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THE recession has hit Medway's new Innovation Centre with no clients having yet been signed up.
The venture opened alongside Rochester Airport some months ago and its initial failure could costs Medway taxpayers of £700,000. That's the cost of launching the centre days before the recession hit the UK.
Cllr Alan Jarrett (Con) told the council's cabinet that he was putting aside £700,000 in case it was needed to cover lost earnings.
The centre was built alongside the Maidstone Road, Rochester to provide a place for graduates from the universities in Medway to develop businesses and create jobs.
The money - part of the £3.5 million savings from last year's budget - was "a realistic step to cover anticipated trading deficits," said Cllr Jarrett.
"We could not know when we confirmed it that the economy was going to go into financial meltdown."