Established in 2002 by Mayor Bob Corker, The Enterprise Center was originally formed to house the City’s economic development initiatives, including the HUD-designated Renewal Community federal tax incentive program and the Chattanooga Opportunity Fund small business loan pool. Within a year, these two initiatives garnered more than $21 million in private investments in the City.
Due to The Enterprise Center’s success in bringing attention to Chattanooga’s economic potential, it was determined that the organization should capitalize on advanced technology projects for job creation – maximizing on Chattanooga’s location in the hub of the Tennessee Valley Technology Corridor where Oak Ridge National Labs, NASA and Arnold Engineering Development Center are situated.
In April 2004, Congressman Zach Wamp and Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey joined Mayor Corker’s support of The Enterprise Center. The three appointed a nine-member board of directors and expanded The Center’s role.
Today, The Enterprise Center serves as an umbrella organization overseeing more than a dozen federally funded entities, many of which have a technology focus. A nonprofit 501(c)3 organization, The Center provides guidance and oversight, facilitates collaboration, and fosters communication for effective and efficient use of federal funds. Its mission is to bring these entities together and, by doing so, better leverage their efforts and impact on the region, improve awareness of their work, and take ideas from the research level into real production.
From fuel cell development to heavy duty vehicle wind drag studies to electric and Maglev high speed ground transportation alternatives, each of the independently run entities overseen by The Enterprise Center have come together to form a Council of Managers, encompassing the heads of each agency. As a result, The Center has poised itself as a virtual stage where ideas are presented and acted upon for the sake of efficient technology and to ensure the economic future of the area.
