Wanted: Small-business startups that seek to grow in the city of La Pine to lease space in a new incubator facility.

The city was given $1.5 million by the state Legislature for construction of a test incubator facility building that will be in the La Pine Industrial Park, said Geoff Wullschlager, La Pine city manager.

The La Pine facility will be the latest of a growing group of support systems in place around Central Oregon that help early stage businesses access mentors and investors while they move from the idea stage to start up. Incubation periods can last for a few months or several years.

The hope is that the La Pine small-business incubator will encourage more businesses to locate and develop, said Jon Stark, Economic Development for Central Oregon CEO. EDCO’s mission is to attract businesses that diversify the economy and bring middle-class jobs to the region.

“Incubators provide essential space early in a company’s life cycle, expediting the creation of startups and fostering entrepreneurship and economic vitality within communities,” Stark said. “This will undoubtedly catalyze rural community innovation, leading to future jobs and capital investment in south Deschutes County.”

There are other business incubators in Deschutes County that create safe ecosystems for entrepreneurs to develop ideas into businesses. When there’s a collaborative environment and value-added services, like networking and mentorship, innovation can be fostered that accelerates business growth, said Jordana Barclay, Business Oregon innovation strategist.

Business Oregon funded an innovation hub at Oregon State University-Cascades to support startup traded sector entrepreneurs in a district and hub in Central Oregon. It helps them network and access solutions and opportunities that will help them survive. Construction has not begun yet on the Innovation District, but the college does have a Innovation Co-Lab, which launched in 2018 as an incubator for startups. But the director left and the university has said it will use part of the grant funds to hire a new director.

La Pine’s infrastructure

The La Pine incubator will be about 5,000 to 8,000 square feet, enough to house about seven tenants, Wullschlager said. Construction at the city’s industrial park is expected to be done in 2025.

“(La Pine) endeavors to create multiple industrial/light industrial units under one roof that can attract and retain start ups and small businesses in the manufacturing and distribution sectors that may find challenges in acquiring or accessing appropriate space,” Wullschlager said. “The city and its contractors are in the pre-planning phases with consultants.”

The 330-acre industrial park, just a half mile from U.S. Highway 97 and 30 miles south of Bend, is another example of how La Pine is working to stimulate local job creation . The city is committed to offering easy permitting, affordability and a state-qualified enterprise zone that can offer up to five years of property tax relief for qualifying businesses, according to the Sunriver/La Pine Economic Development department documents.

The funds were secured by state Rep. E. Werner Reschke, R-Klamath Falls, for the city of about 2,600 people.

The population has grown 52%, the highest rate in the region, according to economic development documents. Housing is still relatively affordable in La Pine, with the median single family home sales price at $425,000 in May, compared to Bend that has a median single family sales price of $707,000.

During the next year, La Pine will solicit bids from contractors. Once built, the incubator will be home to businesses that will help stimulate the economy in La Pine, said Patricia Lucas, Sunriver-La Pine Economic Development executive director.

“La Pine is a small town,” Lucas said. “We don’t want a big building. We’re formulating the project. There’s a lot of good stuff happening in La Pine.”