Penn State New Kensington Chancellor Kevin Snider previewed the new Entrepreneurial Center Feb. 10 at a meeting of local business leaders and city and county officials in the new Knead Community Café in downtown New Kensington.
More than 60 people turned out for the latest news about Penn State New Kensington's Entrepreneur Center.
Penn State New Kensington Chancellor Kevin Snider explains Penn State's re-emergence in the city of New Kensington with the Entrepreneur Center on Fifth Avenue. According to Snider, “in a way, it’s coming home.” The first New Kensington campus in 1958 was in a former high school building located on Fourth Avenue in the city. The need to expand necessitated Penn State's move to the present location five miles away in Upper Burrell.
Kevin Bode developed the Knead Community Cafe based on a model created by Jon Bon Jovi in Red Bank, New Jersey. The concept allows patrons of Bode's cafe, which opens in February, to pay what they can afford for a meal or volunteer in the cafe.
Jason Rigone, director of the Westmoreland County Industrial Development Corporation, discusses the purchase of the building at the corner of 7th Street and 5th Avenue in New Kensington. The building will serve as Penn State New Kensington's Entrepreneur Center.
Matthew Ciccone, CEO of the Beauty Shoppe, helped revitalize the East Liberty neighborhood of Pittsburgh. The Beauty Shoppe is partnering with the campus to get the Entrepreneur Center up and running and handle operations of the space. Under their model, the expectation is that revenue generated by the space will help sustain the facility and provide resources to the entrepreneurial components.
Tom Guzzo, mayor of New Kensington, is working with Chancellor Kevin Snider to bring the business incubator to fruition and incorporate it into the city’s plan to become a “smart” city.
Kevin Bode points out some interesting features about his Knead Community Cafe, especially the use of recycled materials. The café opens in late February and is part of the effort to bring innovative ideas to downtown New Kensington.
The Knead Community Cafe's decor features re-purposed materials, such as two old doors that are part of the counter face.
The Knead Community Cafe is a part of the former Sons of Italy building on 5th Avenue in New Kensington. The entrance to the cafe is located on Barnes Street.
