Starting in early 2014, Lexington Mayor Jim Gray will appoint the inaugural Economic Development Investment Board to oversee and distribute the newly created million-dollar Lexington Jobs Fund.
Council initially set the $1 million aside in the fall from revenue above what was anticipated from the previous budget year. After the board is formed, companies looking to grow in Lexington will be able to apply for city funds.
“We immediately become the best place in the country for these companies to look,” Gray’s senior aide Scott Shapiro said about companies that have won federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding or federal Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) funding, which is can be added to with state and now local funding.
“That’s not just because of incentives,” Gray’s chief of staff Jamie Emmons added about SBIR/STTR funded companies. Research-based companies also can discover a large talent pool because Lexington is a university city, and it enjoys a low cost of living, Emmons said.