ANDERSON — The city will continue spending $75,000 a year to fund the Anderson Business Incubator after a reversal by Mayor Kris Ockomon.

On Friday, Ockomon said the city would cut funding to the incubator, which houses 10 start-up businesses, in the midst of a budget crisis. He cited poor operation of the facility and tenants taking advantage of inexpensive rent as reasons the city would no longer support the ABI.

On Tuesday, however, Ockomon announced the city would continue to fund the ABI after meeting with incubator manager DeWayne Landwehr and the facility’s tenants.

“We’re going to leave everything as is,” Ockomon said. “We’re going to back off the whole pulling the funding from there.

“I knew what was in my heart, and I knew what had to be done.”

Upon talking with Landwehr and the tenants Tuesday, Ockomon said he realized the importance of the incubator and that it had been running more smoothly than he thought.

“Unfortunately we went the long way around the field to figure that out,” he said. “It was more of a communication problem than anything. I just wish we would have had that meeting before.”

Randy Willis, whose business, Personal Service Limousine, has been in the ABI for about 18 months, said the mayor’s change of heart showed great character.

“Flat out he told us he had made a mistake,” Willis said. “This shows a great deal of character on the part of the mayor that he was able to reconsider a decision that he made based on new information. That’s the mark of a true statesman. That’s the mark of an elected official that listens to the people rather than speaks to the people.”

Ockomon said he wasn’t concerned with the message he might send to the community by changing his mind.

“I’m human and I’m humble and I believe the right decision is being made,” he said.

Ockomon doesn’t know where the extra $75,000 will come out of the budget but expects a firm plan near the end of the week on how the city will cope with the loss of revenue from property tax caps.

The city still would have had to pay to maintain the shuttered building at 700 Meridian St. even if the ABI would have closed.

Willis said saving the incubator would allow small businesses to thrive in Anderson.

“Ideas are the true currency for the nation, and great ideas are happening in small businesses across the country every day,” Willis said. “I really do believe the community came together as a whole and expressed their opinion about the ABI and its benefits.

“When we got the news the city was going to pull its funding, we mobilized the forces. We had to call everybody we knew and to find as many allies as we possibly could to help us change the mind or minds of the people that made this decision.”

Landwehr said the mayor changed his mind after talking with him and the tenants and receiving correct information about the incubator.

“I wouldn’t want to say it was all the city’s fault or all the mayor’s fault,” Landwehr said. “I would just rather say we’re going to do better.

“Only a fool sticks with a bad decision given new facts. He did the right thing when he was aware of all the facts.”

Landwehr said he and the mayor would talk more often in the future about the ABI.

Ockomon said the incident would help better define the goal of the incubator and allow its businesses to work out a better exit strategy.

ABI funding could be revisited next year near budget time, Ockomon said.

Anderson Business Incubator budget

Staff and consultants — Budgeted: $30,000; Spent: $30,500

Electric — Budgeted: $7,200; Spent: $11,463

Water/sewage/storm — Budgeted: $1,000; Spent: $1,822

Trash — Budgeted: $2,400; Spent: $650

Natural gas — Budgeted: $22,000; Spent: $7,988

Maintenance/repairs — Budgeted: $3,000; Spent: $17,144

Reserve fund — Budgeted: $5,000; Spent: $5,000

Advertising — Budgeted: $1,500; Spent: $29

Telephone/IT — Budgeted: $1,200; Spent: $1,625

Total — Budgeted: $75,000; Spent: $76,221

Source: City of Anderson



Contact Aleasha Sandley: 640-4805, aleasha.sandley@heraldbulletin.com.