Support center for I.C. entrepreneurs likely in former Wedge downtown space

IOWA CITY - Roughly a year after the Wedge downtown pizzeria left its pedestrian mall location adjacent to the public library, Iowa City staff are looking to put a new tenant there.

But the potential tenant at 136 S. Dubuque St. would not be serving pizza slices or any other food for that matter. Rather, it would become home to a new partnership between the city, Iowa City Area Development Group and University of Iowa.

The partnership, called MERGE, would support local entrepreneurs by eventually bringing together a cross section of coders, developers, engineers, 3D designers, program writers and entrepreneurs, said David Conrad, assistant vice president for economic development with the UI Office for Research and Economic Development.

'It really is a space where entrepreneurs can come together with faculty, staff and students to work on projects,” he said. 'We haven't seen that many models where they've brought that many groups together. ... The reason it's called MERGE is that's the whole point behind the name - we want to bring everybody together under one roof so they can learn from each other.”

The Iowa City Council is set to discuss the proposal at its work session Tuesday.

The ground floor space once housed the Wedge, while the basement is currently leased by UI Hospitals and Clinics, but those facilities will soon relocate to Coralville.

Mark Nolte, ICAD president, said the space is planned to become the new home for the roughly 3-year-old Co-Lab, which has become cramped in its current home at 316 E. Court St. Supported largely on memberships, the Co-Lab needs more space.

'I think the honest answer right now is, in its current space, the Co-Lab is not financially viable on its own,” he said. 'This presents a huge opportunity for us to make sure the Co-Lab concept is sustainable for the long-term.”

City staff are working on two leases for the space. A temporary lease would allow ICAD use of the ground level from Oct. 1 through Dec. 31. Due its short length, Iowa City Manager Tom Markus can execute that within the coming weeks.

A four-year lease - which also would include the basement space - will come back to the council for consideration later this year.

To make the space financially viable, documents show, the city would subsidize the lease, with ICAD responsible for taxes associated with the space.

Nolte said the hope is to turn the MERGE space into an open and inviting ground floor perfect for events with work spaces in the basement. The space would likely provide room for some of ICAD's partners as well, including the Iowa City/Coralville Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, Downtown District and Iowa City Area Chamber of Commerce.

'All the partners might have a presence in this space, ideally because we're all working together to support innovation and new ideas and grow the economy,” Nolte said.