In February, the National Venture Capital Association named Charlottesville the fastest-growing venture capital ecosystem in the United States . The University of Virginia’s Licensing & Ventures Group is sitting in the heart of that trend with a new headquarters at the crossroads of UVA’s research facilities and Charlottesville’s burgeoning startup community.

“This corridor and this property were really attractive to us,” said Michael P. Straightiff, the group’s executive director. “Proximity to Grounds is tremendously important, but also proximity to the new ventures community in Charlottesville, which is increasingly on the Downtown Mall and Preston Avenue.”

The Licensing & Ventures Group’s new office is in the former Coca-Cola building on Preston Avenue and has been specifically designed to facilitate the exchange of ideas. It has collaborative meeting spaces, open offices for entrepreneurs and easy access to the group’s business networking and legal resources. Already, the new office has become an important asset to the group as it furthers its mission to commercialize UVA research and support University-based companies.