Sheffield School Will Become Tech Innovation Center after $1.7 Million Federal Grant

The vacant Sheffield public school at 513 Broadway in Newport will soon be a hub of technological innovation and commercial entrepreneurship with the goal of sprouting startup companies and creating scores of jobs on Aquidneck Island and across Rhode Island.

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker today announced that the Department’s Economic Development Administration is awarding a nearly $1.7 million grant to the Newport County Development Council to help establish a technology business incubator. According to grantee estimates, this project will create 108 jobs.

“This is great news for Newport that will help diversify and energize our economy, further cementing Aquidneck Island as a key hub for research, development, technology, and innovation,”said U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, a member of Appropriations Committee, who helped secure $232 million for EDA programs in the fiscal year 2014 Appropriations bill. “This new innovation center will be a great resource for the business community and budding entrepreneurs. It will help harness some of the high wattage institutional brain power we have in the area -- from Naval Station Newport, to the Naval Undersea Warfare Center to URI – and foster new partnerships to help launch high-tech ventures. I commend the City of Newport and the Newport County Development Council and their partners for putting together a winning proposal. This type of collaboration can help spark new ventures and accelerate the commercialization and deployment of new products and concepts.”

The grant will help pay for the redevelopment of the 33,600 school into the innovation center. The facility will be designed to be energy efficient, too.

“Rhode Island has a rich tradition of innovation, from the dawn of the American Industrial Revolution at Slater Mill to the technology and design businesses throughout our state today,” said Senator Sheldon Whitehouse. “This project will leverage our defense, marine trades, and technology industries to grow our economy and create jobs. I was happy to lend my support for this funding, and I am very pleased to see further investment in the Sheffield School Technology Incubator.”

The state-of-the-art facility is intended to also support defense, marine, climate change, environmental, and digital industry clusters and entrepreneurs.