Port asks county to help sustain Industrial Zone

Floundering because of the recession, the Port of Whitman County’s Innovation Partnership Zone needs an influx of funding.

Joe Poire, port executive director, asked Whitman County commissioners Monday for $10,000 to help pay for administration of the zone.

The innovation zone was created with a $1 million state grant in 2007. Thrust of the zone is to combine WSU research with private sector industry to develop new industries and create jobs.

“We don’t have a long, long term focus, we’re just looking for some human resource money to keep it going for another year,” said Poire.

Those human resources are Don Tilton, administrator of the innovation zone. Tilton was paid $100,000 out of the state grant to bring research and develop business at the zone in the Pullman Industrial Park.

Poire said the port would match a $10,000 county grant to allow Tilton to continue his efforts.

Commissioner Michael Largent noted the county gave the port $12,500 to put the innovation zone grant application together. He asked what the county got out of those funds.

“That’s still going on,” said Poire. “But we’re working with non-profit organizations who need research and development money from the private sector.”

Those private sector partners, however, that have yet to step up to the plate.

“It’s clear that the external budget cuts and external downturns in the private sector economics, there’s just not a whole lot of collaboration going on right now,” said Poire.

Without those partnerships, production from the innovation zone has been disappointing.

When it applied for the grant, the port said expected to reap $4.4 million in sales and generate 60 jobs in the innovation zone’s first year.

In the three years the innovation zone has been running, three companies have set up shop in the building, employing seven people.

“We have some developing companies and we have some developing ideas,” said Poire. “We just don’t have a bird in our hand to bring to the state (for more funding).”

The port used grant proceeds to buy 34 acres of land in Pullman for a new industrial park, buy a super computer and renovate a port-owned building in the Pullman Industrial Park to make it suitable for new industries looking to develop technologies for environmentally efficient architecture.

The 28,000-square foot building was initially built by the port with $5 million in state and county funds to house Isothermal Systems Research. Isothermal Systems Research was purchased by Liberty Lake-based Spraycool in 2007, and the company’s Pullman operations were closed down.

Tilton is the former president of Isothermal Systems Research.

County commissioners said they would consider the request and make a decision when they meet next in two weeks.

By Joe Smillie, Gazette Reporter

Floundering because of the recession, the Port of Whitman County’s Innovation Partnership Zone needs an influx of funding.

Joe Poire, port executive director, asked Whitman County commissioners Monday for $10,000 to help pay for administration of the zone.

The innovation zone was created with a $1 million state grant in 2007. Thrust of the zone is to combine WSU research with private sector industry to develop new industries and create jobs.

“We don’t have a long, long term focus, we’re just looking for some human resource money to keep it going for another year,” said Poire.

Those human resources are Don Tilton, administrator of the innovation zone. Tilton was paid $100,000 out of the state grant to bring research and develop business at the zone in the Pullman Industrial Park.

Poire said the port would match a $10,000 county grant to allow Tilton to continue his efforts.

Commissioner Michael Largent noted the county gave the port $12,500 to put the innovation zone grant application together. He asked what the county got out of those funds.

“That’s still going on,” said Poire. “But we’re working with non-profit organizations who need research and development money from the private sector.”

Those private sector partners, however, have yet to step up to the plate.

Without those partnerships, production from the innovation zone has been disappointing.

When it applied for the grant, the port expected to reap $4.4 million in sales and generate 60 jobs in the innovation zone’s first year.

In the three years the innovation zone has been running, three companies have set up shop in the building, employing seven people.

“We have some developing companies and we have some developing ideas,” said Poire. “We just don’t have a bird in our hand to bring to the state (for more funding).”

The port used grant proceeds to buy 34 acres of land in Pullman for a new industrial park, buy a super computer and renovate a port-owned building in the Pullman Industrial Park to make it suitable for new industries looking to develop technologies for environmentally efficient architecture.

The 28,000-square foot building was initially built by the port with $5 million in state and county funds to house Isothermal Systems Research. Isothermal Systems Research was purchased by Liberty Lake-based Spraycool in 2007, and the company’s Pullman operations were closed down.

Tilton is the former president of Isothermal Systems Research.

County commissioners said they would consider the request and make a decision when they meet next in two weeks.