Economic Development and Infrastructure Committee — Columbia, SC
Date: 2025-01-28
Time: 11:00

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING
 AGENDA
 TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2025


The Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee will conduct a meeting on
Tuesday, January 28, 2025 at 3:00 p.m. at City Hall (Mayor's Conference Room),
1737 Main Street, Second Floor, Columbia, SC 29201. The meeting can be viewed
online at www.columbiasc.gov. Please contact the City Clerk’s Office at (803)545-
3045 or cityclerk@columbiasc.gov if you have questions regarding the meeting.

 The Honorable Peter M. Brown, District IV, Chair
 The Honorable William Brennan, District III  The Honorable Aditi Bussells, At-Large

Prior to entering the meeting please silence all electronic communication devices. All presenters are asked to
 speak directly into the microphone for recording purposes.

CALL TO ORDER

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

1. October 22, 2024 Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee
 Meeting Minutes

COMMITTEE DISCUSSION

2. USC/Columbia Technology Incubator Branding - The Honorable Peter
 M. Brown

ADJOURNMENT




 Page 1 of 1

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING
 AGENDA
 TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2025


The Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee will conduct a meeting on
Tuesday, January 28, 2025 at 3:00 p.m. at City Hall (Mayor's Conference Room),
1737 Main Street, Second Floor, Columbia, SC 29201. The meeting can be viewed
online at www.columbiasc.gov. Please contact the City Clerk’s Office at (803)545-
3045 or cityclerk@columbiasc.gov if you have questions regarding the meeting.

 The Honorable Peter M. Brown, District IV, Chair
 The Honorable William Brennan, District III  The Honorable Aditi Bussells, At-Large

Prior to entering the meeting please silence all electronic communication devices. All presenters are asked to
 speak directly into the microphone for recording purposes.

CALL TO ORDER

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

1. October 22, 2024 Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee
 Meeting Minutes

COMMITTEE DISCUSSION

2. USC/Columbia Technology Incubator Branding - The Honorable Peter
 M. Brown

ADJOURNMENT




 Page 1 of 1
 1




MEETING DATE: January 28, 2025

DEPARTMENT: City Clerk

FROM: Erika Hammond, City Clerk

SUBJECT: October 22, 2024 Economic Development &
 Infrastructure Committee Meeting Minutes
FUNDING SOURCE &
ORIGINAL BUDGET:


ATTACHMENTS:
  EDIC_MN_10222024 (DOCX)




Updated: 1/2/2025 2:16 PM Page 1
 Packet Pg. 2
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 Attachment: EDIC_MN_10222024 (9841 : October 22, 2024 Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee Meeting Minutes)
 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING
 MINUTES
 TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2024

CALL TO ORDER

The Columbia Economic Development and Infrastructure Committee conducted a
meeting on Tuesday, October 22, 2024 at City Hall (Mayor’s Conference Room),
Second Floor, 1737 Main Street, Columbia, South Carolina 29201. The Honorable
Peter M. Brown, Chair called the meeting to order at 3:01 p.m. and the following
members were present:

 Attendee Name Title Status
 Peter M. Brown Chair Present
 Will Brennan Member Present
 Aditi Bussells Member Present

ADOPTION OF AGENDA

Upon a motion made by Mr. Brennan and seconded by Dr. Bussells, the Committee
voted unanimously to adopt the agenda subject to adding Executive Session for the
discussion of matters relating to the proposed location, expansion, or provision of
services encouraging location or expansion of industries or other businesses in the
area served by the public body pursuant to S.C. Code §30-4-70(a)(5) - 2725 Main
Street.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

1. Approval of the August 13, 2024 and September 24, 2024 Economic
 Development & Infrastructure Committee Meeting Minutes.

Upon a motion made by Dr. Bussells and seconded by Mr. Brennan, the committee
voted unanimously to approve the August 13, 2024 and September 24, 2024
Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee Meeting Minutes.

PRESENTATIONS

2. Reaching Riverbanks Community Mobility Plan - Mr. Kevin Bacon, AIA, AICP,
 Director of Urban Design, Southern US, Toole Design – Received as
 information.

Mr. Kevin Bacon, AIA, AICP, Director of Urban Design at Toole Design explained the
work behind a comprehensive study of the Broad River, Saluda River, and the
Earlewood area, which has significant growth potential. The project, set for



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 Attachment: EDIC_MN_10222024 (9841 : October 22, 2024 Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee Meeting Minutes)
 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING
 MINUTES
 TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2024

finalization in the fall of 2024, aims to proactively address future development in a
region with limited available land. He emphasized the need for alignment between
city and county land use, focusing on an integrated mobility system and previous
planning efforts. The goal is to create an inclusive environment that celebrates the
area's natural beauty while outlining a framework for public spaces, greenway
options, and improved neighborhood connectivity.

There was discussion about identifying and connecting smaller projects; strategic
deployment of funds; necessity of infrastructure; organizing the neighborhoods; and
the interface between land use and transportation.

Councilor Brown asked for a review of the charrette responses to the plan.

Councilor Brennan suggested Greystone Boulevard as a catalyst project.

Ms. Leigh DeForth, AICP, Senior Planner/Comprehensive Planner explained that the
next steps involve requesting the adoption of the area plans. We utilize the plans to
provide you and the boards and commissions with feedback on what the public
planning process has recommended.

3. Shaw Circle's Southeast Innovation Tour Report - Mr. Jordan Fowler, Chief
 Executive Officer – Received as information.

Mr. Jordan Fowler, Chief Executive Officer said while there are a lot of cities with
robust ecosystems, Columbia has all of the pieces that it needs to be successful in
quantum and in a broader entrepreneurship and innovation niche. The road show
helped us identify what’s working for cities and what more Columbia can do.

Mr. Ryan Henry, Chief Operating Officer categorized the team’s efforts into short-
term and long-term impacts. In the short term, we focused on learning and promoting
Columbia by leveraging both our company and personal social media platforms, which
generated 19,000 impressions on our company page and 50,000 across personal
accounts. We met with 30 key individuals who could potentially transform our tech
ecosystem and influence the city’s trajectory. We came back with an idea of how the
most established incubators curate talent.

Mr. Carter Burns, Co-Chief Information Officer shared the tour stops: Georgia,
Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, and Florida.




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 Packet Pg. 4
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 Attachment: EDIC_MN_10222024 (9841 : October 22, 2024 Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee Meeting Minutes)
 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING
 MINUTES
 TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22, 2024

They collectively spoke about fostering entrepreneurship in Columbia by uniting
ambitious students from various fields through multidisciplinary capstone projects
and mentorship programs. They emphasized the need for a cohesive entrepreneurial
culture, discussed successful models from other cities, and proposed a strategic focus
on quantum computing as a potential growth area. Collaboration among local
universities was highlighted as essential for creating a supportive ecosystem,
alongside the need for a unified brand to market these initiatives effectively.

There was discussion about leveraging institutional capital; incubators; culture
building; quantum and machine learning; industry crossover; innovation approach;
and company retention.

Councilor Will Brennan left the meeting at 4:30.

Councilor Brown suggested coming up with a public private partnership and
connecting with the work being done at the Launch Pad through the University of
Georgia.

Mayor Rickenmann suggested following up and exploring what Tulsa is doing.

EXECUTIVE SESSION

Upon a motion made by Dr. Bussells and seconded by Mr. Brown, the Committee
entered into Executive Session at 4:33 p.m. for discussion of matters relating to the
proposed location, expansion, or provision of services encouraging location or
expansion of industries or other businesses in the area served by the public body
pursuant to S.C. Code §30-4-70(a)(5) - 2725 Main Street.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting was adjourned at 4:46 p.m.

Respectfully submitted:



Erika D. Moore Hammond, CMC
City Clerk




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 Packet Pg. 5
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MEETING DATE: January 28, 2025

DEPARTMENT: City Clerk

FROM: Erika Hammond, City Clerk

SUBJECT: USC/Columbia Technology Incubator Branding -
 The Honorable Peter M. Brown
FUNDING SOURCE &
ORIGINAL BUDGET:




Updated: 1/24/2025 3:21 PM Page 1
 Packet Pg. 6

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING
 MINUTES
 TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2025

CALL TO ORDER

The Columbia Economic Development and Infrastructure Committee conducted a
meeting on Tuesday, January 28, 2025 at City Hall (Mayor’s Conference Room),
Second Floor, 1737 Main Street, Columbia, South Carolina 29201. The Honorable
Peter M. Brown, Chair called the meeting to order at 3:05 p.m. and the following
members were present:

Attendee Name Title Status
Peter M. Brown Chair Present
Will Brennan Member Remote
Aditi Bussells Member Present

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

1. October 22, 2024 Economic Development & Infrastructure Committee
 Meeting Minutes – Approved

Upon a motion made by Dr. Bussells and seconded by Mr. Brennan, the Committee
voted unanimously to approve the October 22, 2024 Economic Development &
Infrastructure Committee Meeting Minutes.

COMMITTEE DISCUSSION

2. USC/Columbia Technology Incubator Branding - The Honorable Peter M.
 Brown – Received as information

Mayor Rickenmann discussed the overall branding initiative for the incubator. A
proposal was requested and a cost estimate has been received. The goal is to
create a collaborative hub where various groups will work together. This hub will
include groups like Cola Love, GrowCo, Fem X, and Quantum X. He clarified that
this incubator will not be affiliated with the University of South Carolina

There was discussion about the scope of work for centralized branding; the city’s
leadership; naming the hub “Midlands Innovative Xchange (MIX)”; and Midlands
Technical College sharing the space.

There was consensus of the Committee to forward the matter to the City Manager.




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 ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING
 MINUTES
 TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2025

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting was adjourned at 3:27 p.m.

Respectfully submitted:



Erika D. Moore Hammond, CMC
City Clerk




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