Big news for the Dallas Entrepreneur Center this week: Not only did The DEC celebrate the grand opening of their newest location, The DEC @ Redbird, but the expansion was also awarded the Bank of America Neighborhood Builders grant for $200,000.

Bank of America created Neighborhood Builders with the intent to provide nonprofits with the tools to successfully develop, in turn creating more sustainable communities. To help nonprofits make this impact, the program focuses on key areas: leadership, flexible funding, and peer networking.

The DEC, a driver of innovation and economic impact for emerging startups and founders in the region, partnered with Reimagine Redbird — which has a mission to bring greater business opportunities and collaboration to Southern Dallas — for its latest location launch. One of five operations within the expansive DEC network, the Redbird location aims to be a collaborative ecosystem of resources, mentorship, education, training, and strategic partnerships for the thriving entrepreneurial community in the region.

The Nov. 1 launch of The DEC @ Redbird garnered a variety of guests and entrepreneurs all eager to explore the new space. Located in Oak Cliff in the Southwest Center Mall (which is currently under a redevelopment with plans to return to its original name, Red Bird), the new innovation hub’s main goal is to help entrepreneurs successfully start, build, and grow their businesses.

Dallas-Fort Worth foundations, organizations, businesses, and regional leaders all contributed to the project, including Hill-Wilkson, PAGE, VARIDESK, and corporate sponsors Bank of America, Comerica, Chase, Capital One and Frost Bank. Additionally, the Dallas Regional Chamber made The DEC @ Redbird a part of its ‘Southern Dallas Task Force,’ created to support economic growth in the sector.

Learn more about the major players

The Dallas Entrepreneur Center is a nonprofit founded in 2013 as a co-working space to help budding entrepreneurs and ensure Dallas is recognized as nationwide a leader for startups. Since creation, The DEC has launched numerous physical hubs and educational programs for founders, investors, corporations, and public institutions, all aimed at stimulating job growth and drive the DFW economy.

The Reimagine RedBird development is a historic, mixed-used project in southern Dallas. Voted as the 2017 best redevelopment by D Magazine, the “triumphant return of RedBird” started when Peter Brodsky acquired the Southwest Center Mall in 2015. His intention was to redevelop the mall and its surrounding properties in order to create a vibrant, mixed-use community where residents are able to live, work, play, and stay.

The DEC @ Redbird and the two other new location are led by Michelle Williams, pictured above. [Photo by Richard Holt]

Red Bird offers office space and quality designs to organizations like The DEC, which further leverages the development as a business hub. Together, Reimagine RedBird and The DEC say their partnership will catalyze economic growth in the area.

The DEC @ Redbird is part of a larger DEC initiative in Southern Dallas — last year, the organization announced that, in addition to the Red Bird location, it would open two conjunctions with UNT-Dallas and Paul Quinn College. In an April blog post, The DEC said the new expansions and programs were only the beginning of their plans to contribute to the North Texas entrepreneurial community — they have just begun to scratch the surface of those who can benefit from the robust entrepreneurial ecosystem created to support the entire DFW region.