For the past several months Randy Recklaus, Charles Witherington-Perkins, and Michael Mertes have been collaborating with seven other nearby municipalities on a potential business accelerator program that would benefit businesses in each of the participating communities. This would cover a base area of over 20,000 companies and 400,000 residents. The liaison for the program is Dr. Ray Benedetto, a Chicago-area economic development consultant and President of GuideStar Inc. This regional collaborative approach would be somewhat similar to the Northwest Suburban Housing Collaborative of which Arlington Heights is a key member. The communities currently participating in this accelerator program are: Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove Village, Hanover Park, Hoffman Estates, Mount Prospect, Rolling Meadows, and Schaumburg.
This accelerator program has been named Next Level Northwest. Unlike a business incubator which seeks to create start-ups, a business accelerator is aimed at Stage 2 businesses which typically have been operating for several years and can employ anywhere from 10 to 100 people. It is proposed to be an independent not-for-profit functioning as a regional collaborative ecosystem that builds economic strength, attracts new business, and retains and grows existing businesses.
The mission of Next Level Northwest is to accelerate business growth among the participating municipalities and sustain the economic prosperity of the region. This will be done via providing access to critical, available resources and capabilities that support greater innovation, effectiveness, and operational efficiencies. Also, it will connect and foster relationships among all stakeholders within the region and beyond. The primary objectives of the program are to:
Ø Accelerate business growth
Ø Create value added jobs
Ø Distinguish the region as a world-class business community to attract more businesses, customers, and suppliers
As a 501c3, Next Level Northwest requires seed funding from the participating local governments. As the organization develops, funding will shift to a wide variety of sources, including fundraising, corporate sponsors, dues, and fees. Next Level Northwest would be the first organization for the Golden Corridor region focused on accelerating business growth and supporting entrepreneurs.
Each community is presenting the Next Level Northwest collaborative to their Village Boards for preliminary consideration. To date, Elk Grove Village and Hanover Park have already presented to their Boards. Elk Grove’s Board approved the funding for the program. Hanover Park’s presentation was on the evening of October 6th, so their Board’s decision was not available at the time of this public notice. The remaining communities will be presenting to their Boards within the next few weeks.
Funding Requested:
While funding will not be provided until the details of the program are worked out, a three-year initial funding commitment is being considered for the Next Level Northwest business accelerator program. The total funding request is $50,000 with the initial $5,000 coming from the current FY 2016 budget and $15,000 per year from the next three fiscal year budgets. Staff wishes to get feedback from the Village Board on this effort before continuing in the planning effort.