new ventures business development provides resources for starting and growing businesses
Commercial Kitchen Project Moving Forward
With $225,000 in grant funding in hand, New Ventures Business Development, Inc., is moving ahead with plans to construct a shared-use certified commercial kitchen at South Piedmont Community College's Lockhart-Taylor Center.
New
Ventures has received grants of $75,000 each from the United States Department of Agriculture
and the North Carolina Rural Center, plus an additional $75,000 in local funding to begin
work on an approximately 700-square-foot commercial kitchen that will be adjacent to the
Ingram Room.
[Image: Left to right, advisory committee participants Bob Blalock, David Black, and Carol Ann Gibson look on as the project architect reviews the floor plan.]
"In past surveys, NVBDI found that Anson County has a number of caterers without access to a public, certified kitchen," said Dr. Don Altieri, New Ventures' executive director. "Caterers can use the kitchen at Twin Valley Country Club, but cannot take the prepared food to another site."
Altieri said the NVBDI project will focus on caterers and value-added products. 'With a commercial kitchen, caterers will be able to prepare a meal and transport it to another location," Altieri said, adding that "others who may be interested in value-added products, such as jellies, jams, pickles, honey, salsa and chow-chow, can prepare their product in the kitchen for sale elsewhere."
NVBDI formed an advisory committee composed of caterers, value-added food producers, a representative from SPCC, a county environmental health representative and an architect with Stogner Architecture in Rockingham.
[Image: Left to right, advisory committee participants Don Altieri, Bob Sabin, Beth Rogers, Bob Blalock, William Truett, Mary Beck, Carol Ann Gibson, David Black, and Sandy Huntley discuss the community commercial kitchen project.]
The committee's inaugural meeting was held on July 18, where Altieri outlined the project in four phases: design, construction and meeting code requirements; acquisition of equipment; setting policies and procedures, acquiring permits, meeting regulations and establishing training parameters; and marketing.
In addition, a timeline has been established that will guide the project to fruition – with a targeted opening date for client use of May 2009.
Altieri said a community-use commercial kitchen is "a fully licensed facility where food producers can legally produce their food products." He said the kitchen will benefit "those interested in making and packaging specialty/gourmet foods in addition to caterers, cart/street vendors, and church, school and civic groups."
The commercial kitchen, once completed, will be a result of New Ventures' pro-active approach to provide opportunities to Anson County's artisans and entrepreneurs. Information has been gathered by two outreach coordinators, one serving Anson County and one serving Union County.
NVBDI already has in place office rentals for entrepreneurs; the Olde Mill Gallery and Studios, which displays, markets and sells the arts and crafts of Anson County artists and craftsmen; an on-line shopping stop at ebizAnson, where web surfers may view, and purchase, "Made in Anson" items; and a Women's Center that will provide seminars and information.
"Our artisans are all over the county," Altieri said. "So, we approached each one to offer them a central venue to display their work or rent studio space. They can do their work at their own site and bring it to New Ventures.
"They price it and we add a small percentage to defray our expenses," he said. 'We can put their product out there, and when the product sells, we can package and ship it for them."
For more information about New Ventures projects and opportunities, call 704.272.5457 or use the site's contact form. To view artisans' works at Olde Mill Gallery and Studios, drop by at 514 N. Washington St., Wadesboro, or visit the Olde Mill Gallery and Studios website.
New Ventures is one of seven Business and Technology Telecenters in North Carolina that were established under the e-NC Authority, as designated by the North Carolina General Assembly. The centers support economic development in rural counties by providing resources for new business start-ups and improving existing businesses and by infusing technology into business operations.
Its Artisan and Business Center, which opened in May 2007, supports arts and crafts businesses and professional and service industry businesses in the same space. Specifically, the center provides office and studio space with shared services, the Olde Mill Gallery and Studios for spurring sales and driving tourism traffic, a common and collaborative marketing plan to make the center and Anson County a heritage-tourism and entrepreneurial destination, and two e-commerce web sites, ebizanson.org and ebizunion.org, that allow the arts and crafts community and local merchants to reach markets outside their geographic boundaries. New Ventures assists virtual and real tenants with administrative services, training, and consultant services, and it monitors their progress and growth closely. The center is becoming an economic hub bringing tourism and discretionary income dollars into the area while the workforce transitions from dying agriculture and textiles industries to the new clusters driving the North Carolina economy – technology, pharmaceuticals, banking, food processing, and vehicle parts.
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Location
The Anson County Center is located in the South Piedmont Community College Lockhart-Taylor Center at 514 North Washington Street, Wadesboro, N.C.
Contact the center at the the Lockhart-Taylor Center at 704.272.5457.
Anson Schedule
The Anson Center currently is open Monday through Thursday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday 9-3, and by appointment. Contact the center at 704.272.5457.
Visit the ebizanson.org and ebizunion.org sites to shop for acclaimed art and quality merchandise from local sellers.
SPCC Small Business Center maintains a resource center at the Lockhart-Taylor Center. Contact Vince Holloman at 704.694.6505.
SCORE consultants are available by appointment. Contact the NVBDI Anson Center at 704.272.5457.
Union Schedule
Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
SPCC Small Business Center staff is available by appointment. Contact Vince Holloman at 704.289.8588.
SCORE consultants are available by appointment. Contact the Union County Chamber at 704.289.4567.
Sponsors
Union County Chamber of Commerce
South Piedmont Community College
Partners
South Piedmont Community College Small Business Center