Houston City Council Votes 'Yes' to Federal Dollars for East End Hub

Published Nov 14, 2019 by Maggie Martin

The Houston Chronicle reports Houston city council this week approved $24 million in federal funding to construct the East End Maker Hub, a project that will house and support startups, entrepreneurs, artists, crafters, innovators and legacy manufacturers who are looking to scale their businesses. The 300,000-plus-square-foot warehouse in Houston's Second Ward will also be equipped for prototyping, testing, small batch manufacturing and more.

The hub's a partnership between TXRX Labs and Urban Partnerships Community Development Corporation.

The federal funds from the U.S. Housing Department are made of nearly $23 million loan and a $1.4 million grant. According to the Chronicle, Houston "will finance the 20-year loan through rent paid by the leasing startups, and fund most of the remaining $31 million project cost through federal tax credits."

Gaby Rowe, who was named executive director of The Ion last month, said "“We need to ensure that all of our communities in Houston are prepared, our youth are prepared with the skills necessary to be able to fill those jobs, so that Houstonians are in the neighborhoods that we care about."

Organizers of the East End Maker Hub say their goal is to bring over 400 new jobs to Houston's East End.

Earlier this year, TXRX told InnovationMap it's focused on bringing back Houston's East End as a manufacturing hub.

"We're looking to bring together innovative companies in the physical innovation space into the East End and creating these middle class jobs," TXRX executive director Roland von Kurnatowski told the publication.

According to the East End Chamber of Commerce, nearly 20% of businesses in the district are manufacturing. The Houston region is home to more than 6,400 manufacturers that produce more than $82 billion in products annually. The industry employs more than 230,000 workers and helps drive Houston’s substantial export economy.

Learn more about the greater Houston region’s advanced manufacturing space.