The document discusses how startups and technology companies can help reinvigorate downtown areas in American cities. It describes initiatives like New York City's H.E.L.M. program that awarded grants to tech companies willing to locate in Lower Manhattan, helping diversify the local economy after 9/11. Similarly, the New Orleans Business Alliance (NOLABA) was formed after Hurricane Katrina to promote economic growth through business recruitment and supporting the city's entrepreneurial ecosystem, including incubators and tech events. The document advocates developing industry clusters and increasing capital availability to help local startups grow and ensure cities benefit from the new economy.

1. Techs and the City:
How Startups Can Remake
the American Downtown
Bret Nolan Collazzi
HR&A Advisors
March 2014

2. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan1
New York | High Line
HR&A Advisors, Inc.

3. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan2
Nationally | The new economy is driving downtown office growth.
New OrleansNew York CitySan Francisco

4. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan3
Seattle | Amazon
HR&A Advisors, Inc.

5. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan4
Las Vegas | Zappos
HR&A Advisors, Inc.

6. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan5
Detroit | Quicken
HR&A Advisors, Inc.

7. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan6

8. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan7
CONTEXT
what
you
have
GOALS
what
you
want
Our Approach
DESIGN
what
you
do

10. H.E.L.M.
Runner-Up
H.E.L.M.
Finalist

11. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan10
Context | Lower Manhattan in recovery.
HR&A Advisors, Inc.
$4MFEDERAL GRANT

12. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan11
Context | Post-9/11 economy has a different look.
Source: Alliance for Downtown New York

13. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan12
Take the H.E.L.M. will help attract critical
high-growth industries to the area, and
ensure Lower Manhattan remains a global
center of innovative business activity for
decades.
̶ Seth W. Pinsky, then-President of NYCEDC, in 2012
“
”
Goal| Diversify the Lower Manhattan economy.

14. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan13
Design | The basics.

15. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan14
Design | How do we judge applicants?
1. CAPACITY TO BRING THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST
2. ABILITY TO PROMOTE LOWER MANHATTAN
3. OVERALL SUBMISSION QUALITY

16. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan15
Design | OK, pick a winner.
vs.

17. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan16
Design | Setting conditions.

18. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan17
Results | Significant interest and substantial prizes.
600+ applicants
$2.5M+ in prizes

19. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan18
Results | Significant investment in Lower Manhattan.
1/21/2

20. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan19
Results | “Showed the door” to Lower Manhattan.
We hadn't seriously considered Lower
Manhattan before we started
applying to H.E.L.M., and we're
thrilled to now have our headquarters
here.
̶ Alexa and James Hirschfeld
Co-founders, Paperless Post
HELM 1.0 Winners
“
”

21. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan20
Results | Generating buzz and enthusiasm.
SOMETIMES SMART SOMETIMES LUCKY

22. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan21
Results | New-to-NYC recruitment has been challenging.
H.E.L.M. APPLICANTS, BY ORIGIN

23. Techs in the City:
Entrepreneurship in New Orleans
March 27, 2014

24. Formation of NOLABA
• The idea for the New Orleans Business Alliance (NOLABA) was
hatched following the events of Hurricane Katrina
• Thanks to the strong leadership of Mayor Landrieu and the local
business community, NOLABA became a reality in August 2010
• NOLABA is a Public/Private Partnership whose mission is to grow
jobs and wealth for all the citizens of New Orleans
23

25. Strategic Planning: ProsperityNOLA5 Target Industry Clusters
24
NOLABA led the development of ProsperityNOLA:
A Plan to Drive Economic Growth for 2018.

26. Strategic Planning: ProsperityNOLA
Promote Entrepreneurship:
25
• Working with New Orleans BioInnovation Center to facilitate
collaboration in the bioinnvation entrepreneurship space including
Innovation Louisiana 2014
• Collaborating with the incubator Propeller to produce Capital 101, to
educate entrepreneurs about the various forms of capital
• Supporting and promoting PowerMoves.NOLA and InNOLAvation

27. Context: Entrepreneurial Assets
• Existing incubators
– NOBIC
– Idea Village
– Launch Pad
– Propeller
• Idea Village & New Orleans
Entrepreneur Week
• NOLA Tech Week
• Hackathons & TechCrunch
• Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses
26
• Creative Culture
– Quality of Life
– Share of residents with a
Bachelor’s or more grew
by 26% from 2000 to 2011
– New Orleans leads the
USA by 30% in number of
startups‐per‐capita

28. Results: Ideas for the Future
27
• Companies grow from start‐up to established phase
• Increase all forms of capital available to entrepreneurs in New Orleans
and expand the number of angel investors and venture capital firms in the
area
• Develop more cluster specific incubators
– BioInnovation Center Phase II
– Creative Digital Media incubator
How do we get there?

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Context | Changing priorities.

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Context | Big Tech in NYC is growing.

32. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan31
Context | Open data has been done.

33. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan32
Goal | Make the old new again.
EXCITEMENT
INCLUSION
RESULTS

34. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan33
Design | High-energy events with public exposure.

35. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan34
Design | Not just apps anymore.

36. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan35
Design | Introduced BigIdeas.
HOUSING
ENVIRONMENT
JOBS & ECONOMIC
MOBILITY
HEALTH
TRANSPORTATION
ARTS & CULTURE
PARKS & OPEN
SPACE
YOUTH SERVICES

37. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan36
Results | BigApps is a big test…
Launching April 30

38. Takeaways

39. HR&A Advisors, Inc. Take the HELM | Hire + Expand in Lower Manhattan38
Takeaways | If I leave you pondering three things, let them be…
CONTEXT COMES FIRST
BUILD IT NOT TO LAST
THINK LIKE A STARTUP

40. Techs and the City:
How Startups Can Remake
the American Downtown
Bret Nolan Collazzi
HR&A Advisors
March 2014

41. 40
935 Gravier Street, Suite 2020
New Orleans, LA 70112
(504) 934‐4500
www.nolaba.org
Melissa Ehlinger
Vice President, Strategy, Industry & Research
New Orleans Business Alliance
mehlinger@nolaba.org
(504) 934‐4500
Thank You.
To learn more, visit www.nolaba.org
This presentation has been prepared by the New Orleans Business Alliance (“NOLABA”) for discussion purposes only