FLC unveils the Fort Lewis College Downtown Center to strengthen regional partnerships

Fort Lewis College unveiled a new name and a broader mission for its downtown hub Tuesday, relaunching the Center for Innovation as the Fort Lewis College Downtown Center, a collaborative space for partnership, workforce development, civic connection, and regional collaboration in the heart of Durango.

FLC leaders, joined by partners, community members, business owners, and civic leaders, announced the new name at an event at the center, 835 Main Ave. in the Main Mall.

“We’re putting our commitment to the community into practice through listening, shared learning, and work that matters to our region,” said FLC President Heather Shotton. “By expanding the vision of this space and being responsive to community needs, right here on Main Avenue, we are building a more prosperous region together.”

Now housed within FLC’s Office of Academic Affairs, the Fort Lewis College Downtown Center brings together FLC@Work, FLC’s AI Institute, the City of Durango’s Prosperity Office, the La Plata County Economic Development Alliance, the Southwest Colorado Small Business Development Center (SBDC), and SCAPE. Partners continue to lead their own programs, while FLC provides the shared space and connects their work.

“This center is FLC’s contribution and responsibility to our region,” said Provost Mario Martinez. He said before the relaunch, his team went back to campus and the community to help shape the new vision for the hub.

New vision

“The message was clear: Keep it going. Keep creating connections between the College and the community,” he said. “This became our mandate.”

The Fort Lewis College Downtown Center is a space where public interest, civic initiatives, economic development, and community building meet, Martinez said, a space where shared physical space where ideas “are shared in an environment of trust and collaboration among people and organizations,” he added.

For the partners, being able to be in one space together and have conversations in real life is the most exciting part of the program.

“I think with in-person conversations, you get a lot of the nuance that you can’t get in an email or through an application. When a company plans to become part of our program or inquires about our investment funds, the additional in-person interaction is key to the relationship. I think it’s always important, but it’s certainly important in this day and age. So having this space downtown, where people can gather, or where we can go out into the community, is just going to make that easier. For me, it’s really about in-person and real-life connections,” said Heather Otter, executive director of the Southwest Colorado Accelerator Program for Entrepreneurs.

“Economic development doesn’t happen in silos,” added Sarah Tober, executive director of the La Plata Economic Alliance. “It’s really important for the entrepreneurs that I work with that we have housing, that we have childcare, that we have all the things, and that they have an opportunity to grow around this space. So all of us together really support that mission. It really takes a village to grow our community.”

Building on a legacy

The center opened in 2020 as a collaborative hub for organizations that support entrepreneurs, small businesses, and economic development across Southwest Colorado.

The Fort Lewis College Downtown Center builds on that foundation while expanding opportunities for workforce development, civic engagement, and community partnerships, said Liz Cartier, dean of the Katz School of Business.

“Our partners bring a deep understanding of this region,” Cartier said during the event. “They have built relationships over time, and they have experience responding to community needs. Their ideas and priorities will help shape what happens in this place, and their investment is essential to the FLC Downtown Center’s success.”

“The region’s economic and civic life grow stronger when its institutions and people work together,” said Phelps Feeley, director of workforce and strategic partnerships at FLC. “The FLC Downtown Center is a shared place for that work. Consider this your standing invitation to come in, be part of it, and get off the sidelines and into the FLC Downtown Center.”