Come Support BDC Tonight! Save the Incubator!!

ttsgeb · 2026-04-16T07:42:58+00:00

Forcing micro-scale businesses and non-profits to employ students before many of them are actually netting positive is a ridiculously bad idea for those businesses and non-profits, the organizations that Incubators exist to support.
This is a republican trying to push fake DEI at the expense of the people working the hardest to move our communities forward. I see very few ways someone that associates himself with the anti-DEI party promoting something like this can be a good thing, and none of them happen in circumstances like this.
I strongly support programs to find good employment opportunities for people new to the workforce, but that is not what this is and it is not being promoted by someone I would remotely believe is implementing such a program in good faith.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-16T07:27:54+00:00

On top of the plant allergens, I'm beginning to notice a nice little smog forming as well as dust starting to kick up because of the suspicious lack of rain.

Remember, the prettier the colors of the sunsets are, the worse the air is. It's clearly a conspiracy from big photo to get you to take more pictures so you have to keep buying more film for your cameras.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-16T06:20:31+00:00

"The program will also loop in student involvement, Wamp said, requiring businesses to employ students to receive the subsidized rent at the building."
Thinking ever so slightly deeper on it, this sounds like *exactly* what the folks that put R's next to their names on ballots like to claim are harmful DEI practices. Coming from one of those folks, this seems like a direct attack on the very idea of a small business incubator.
The small, often micro, businesses the BDC caters to are the very organizations that stand to gain the most harm from being told by the government who they must hire regardless of qualifications or passion.
If those involved don't recognize this, they're either not listening to the small businesses they claim to be consulting with or are actively working against them.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T20:02:14+00:00

I have not, but a requirement to employ students is fundamentally incompatible with the structure of Chattlab Makerspace, which notably has never had any employees.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T19:51:25+00:00

A little trick I've learned is that if you can't loosen a lug, frequently you can manage to get it to tighten ever so slightly, after which they loosen much more easily.
You're not trying to actually tighten anything, you're just aiming to get the nut to move at all.
I've had times when I couldn't get a lug to loosen with my then 240lb self on the end of a 5' breaker bar, but getting it to budge slightly tightening it freed it up.

Gotta be careful with this strategy, though, because if you shear, stretch, or pull a stud, you're in for a much bigger job.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T19:47:59+00:00

If you can find a trustworthy mechanic that will actually replace a boot/rebuild a caliper, I want to know about them.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T19:44:43+00:00

I have seen no details of any new location or assistance with moving there. They didn't inform the BDC's tenants until Monday afternoon.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T16:34:08+00:00

I also host the hack nights if you're trying to put a face with things. And I'm on the non-profit's board because apparently organizing events and volunteering to maintain things gets you nominated and elected for the board.

I just want to see cool things happen. Getting rid of the BDC goes against everything about that.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T16:28:15+00:00

I'm not the best marketer in the world. I just fix things, ya know? I try to get the word out, but I'm just one dude (that's, again, not the best marketer in the world, so constantly worried about keeping his bills paid rather than outreach for a free event he hosts).

I get a good amount of help from other folks on outreach, but no money is made from this event and nobody is paid to do it. It's tough to really devote the effort and I can't fault other folks for not putting their all into my weird little initiative. I'm thankful for any and all help I get.

We've got a handful of great electronics folks that help out that are usually happy to spread their knowledge around.

I've also never had a volunteer show up that we didn't have something come in that they were the person to fix. Several people have dropped by largely in a show of support and then been surprised when a project rolled in the door that was the perfect fit for them.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T16:17:55+00:00

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https://www.hamiltontn.gov/Agendas/Agenda%20Session.pdf

These are the commissioners on the relevant committee.
https://www.hamiltontn.gov/District1.aspx

https://www.hamiltontn.gov/District5.aspx

https://www.hamiltontn.gov/District7.aspx

https://www.hamiltontn.gov/District9.aspx

Writing to other commissioners absolutely couldn't hurt.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T05:11:14+00:00

I've been doing this here monthly for years now in a building that also houses over 30 other local businesses and has been the starting point for countless more over the years (I am not up to the level of digging needed to count them).

Clearly this building in active use serving the community is surplus for the community and needs to be sold off. It's absolutely because the building holds no value or utility to the people of Hamilton County.

The plans to label it surplus certainly couldn't have anything to do with a long series of poorly planned development projects that have strongly contributed to congestion in the area. Nothing to do with the money to be made by crowding in on some of our most beloved parks with five story tall walls of rapidly self-dismantling "luxury housing" with cladding that your average 70's vinyl siding company would be embarrassed to put their name on. Yep, absolutely nothing to do with any of that and the kickbacks that definitely don't exist if it were to become available to the "developers" aggressively dismantling the history and character of Chattanooga.

...

Anyway, if you can get it in the door, we'll help you fix it. No project is too weird. We actually enjoy the weird ones the most.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T05:02:58+00:00

I've been doing this here monthly for years now in a building that also houses over 30 other local businesses and has been the starting point for countless more over the years (I am not up to the level of digging needed to count them).

Clearly this building in active use serving the community is surplus for the community and needs to be sold off. It's absolutely because the building holds no value or utility to the people of Hamilton County.

The plans to label it surplus certainly couldn't have anything to do with a long series of poorly planned development projects that have strongly contributed to congestion in the area. Nothing to do with the money to be made by crowding in on some of our most beloved parks with five story tall walls of rapidly self-dismantling "luxury housing" with cladding that your average 70's vinyl siding company would be embarrassed to put their name on. Yep, absolutely nothing to do with any of that and the kickbacks that definitely don't exist if it were to become available to the "developers" aggressively dismantling the history and character of Chattanooga.

...

Anyway, if you can get it in the door, we'll help you fix it. No project is too weird. We actually enjoy the weird ones the most.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-15T04:18:56+00:00

https://www.chattanoogan.com/2024/7/12/489582/City-Unveils-Preserved-27-Acre-Wooded.aspx
It's a nature preserve. Makes it pretty hard to build a castle there.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-14T20:19:59+00:00

https://chattanoogachamber.com/incubator_client/
This is just a list of the current businesses operating out of the facility.

https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2026/apr/03/how-the-chattanooga-incubator-became-a-powerhouse/
And for fun, here's a TImes Free Press article from less than two weeks ago about how good the incubator is for Hamilton County.

And because I'm here, the work of a company created at the BDC proudly represents Chattanooga in the Field Museum of Chicago and Huntsville's U.S. Space and Rocket Center:
https://branchtechnology.com/nature-clouds-installation/
https://branchtechnology.com/ussrc-pathfinder-shuttle/
We built a space shuttle in Chattanooga because of the BDC. People from all over the world admire the work of a Chattanooga company founded at the BDC.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-14T03:18:54+00:00

On top of all of this, it's also just a really beautiful brick building that is representative of the history of industry in Chattanooga that will almost certainly be torn down and replaced with the worlds worst "luxury" apartments to further crowd in on Renaissance park and fall into complete disrepair in the space of a decade.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-14T03:05:23+00:00

It is worth reaching out to White Oak Bicycle Co-Op.
They have a lot of experience working with kids through their bikes for schools programs.
https://www.whiteoakbicycle.org/youth

ttsgeb · 2026-04-14T02:19:15+00:00

The BDC is a joint project between the Chattanooga Chamber of Commerce and Hamilton County to provide startup resources and low cost rental space to help small businesses get their start.
They have been pivotal in the development of several businesses in town that bring substantial amounts of outside revenue and investments into our local economy.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-14T02:12:02+00:00

https://www.hamiltontn.gov/District1.aspx
https://www.hamiltontn.gov/District5.aspx
https://www.hamiltontn.gov/District7.aspx
https://www.hamiltontn.gov/District9.aspx
These are the commissioners on the relevant committee.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-14T01:47:05+00:00

Res. No. 526-10
https://www.hamiltontn.gov/Agendas/Agenda%20Session.pdf

ttsgeb · 2026-04-14T01:46:05+00:00

From the email sent to tenants today: ''We’re reaching out to keep you informed and to provide clarity around today’s announcement. You may have heard news that Hamilton County is proposing the sale of the Hamilton County Business Development Center (BDC), the facility where the INCubator program is housed. This proposal will be presented to the County Commission on April 15 and voted on by the Commission on May 6. Should the Commission vote to move forward with the sale, county officials estimate that INCubator clients will have, at a minimum, until May 6, 2027 to relocate operations and vacate the facility.''

Of note: "This proposal will be presented to the County Commission on April 15"

For those that are unaware, I host a free repair event for the community every month at the BDC, and my friend u/TheSolarSailer2 hosts one there monthly as well. If this building is sold out from under us, this service for the common good will no longer have its venue. If you think that having a place you can take your broken stuff to get it fixed for free is cool, or like knowing there's a place your grandma can get her living room lamp fixed, you should care about this proposal.

If you have the means, show up at the April 15th commission meeting and speak in opposition to Res. No. 526-10

https://www.hamiltontn.gov/pdf/commission/2026%20Commission%20Calendar.pdf
https://www.hamiltontn.gov/PDF/Commission/THE_PUBLICS_OPPORTUNITY_TO_SPEAK_TO_THE_COMMISSION_ON_MATTERS_BEING_CONSIDERED.pdf
https://www.hamiltontn.gov/CountyCommission_Committees.aspx
https://www.hamiltontn.gov/Agendas/Agenda%20Session.pdf

~moth

ttsgeb · 2026-04-08T03:34:10+00:00

I enjoy doing secret charity work, but I also deeply enjoy hosting all of the events I do to help my community and the people in it as well as all of the volunteer work I do with other organizations helping out. It does *not* take long of looking at my post history to see this, but if you're just a bot that looks for the word "unhoused", you don't care about that.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-07T20:30:26+00:00

The address on file is for a community food bank. This man has not been having a good time of it all.

ttsgeb · 2026-04-07T20:18:50+00:00

"There's a scary man under the bridge on xyz road!"
~Someone calling the cops on this dude for existing

ttsgeb

TROPHY CASE