Developers of Gary's South Shore Technology Center, based at the historic Gary State Bank building have nearly completed the first phase of development, and now they're scouting for tenants so they can start the next phase.
Health care providers are the biggest target, said developer Vance Kenney, of Gateway Partners LLC, of Hobart, the firm that owns the iconic old bank building at 504 Broadway
Kenney said his company networked with health care technology representatives last week at a conference in Chicago. "The feedback was positive," Kenney said.
Gary redevelopment director Joe Van Dyk said Kenney is expected to update the redevelopment commission on the project's progress Aug. 5.
The city supported the project with funding for the demolition and construction coming from $2.8 million in revenue bonds issued by the city.
According to Kenney, hospitals and other health care providers are facing an October deadline to take advantage of government incentives to establish a back-up electronic data base for patient records.
He said the Gary technology building is a perfect fit for Chicago area health care providers because it uses power provided by the Northern Indiana Public Service Co., not Commonwealth Edison. Kenney said the data center will have two independent substation feeds from NIPSCO in the event of an outage. It will also have back-up generators.
Kenney said developers were able to take advantage of the downtown's power structure that includes fiber optic cables run down Broadway and 15 telecom carriers within a quarter mile.
"This could be a game changer for the community," Kenney said. "We have power and connectivity."
In addition to health care providers, Kenney said the technology center hopes to recruit government entities, such as the Veterans Administration and universities. Kenney said South Shore Technology will be competitive because it's offering tax incentives reducing the cost by about 25 percent.
"We have done all we can do from a design business standpoint," said Kenney. "Now, we have to sign up a large user to start construction. Once they have tenants, developers plan to build a $30 million central utility plant that will hold the dual feed to provide power for the center. Kenney said it will be built on the site of the building's parking garage.
Meanwhile, construction of the new Centier Bank branch on the south side of the old bank is expected to be completed in October, Kenney said. It will have a drive-up window on its south side.
Loretta's Boutique is the first retail tenant on the first floor.
Kenney hopes a coffee shop will occupy the space on the northeast corner of the building.