News
June 6, 2018
BEDC Hosts Open House at Techplace, Celebrating Success and Prosperity in Burlington Over the Past Year
Burlington, Ont.— June 6, 2018 On Thursday May 24th BEDC welcomed over 150 guests to TechPlace for their 2018 Open House: Celebrating Burlington’s Prosperity. Guest included Burlington Mayor Rick Goldring, City Councilors, the realtor and developer community, established businesses, TechPlace stakeholders and corporate sponsors. The celebration of this past year’s accomplishments began with an Open House showcasing BEDC’s partners including Mohawk, Burlington Public Library and Haltech. The evening concluded with a short formal presentation from BEDC Executive Director, Frank McKeown and Richard Obuhowich President of 3terra highlighting Burlington’s key economic achievements in 2017.
Frank McKeown Executive Director of BEDC, spoke directly to Burlington’s current economic standing including; 1.1 million sq. ft in the development pipeline, low unemployment rate, local business successes and TechPlace. McKeown highlighted TechPlace as a key 2017 success and celebrated its first year of operations during the event. Since opening in June of 2017 TechPlace has welcomed over 4,200 visitors and hosted over 85 events. More than one third of visitors identified as entrepreneurs or being a part of a start-up and 15% were established businesses. The space has been bursting with energy and these numbers indicate it is quickly becoming an incredibly valuable resource. Learn more about Burlington’s 2017 Economic Successes in BEDC’s Annual Report here.
3terra’s President, Richard Obuhowich followed McKeown’s presentation with an insightful and engaging presentation on their journey as TechPlace’s second LaunchPad resident. Richard told the audience how TechPlace resources have helped 3terra thrive though access to space, networks and resources; “TechPlace gives us (3terra) invaluable access to a network with a wealth of experience and knowledge, and there is always someone eager to help. They provide valuable feedback, recommend top notch service providers, and help us through a variety of business challenges. The environment here is unparalleled.”Programming concluded with closing remarks from Frank McKeown as well as Anita Cassidy, who will be the acting Executive Director of BEDC following Frank McKeown’s retirement at the end of June.
BEDC would like to thank the exhibitors who brought a dynamic energy to TechPlace, the speakers who engaged the audience and, everyone who attended for their continued support and participation in the evenings celebrations.
Visit the BEDC website here and the TechPlace website here for more information on their respective service offerings and to learn more about how they can help your business expand, start-up or locate in Burlington.
Mohawk College demonstrating mixed reality.
Richard Obuhowich President of 3terra.
Anita Cassidy current Manager of Economic Development will be the acting Executive Director of BEDC following Frank McKeown’s retirement at the end of June.