The nonprofit Community Partnership Inc. of Butler is planning to use state tax credit financing toward the cost of transforming part of a vacant downtown building into an entrepreneurial training center.

Northwest Bank provided $13,750 in tax credits through the state Neighborhood Assistance Program that Community Partnership will put toward the cost of renovating the first floor of the building at 115-117 S. Main St. into a multipurpose space that will include a entrepreneurial training center.

The goal is to offer the 13-week CO.STARTERS entrepreneurial training program in the spring, said Sandra Curry, Community Partnership manager.

She said the free course will be held virtually in the spring, but the renovations will include classroom space.

“We're looking at giving ourselves some classroom space for when we're able to go back to in-person training,” Curry said.

CO.STARTERS curriculum is geared toward low- to no-income people with ideas about starting businesses.

“It walks prospective entrepreneurs through the process of identifying their business model,” Curry said. “It really helps you get to the point where your next step is writing your business plan.”

Michael Robb, Community Partnership executive director, said the building is structurally sound, but needs cosmetic improvements.

“We're ready to take the next step and do some upgrades to the building,” Robb said.

He said the classroom will have the latest computer software technology from A-Tech of Butler and that company's services will be offered to students who start businesses.

Robb said he will also talk to the Butler County Chamber of Commerce about working with the classes' prospective entrepreneurs.

“It's going to be open to anybody. We want to make it very user friendly,” he said.

Community Partnership and Butler County Community College collaborated to offer a CO.STARTERS training program at BC3, Curry said.

Students who successfully complete the program through the collaboration received four credits toward BC3's 16-credit Entrepreneurship Workplace Certificate.

Hillary Zeigler, 27, of Ellwood City, graduated from BC3 with an associate degree in business management in 2013, but will return to take the CO.STARTERS class over the summer.

“I always wanted to own my own business, and I thought this would be a good way to learn more about it,” Zeigler said.

The class gave her encouragement.

“Starting a business was more of a possibility than I thought it was going to be,” she said.

To complete a class assignment, Zeigler said she had to interview an entrepreneur. She selected her cousin, who owns a trucking business. “He said he hates office work and paperwork. I realized that was my target audience,” Zeigler said.

She said she now takes care of his paperwork, email management, scheduling, bookkeeping and social media activity.

“I'm a CO.STARTERS success story,” said Zeigler, who officially launched her business, Zeigler Virtual Assistant, in September.

Curry said Community Partnership uses discretionary money from the Department of Community and Economic Development's Community Service Block Grant program to pay for the CO.STARTERS program, cover tuition costs and buy books for students.

Community Partnership is also hoping to use the training center to hold classes to help farmers expand their operations.

Using federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security funding, Community Partnership is working with the Penn State Extension to develop classes to teach income-qualifying farmers to change their business plans to add online ordering or home delivery services, or make other changes to help their businesses, Curry said.

Community Partnership's project is among the 214 community revitalization projects across the state funded by $36 million through the Neighborhood Assistance Program that Gov. Tom Wolf announced Monday.

“The Neighborhood Assistance Program has historically been a valued resource for communities across Pennsylvania, and that is true now more than ever,” Wolf said. “This has been a challenging year for all of us, and the projects we are supporting today will help us grow stronger and more resilient in 2021 and beyond.''

By providing tax credits to businesses that donate capital, the assistance program encourages private sector investment into distressed communities to support projects that address neighborhood and community problems, he said 

It can be used for projects in categories such as affordable housing, community services, crime prevention, education, job training, charitable food, blight, special population issues, veteran's initiatives and long-term community revitalization.