Solution

Creating a New Type of Innovation District (iPark)

This solution addresses vacant land, hampered economic and environmental resilience in El Paso, Milwaukee, & New Orleans for city planners and environmental technology companies

Problem Description

Many cities want to revitalize former industrial sites for new urban development, yet these sites suffer from environmental contamination and years of neglect. This problem—needing good infrastructure to attract economic growth and needing an existing user base to justify funding for infrastructure—is something every city faces. By creating a new type of innovation district (iPark) for technology demonstration, a City can generate funds to attract leading companies, leverage financing for infrastructure improvements, and incubate new solutions in museum-quality parks. The iPark brings together residents, government, philanthropies, and corporations to explore early-stage commercial interventions and provide vetted and trusted options for new urban innovation, R&D, and system investment.

Building Blocks

Story

Conventional procurement processes limit opportunities to access and test best-available technologies. The opaque contracting, permitting, and regulatory processes that limit public innovation also stymie private companies. Often environmental infrastructure companies either fail to grow or set-up testing sites in friendly R&D environments abroad. A city can solve these challenges with a proposed Innovation Park that brings together elements from successful models, including trade shows (installation agreements); accelerators (sponsorship & venture fund structures); and museums (education & curation systems). What makes the solution unique are the links to existing infrastructure systems (in-situ/utility connections) and focus on municipal evaluation and procurement of resilience solutions.

Photos

Resources

RE.invest Initiative - A Roadmap for Resilience
RE.invest Initiative - Milwaukee City Report
RE.invest Initiative - El Paso City Report
RE.invest Initiative - New Orleans City Report
The Rise of Innovation Districts
An article and report on the rise of Innovation Districts, from the Brookings Institute

Contributed By

Elle Hempen, re:focus partners

Solution Stage

One of the 7 stages of an innovation. Learn more

STAGE	SPECIALIST SKILLS REQUIRED	EXAMPLE ACTIVITIES	RISK LEVEL AND HANDLING	FINANCE REQUIRED	KINDS OF EVIDENCE GENERATED	GOAL
Generating ideas2	Ideation and facilitation of creative thinking	Creativity methods Design tools Crowdsourcing Open innovation Awards and rewards Challenge prizes	High failure rate should be an explicit expectation Visible senior leadership essential HIGH	Usually grants, occassionally convertible LOW	A clear account of change or likely causation, supported – but not overly constrained – by evidence	An idea or set of ideas to develop and test

Submitted By

Elle Hempen