New plan to create technology jobs

AUSTIN (KXAN) - The Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce is embarking on a new initiative to accelerate the growth of Austin's technology community. One part of the strategy is setting aside a special downtown space where entrepreneurs and start-ups can build their companies and ultimately create more jobs.

Susan Davenport, senior vice president for Global Technology Strategies at the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, said they started the Technology Partnership of Austin in June to move the industry forward in Austin. The partnership includes an advisory board of local technology leaders who can discuss various ideas about how to improve Austin's technology infrastructure.

Part of the overall strategy is finding an open working space downtown called Austin Live.

"We're looking at shared co-working space that entrepreneurs can come into and really rent a desk, so to speak, and sit among their peers and other partners and grow companies such that we are growing that base of our own, as well as recruiting new tech companies in the area and making this whole eco-system stronger," said Davenport.

The Chamber has looked at dozens of downtown offices to get ideas for how they want the new space to look and feel.

Some of those spaces include the offices of Vast , Boundless Network and Thinktiv . All of the offices have high ceilings and open floor plans where employees can discuss their ideas freely. The Chamber wants to have the space downtown because of the creativity it can provide to start-up businesses.

Jason Black, founder and CEO of Boundless Networks, said he chose the space because of the energy downtown.

"We've got a creative culture, a lot of entreprenuerial, a lot of young employees and so this space is great," he said.

Justin Boyd Petro, president and co-founder of Thinktiv, said working downtown brings in more quality employees.

"It allows us to attract very great talent from outside because the urban core is really where Austin is being rebuilt these days and really growing," Petro said.

Black, Petro and John Price, CEO and president of Vast, said the Chamber's Austin Live initiative will create a central hub for Austin's tech industry that will help get the word out.

"I think that Austin is actually one of the best entrepreneurial communities in the country. It's just that nobody really knows that yet," Price said.

He said South by Southwest helps, but it's not enough.

"South by Southwest has really put Austin on the map in the entreprenuers' minds in terms of, 'Hey, I love Austin, Texas.' But as far as the Austin benefit from it, it's that 20,000 entreprenuers come in March -- and a week later all we're left with is empty beer kegs," Price said.

Price said the new downtown space will help get some of those entreprenuers to unpack and stay in Austin. If they stay and build businesses in Austin that will lead to more jobs in Central Texas.

"This is one of the most important initiatives that our regional economy will undertake in decades," said Davenport.

According to the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, tech jobs constitute 12 percent of the workforce in Central Texas and it drives 25 percent of the regional pay roll.

"[Tech jobs] keep this economy flourishing and humming and moving forward," said Davenport.

She hopes to have the downtown work space known as Austin Live set aside by March 2012, which is just in time for South by Southwest. Davenport said funding will come from private and public partnerships.