Parkview Health, Indiana Tech and Fort Wayne Community Schools are among the high-profile local employers that have announced plans to lease space in Electric Works.
The list also includes upscale restaurant Joseph Decuis, Fort Wayne Metals Research Products Corp., Indiana University Research and Technology Corp. and nonprofits Fort Wayne Public Market and Three Rivers Music Theatre.
But now that RTM Ventures, the partnership developing the former General Electric campus, is struggling to finalize the $248 million funding package, the organizations committed to establishing operations there have a decision to make.
If their interest in Electric Works was mainly about establishing a presence in the mixed-use project, they might decide to shelve those plans. But if the operations planned for Electric Works were to be an important piece of the organization's strategic plan, officials might have to consider other locations.
Prospective tenants interviewed by The Journal Gazette still hope the development comes together. Some said they will wait until all glimmers of hope are gone before searching for alternatives.
Others say their plans hinge on the unique opportunity for collaboration the Electric Works campus would create. If the vision isn't realized, those tenants' plans will go up in smoke.
'Twist and turn'
Mark Michael, president of Fort Wayne Metals, said his company's plans will go forward one way or another.
“We continue to plan for what we want to do at Electric Works whether it happens at Electric Works or somewhere else,” he said.
The manufacturer wants to train tool and die machine operators to do additive manufacturing, a technology that is disrupting the industry and that few workers in the region have learned.
Michael's goal is to help northeast Indiana's CNC – or computer numerical control – machine operators transition to machines such as 3D printers without missing a paycheck. Without the type of training he hopes to offer, hundreds, if not thousands, of machinists eventually could be thrown out of work.
“We remain committed” to Electric Works, Michael said. “I know these projects twist and turn. And I know right now it doesn't look good.”
Last week, Fort Wayne officials rejected RTM Ventures' request for the Capital Improvement Board to co-sign a $23 million loan to support developing the former General Electric campus. But supporters aren't giving up yet on the mixed-use project that would include education, innovation, office, residential, retail and entertainment spaces.
The developers this month asked the Allen County Fort Wayne Capital Improvement Board to guarantee a loan. If approved and if the funding package for Electric Works fell through, the board would have had to pay off the loan in exchange for outright ownership of the property, which was independently appraised at $41 million.
The emailed rejection letter offered three reasons the board can't co-sign the loan: It doesn't have legal authority to grant the request; the current contract for the public-private partnership would have to be amended and approved by multiple officials; and approving the request would put taxpayer money at risk.
The letter was signed by Christopher Guerin, president of the Fort Wayne Redevelopment Commission, and Nancy Townsend, the city's redevelopment director. The Redevelopment Commission is the body that would formally request financial commitments from the Capital Improvement Board.
Guerin clarified their role in a news conference.
“This wasn't a decision made by Nancy or the Redevelopment Commission,” he told reporters Monday. “It was the consensus, more than the consensus, it was the vast majority view of all of the funding bodies that this was just not something they were prepared to do.”
Even so, Michael of Fort Wayne Metals hopes for the vision he signed on for – an Innovation District established in Building 19. He described that location as “very appropriate” for research because it previously housed GE's apprentice school.
“Frankly, when I paint that picture in my mind,” he said of the future training site, “I paint it in Building 19.”
Indiana Tech sees opportunity
Indiana Tech was the first organization to step up and sign a letter of intent to lease space in Electric Works.
Brian Engelhart, Indiana Tech spokesman, said the college isn't shelving its plans for the 10,000-square-foot space.
“We saw this as an opportunity to do some new things,” he said, adding that college officials don't have specific plans that must be enacted before a set deadline.
“We're able to continue to see how it goes and root for it to succeed,” he said.
Electric Works presents a unique opportunity for Indiana Tech students to work cooperatively with other local organizations planning to take up residence there, Engelhart said.
“One of the things that we looked at ... was who else is going to wind up there, and what will they be engaged in?” he added.
Indiana Tech's offerings include courses in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, the subjects often abbreviated as STEM. The college also offer courses in business and numerous other subjects.
Fort Wayne Community Schools in June reaffirmed its commitment to lease about 26,000 square feet in Electric Works.
The public school system plans to open a STEAM high school there. Arts is the additional subject that would be available to juniors and seniors on a half-day basis, with 150 students enrolled in morning classes and 150 more in the afternoon, officials said.
Engelhart sees opportunities in having high school and college students on the same campus, pursuing the same subjects.
If Electric Works' financing falls apart, Engelhart said, “It wouldn't dampen our enthusiasm for partnering with Fort Wayne Community Schools and others.”
But it would throw cold water on FWCS plans, spokeswoman Krista Stockman said.
“Our interest in having a school at Electric Works hinges on the partners that are also located there,” she wrote in an email. “This did not start from a position of trying to start a new school; it started from a desire to create unique, innovative opportunities for students.”
“We have no plans to look for an alternate location,” she added.
Supporting entrepreneurs
IU's Research and Technology Corp. is committed to supporting entrepreneurial activity in northeast Indiana, Dr. Michael Mirro said.
As chairman of IU's board of trustees, Mirro has unique insight into the university's priorities. And as a Fort Wayne resident, he has seen the economic boost that has followed various public-private investments, including Parkview Field.
IU officials want to be part of the action by helping area researchers secure patents and commercialize their innovations.
“We're doing it at various parts of the state already,” Mirro said, adding that supporting entrepreneurs is part of the organization's core mission.
Mirro said Electric Works is a great project that he thinks will ultimately come together – if not by these developers, then by others.
IU is committed to leasing space there.
“We're not dropping out,” he said. “We're still very bullish on this happening.”
But that's not all.
“We might try to do something in addition to Electric Works, to start something earlier,” Mirro said. “I think that's very likely.”
Potential losses
Parkview Health officials in October 2018 announced plans to open a health care clinic in Electric Works. At the time, no square footage estimate was available for the agreement, which was for 10 years.
Parkview spokeswoman Tami Brigle last week emailed the following statement about the status of the commitment:
“As the tenant with the largest commitment to Electric Works to date, Parkview Health is fully supportive of the project and has not sought alternative plans. We are optimistic that RTM Ventures will bring the vision for the campus to fruition.”
Brigle couldn't say whether Parkview would still open a clinic in that underserved part of the city if funding for Electric Works falls through. In an email, she said Parkview officials haven't considered that possibility.
Pete Eshelman, a co-owner of Joseph Decuis, has fielded offers for other possibilities.
Indianapolis movers and shakers are trying to persuade him to open a casual-dining version of his Roanoke fine-dining restaurant using high-quality ingredients there. Eshelman has received inquiries from as far away as Dubai, the largest city in the United Arab Emirates.
But Eshelman hopes downtown Fort Wayne will be home to his next venture, which could become a pilot for similar restaurants nationwide.
And the only Fort Wayne location he's interested in is the former General Electric campus.
“I think Electric Works is an incredible project, and it's going to have a tremendous effect on the region,” he said, adding that he knows a Joseph Decuis spin-off would become a popular destination.
In fact, Eshelman considers it a community service – a duty, really – for him to support Electric Works by becoming a tenant there.
Bottom line, though, he is a businessman.
“We can't keep waiting around forever,” Eshelman said, adding that he's disappointed elected city officials haven't supported the project as strongly as he'd like. “It ticks me off.”
So his expansion plans sit on the shelf – for now.
RTM Ventures faces a February deadline to assemble a completed financial package with closing projected for April. It's anyone's guess whether the partners will find the deep-pocketed backer or backers they need to bring Electric Works to life.
Potential tenants, among others, are standing by.
“I guess,” Eshelman said, “we're doing the limbo dance with everyone else.”
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