Connecticut firm to design incubator

SUNY Fredonia has designated a Connecticut architectural firm to prepare design and construction plans for the new high technology business incubator to be erected in the City of Dunkirk.

JCJ Architecture, Hartford, Conn., was selected from among three firms interviewed to design the facility that will be able to accommodate 10 to15 start-up firms that require high technology infrastructure.

“We were very impressed with JCJ’s background and experience in high tech incubators,” said Markus Kessler, director of facilities planning at SUNY Fredonia. “We were impressed by the strength of their team, that each member of the firm has a special skill and experience with incubators.”

JCJ has designed high tech incubators for many institutions of higher learning, including Yale University and the University of Connecticut, Mr. Kessler said, and has developed plans for projects similar to the SUNY Fredonia incubator in size and scope. “They also have a good track record for building consensus with stakeholders, committees and oversight groups,” he added.

Serving as engineering consultant for JCJ will be Amherst, N.Y.-based Wendel Duchscherer.

The 14,000 to 18,000 square foot facility, which carries an estimated cost of $4 million, will be erected in Dunkirk’s downtown, Empire Zone and commercial waterfront district. The site, nearly an acre in size, was acquired by the city and prepared for the project. SUNY Fredonia is developing the incubator through its Center for Rural Regional Development and Governance.

Tentative plans call for design work to be finished by early 2008, Mr. Kessler said, with construction to be completed by the spring of 2009.