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toward business attraction, we would recommend that you focus more on response capacity than lead generation. With that in mind, here are some activities recommended for Arden Hills. Early: Years 1-2 20) Information Assembly and Readiness. Having accurate and up to date information is critical for program success. There are two places where a community can obtain a competitive advantage in economic development;with the accuracy of their data and the speed of their responses. We would recommend that focusing on this capacity be a higher emphasis at this time as opposed to actively marketing the community. This information should be readily highlighted on the City's new business section of the web page. 21) Network Development. The development of a strong, strategic network is essential for the near term marketing success of Arden Hills. A substantial amount of lead generation occurs from the State Department of Commerce. Lesser amounts of leads are generated from the utility company and others come from the development community. These three sources should be the primary source of lead generation for the Arden Hills in the near future (1-3 years). Leveraging these sources can occur in two ways. The simplest is introductory meetings conducted by the city's economic development staff with the leaders in those three sources listed previously. City staff should have an entertainment budget that allows them to take these people out for lunch or after business meetings as they develop relationships with these individuals. A more aggressive approach is to hold "Arden Hills Day"and to have these people into your community for a four hour tour and luncheon that would be catered at City Hall. The goal here is to make sure that product knowledge and personal relationships are as strong as can be in order to have those people who influence investment decisions consider Arden Hills when opportunities arise in the future. 22) Incentive Policy. The community would be well served to draft an incentive policy guiding the productive use of incentives in Arden Hills. This should be conducted by the EDC in partnership with an outside consultant. As this document is completed it is then presented to council for approval and handed back to the EDC for implementation. Although it is a document in writing, it is critically important that the EDC and City Council understand that the incentive policy is a fluid document open for interpretation on a project by project basis. Strategic Plan for Economic Development Page 19 of 23 Draft—Subject to Approval and Adoption