing paperwork
and data-entry, Internet-based tools help reduce operating
costs. A coordinated commercial-district wireless
program helps in the recruitment of new businesses not
only by offering significant operating advantages, but also
by fostering a sense of community between businesses
and residents. The availability of wireless connectivity
contributes to a city’s reputation, clearly indicating that it
is a 21st Century city.
Developing a wireless strategy for Newark will give it a competitive
edge relative to other cities and provide greater
Internet access to Newark’s residents, critical to closing
the digital divide. The basic technology for implementing
wireless access is inexpensive, increasingly easy to set up,
and requires little maintenance. There are various models
for providing low-cost wireless broadband Internet access
within neighborhoods. The Newark Alliance will take the
lead in forming an advisory board that will assess the various
models, implementation options, and costs.
• Establish a Community Technology Center
Bridging the digital divide is a critical issue for Newark’s
residents and businesses. The EKC Action Team recommends
establishing a Community Technology Center (CTC)
OpportunityNewark: Jobs and Community Development for the 21st Century 48