Bob Godfrey

Representative Bob Godfrey hailed a $24,000 state grant awarded to a Danbury company under a new program created this year by the legislature to help new businesses.

CTNext, the state program designed to help new entrepreneurs, awarded the planning grant to Danbury Hackerspace, a non-profit corporation founded in 2012 by Mike Kaltschnee and Jon Gatrell to assist start-up businesses by providing office space, equipment and other support. Hackerspace is a makerspace with 3D printers, prototyping tools, a mockup studio, a common work area, program space and co-working space.

“This new program I championed in the legislature will help increase economic development opportunities in Danbury as well as communities throughout Connecticut,” Godfrey said. “We need to continue to build up and support new and existing businesses and in the process create jobs.”

CTNext chose 12 communities around the state to receive grants to support local strategic planning efforts to develop destinations for entrepreneurs and talent in Connecticut. The planning grants allow communities to conduct a strategic planning process to better understand the relevant emerging conditions, risks and opportunities they face; to assess the capabilities the community needs; and to plan actions to leverage those capabilities.

“These grants intend to support community efforts to build out a plan that will highlight the strengths of each community, assess the needs of entrepreneurs and talent, and create an action plan that will be submitted for additional grant funding through the Innovation Places program,” said Glendowlyn Thames, interim executive director for CTNext.

“We started the Danbury Hackerspace four years ago to help build a community and facility in Danbury to support entrepreneurs, and the Innovation Places grant will help us accelerate our efforts,” said Kaltschnee. “We really are excited to be part of the renaissance of downtown Danbury, and as we work on the implementation grant we’ll be focused on ideas that help bring entrepreneurs and companies to downtown Danbury to start and grow their companies.”

“The grant we received recognizes the fact our area has a number of industries that employ a lot of people in high-technology jobs and require a skilled workforce. These industries have tremendous potential for growth,” Kaltschnee said. “It will help allow new businesses to grow and flourish.”

For more, read this Danbury News-Times article.

Click on this link for more information about Danbury Hackerspace.