ECONOMIC AND FISCAL IMPACTS OF A BUSINESS INCUBATOR

Business incubators are one option communities have to support busines s survival and growth. Incubators are locally based institutions that provide shared physical space and business support services to new and young firms. Most incubator evaluations have not measured total emplo yment and income impacts or the fiscal impacts generated by incubator firms. This article describes the economic and fiscal impacts of one b usiness incubator to illustrate how an incubator can encourage jobs an d income in a local community. Incubators generate jobs and income and create linkages with firms inside and outside the local economy over the long run. The cost of creating these jobs is competitive with thos e costs associated with attracting manufacturing investment into a loc al community. Incubators can have an impact on communities that are no t well positioned to attract such external investments.