Dennis Lower
President of Innovation Community Strategies (ICS)
First recorded March 8, 2022
Dennis Lower, president of Innovation Community Strategies (ICS) in St. Louis, Missouri, has been involved for 25 years in developing technology innovation districts that position regions to be competitive in the national and global technology economy. ICS consults with corporations, universities and cities around the world who wish to pursue place-based technology development strategies that leverage regional assets, real estate, and innovation programming to create vibrant entrepreneurial communities. Dennis also serves as a Strategic Advisor on innovation districts to HR&A Advisors and the Global Institute on Innovation District.
From 2010 to 2020, Dennis was the first president and CEO of the Cortex Innovation Community in St. Louis’s historic Central West End neighborhood. During his Cortex tenure, Dennis was responsible for nearly three million square feet of completed and under construction development that today supports over 6,300 jobs who annually generate over $2 billion of regional economic output. For the decade prior, he served as Vice President of Planning & Development for the Biomedical Research Foundation of Northwest Louisiana and Director of InterTech Science Park. Among other things, Dennis was responsible for developing two wet lab incubator/accelerators, a cleanroom diagnostics manufacturing facility, and a public middle/high school STEM initiative.
Dennis currently serves on the boards of numerous St. Louis nonprofits. He is the recipient of the FOCUS St. Louis Leadership Award, the City of St. Louis Mayor’s Award for economic development achievement and community impact, the St. Louis Business Journal’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and the LaunchCode NASA New Horizons Award for his work in helping establish the St. Louis technology ecosystem.