They go into work each day just like other business people.

But the workers at Inc@8000 in New Albany area little bit different because they all are trying to get new companies off the ground.

"We give them really economically affordable office space so they can start their business and grow their business," said Tom Guy, who is managing Inc@8000 and recruiting new companies for the space.

Guy is consulting with the New Albany as part of the village's Innovate New Albany initiative to create an innovation center for development. The facility - known as Inc@8000 - houses a new incubator program for small businesses.

An open house for Inc@8000 has been scheduled from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. April 14. Registration is requested through www.techcolumbus.org or by calling (614) 675-3755.

Inc@8000 is at 8000 Walton Parkway, on the second floor of a building built by the New Albany Co., the area's largest developer. Instead of finishing the space for tenants, the company agreed to lease the already finished space and some unfinished space to the village for $1 a year.

The agreement was made through the New Albany Community Improvement Corp. (CIC), a nonprofit entity formed in 2006 to help the village attract businesses and jobs to the area. Jennifer Chrysler, New Albany community development director, said the CIC can do things that governmental entities cannot.

"The CIC could lease the space," she said. "It acts as the development arm for the village."

Funds for the lease agreement and for costs incurred through Inc@8000 are being paid for through the village's economic-development fund.

The economic-development fund was created with revenue from income taxes collected in the various business parks in New Albany, said Scott McAfee, village communications officer. He said 35 percent of the income-tax revenue goes to the village, 35 percent goes to the New Albany-Plain Local School District and the other 30 percent goes into the economic-development fund. The economic-development funds are used to pay the minimum debt on infrastructure projects within the business park. McAfee said whatever is left in the fund can be used to further pay down the debt or pay for new infrastructure projects.

Chrysler said New Albany Village Council allocated $250,000 from the economic-development fund for Inc@8000 this year. Of that, $100,000 is being used for an agreement with TechColumbus to support new businesses.

Guy is receiving $36,750 in the first year to manage the space and recruit new tenants. The rest of the funds will be used to pay the maintenance and other building expenses, Chrysler said.

Chris Anderson, who is in venture development with TechColumbus, spends three days a week at Inc@8000 working with new business owners.

"We work with a lot of technology startups from the time they have the idea, all the way through until they get the product working and get their first customer," Anderson said.

Anderson said he is able to help people write business plans, obtain funding, prioritize tasks and find resources that can help them achieve their goals.

At Inc@8000, Anderson said, entrepreneurs have an office or cubicle, access to Internet, access to two conference rooms and a lunch room, all for a minimal monthly fee. Guy said offices are leased for $275 a month and cubicles are $150 a month.

"It helps them legitimize their startup business because they have no post office box: They have a real address," Guy said.

Anderson said one of the biggest benefits of being in Inc@8000 is having access to other small businesses so companies can help each other.

Guy said a company that helps develop websites, which many new companies need, is leasing space. Another business works in marketing and a small-business attorney also is on site.

Tenants also will be part of a leadership roundtable, working with chief information officers and other corporate-level executives from successful companies already established in the village.

Attorney Aaron Underhill, who located his new business called Disability Assistance in Inc@8000, said he chose the space because it's closer to home. He also runs a private law firm out of the space and is closer to his main client, the New Albany Co., located on the first floor of the building.

"This is a great space for startup companies in terms of keeping overhead low," he said. "I like the spirit of cooperation."

A large space in the building purposely has been kept open so TechColumbus can continue holding training sessions and informational programs for local businesses. Guy said TechColumbus is interested in sponsoring programs in part of the space, which is set up like classroom workshops. Those programs will be available for 60 or more people, depending on how the room is set up.

Inc@8000 currently occupies about 8,000 square feet of space in the building at 8000 Walton Parkway. There are 16 offices and eight cubicles for rent. Guy said he already has 15 companies on site with two more coming in, which will total 31 employees working in the space. The companies already on site are:

• TechColumbus, which has one employee working to provide new companies the resources they need to grow.

• White Fences, which has one employee working on web hosting and Internet service for small business collocation.

• Disability Assistance LLC, which has two employees providing assistance to public employees requiring disability benefits.

• PTS Physicians, which has three employees providing owners and administrators of physician's practices with professional services to improve financial performance and efficiency.

• Buckeye Interactive, which has three employees working on marketing for small businesses.

• Fullen Law Group, which has one employee specializing in corporate and small-businesses activity.

• West India Co., which has one employee developing mobile applications for print magazines to display in digital formats.

• Softsyl, which has two employees working on phone solutions for businesses needing interactive voice response systems, custom applications and speech-voice recognition.

• e-Marketing Group, which has one employee doing Internet marketing.

• Innovate New Albany, which has one employee providing connectivity between entrepreneurs, tech startups, TechColumbus and other educational resources.

• RealScore, which has four employees providing applications to benchmark demographic data to medical professionals for business-location planning.

• Results Marketing Consulting Group, which has one employee who specializes in small-business marketing strategy and professional leadership.

• Hiring Force, which has three employees providing searches of a metro or national repository for candidates that have been evaluated for specific skill sets, expertise level and date of availability.

• Strategic Thinking Industries, which has two employees providing customized information technology solutions for the health-care industry.

• PayBoards, which has two employees who provide a personal ad network for web browsers.

Inc@8000 also has access to some unfinished space on the other half of the building's second floor, which Guy said could be developed through agreements in the future.