Aurelius Coworks is a socially responsible company that balances purpose and profit. We develop, own, operate and consult on communities that make a real impact. Our coworking communities are built to support startup enterprises, small businesses and non-profits.
We connect our coworking communities to the surrounding ecosystem and contribute to the regional economy where we are located. Our members benefit from the statewide and national networks we have connected to. Our spaces are meticulously built, our communities carefully cultivated, and we infuse the right mix of business and social programming in each community.
Aurelius is particularly interested in building communities in middle markets and urban downtowns undergoing revitalization. We look for places that embrace startup culture, are committed to supporting the needs of entrepreneurs, and have emerging business sectors.
Aurelius is wholly owned by Tom Nardacci, a veteran entrepreneur known as a leading advocate for the creative economy in upstate New York. In 2005, Tom created Gramercy after returning home to the state capital Albany after working in New York City and Washington, DC. He grew Gramercy into one of the leading public affairs firms in New York. Gramercy’s clients have represented over $10 billion worth of economic activity in the state over the past decade.
In 2016, Tom acquired a 14,000 square foot building on 4th Street in Downtown Troy that sat mostly vacant for 30 years and turned it into Troy Innovation Garage. The Garage caters to the Capital Region’s creative economy and tech sectors and is now home to 40 small companies. A number of Garage companies have taken advantage of the variety of programs and incubator services offered in the community. Garage companies have also raised millions of dollars in investment and capital.
Troy Innovation Garage was named “Innovative Development of the Year” by Capital Region Building Owners & Managers Association (BOMA) in 2017 and also honored with the “Sustainable Communities Award,” by The Stakeholders. New York Empire State Development’s Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) has consistently highlighted Troy Innovation Garage project as one of New York State’s development success stories.
In 2018, Tom developed his second community, Bull Moose Club, in 10,000 square foot leased space he gutted and renovated directly across the street from the New York State Capitol building. Catering to a variety of firms and organizations that have business in Albany, including Fortune 500 corporate and sales teams and enterprise or project management groups from technology companies.
Prior to starting his own companies, Tom’s career began as a Press Secretary for a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. He later directed public affairs for the Alliance for Downtown New York, lower Manhattan’s business improvement district (BID) and was involved in a variety of post-9/11 rebuilding projects initiatives.
Tom is a graduate of Syracuse University and Columbia University.
In just a few years, Troy Innovation Garage has become an integral part of the startup ecosystem in Upstate New York. The mix of amenities that the coworking community offers businesses, combined with a healthy mix of programs, connections, and incubator services is a perfect complement to many other activities happening in Downtown Troy, around the Capital Region, and the State. Our first-class approach to service and programming is a huge benefit to our members and guests. In our travels and visits to over 75 coworking spaces, incubators and accelerators around the country and world, what we built in Troy is in the same class as places in the country’s most celebrated startup communities.
This venture started with one massive building in the middle of Downtown Troy built in 1872, which had most famously housed an automobile dealership and garage for Pierce-Arrow automobiles, begging to be revitalized.
The project brought the myriad of complexities that any commercial redevelopment has. Additionally, we created and launched the Troy Innovation Garage brand and business operations. The design of Troy Innovation Garage was driven by the things I was seeing and hearing from other places I was visiting. Our architects were doing drawings as I was touring, and we made changes based on the things I thought were best practices.
We’ve developed in Troy, NY our flagship location, where we can experiment and work out concepts and critical operations. Also, we have fine-tuned our desire to go beyond real estate project and first and foremost do things that will lead to the success of our members. We’ve developed an “ecosystem model,” where we invest time and energy into participating and connecting to surrounding startup endeavors and economic development initiatives. We directly support growing business sectors and industries.