The official grand opening of Startup Spokane Central held on October 15th was a huge success. A crowd of over 200 energized people attended the event, and celebrated the expansion of Share Space Spokane, previously located in the SteamPlant. In addition to moving into a larger, retail location in the Plechner Building at 610 W. 2nd Avenue in downtown Spokane, the co-working space has been renamed Startup Spokane Central to better align with the branding associated with the Startup Spokane platform.
Representative Marcus Riccelli spoke about the Startup Washington 365 legislative appropriation and how our region is integrating urban and rural entrepreneurial ecosystems to help startups and small businesses be successful and sustainable regardless of their location. Mayor David Condon spoke about entrepreneurship as a critical element of Spokane’s job creation strategy. Mayor Condon gave a shout-out to Steve Salvatori, who recently relocated back to Spokane. Steve was recognized as an early catalyst for entrepreneurship, by creating three Spokane Entrepreneurial Centers in 2006/2007.
Central is a physical community for entrepreneurs to work, meet, share, and learn in an environment where they have access to affordable workspace, conference rooms, mentor office hours, as well as a myriad of other resources. Central is managed and operated by Greater Spokane Incorporated (GSI). Ryan Arnold, GSI Entrepreneur Program Director, resides at Central to help entrepreneurs navigate the multitude of support resources in Spokane and throughout the region. In addition to the physical location, GSI manages www.startupspokane.com, the online side of the Startup Spokane platform, which provides a community events calendar, blog, podcasts, training, and online support resources.
For more information on Startup Spokane Central, visit StartupSpokane.com/Coworking.
