HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-12-06 I't
,iAEN HILLS
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
THURSDAY, October 12,2006
7:30 a.m.
Upstairs Conference Room, Arden Hills City Hall
I. CALL MEETING TO ORDER
II. ROLL CALL
I1I. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
A. September 20, 2006 meeting
IV. REVIEW COUNCIL ACTION REGARDING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
• STRATEGIC PLAN —Chair, Bruce Kunkel
V. BUSINESS OUTREACH AND RETENTION NEXT STEPS — Chair Bruce Kunkel,
Karen Barton
A. Lunch meeting location—Rob Davidson
B. Invitation
C. List of invitees
D. Agenda for meeting
VI. GATEWAY SIGNS —Karen Barton
VII. TCAAP UPDATE—Karen Barton, Mayor Aplikowski
VI. ADJOURN AND SET NEXT MEETING DATE
City of Arden Hills
1245 West Highway 96•Arden Hills Minnesota 55112
Phone 651.634.5120•Fax 651.634.5137
www.ci.arden-hills.mn.us
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Executive Summary
. Arden Hills Economic Development Commission has a mission to provide vision
and direction to the economic development efforts for the City of Arden Hills. In
the context of this broad mission, the priorities for AHEDC are:
1. Ensure a sustainable, profitable, and competitive economic climate.
2. Enhance natural resource conservation and management.
3. Build local capacity for economic development.
4. Improve the economic security of Arden Hilis'families.
5. Prepare Arden Hills'youth to be productive, positive, and equipped with
life skills for the future.
To pursue these priorities, the agency will follow a strategic plan through 2011
comprised of the 29 goals and objectives presented herein. In addition, this
strategic plan addresses organizational excellence—the alignment of every facet
of the Arden Hills Economic Development Commission to support effective
economic development delivery and execution in the City. The 29 goals
identified in this plan are organized around five cornerstones for economic
development:
Building an Organization That Can Support Economic Development
• Creating a Community that Fosters Investment
Retaining The Existing Business Base
Attracting New Investment
Creating a Strong Workforce
Approvals and Adoptions
This plan was adopted by the Arden Hills Economic Development Commission
at their regular meeting on August 16, 2006, Bruce Kunkel presiding:
Moved for adoption by:
Seconded by:
Votes in Favor:
Votes Against:
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}
The plan was then forwarded to the Arden Hills City Council for review and
approval. This plan was approved by the Arden Hills City Council at their
regular meeting on October 9, 2006, Mayor Beverly Aplikowski presiding:
Moved for approval by:
Seconded by:
Votes in Favor:
Votes Against:
Acknowledgements
This Economic Development Strategic Plan is the result of the concerted
effort of the Economic Development Commission led by Bruce Kunkel. We
are especially thankful to Bruce for his leadership in this effort as well as all
he and his commission members do for the City of Arden Hills. Also serving
on the Arden Hills EDC are:
Chris Ashbach
Dale Beane
Robin Davidson
Kevin Kelly
Nancy Kneeland
Ray McGraw
James Paulet
Edward Werner
This document was produced by funds appropriated by the City Council. For •
this and all their support we are especially grateful.
While the planning and preparation of this report was a coordinated effort in
every sense, the following key staff members were responsible for individual
components of the document:
Karen Barton, Community Development Director
Special thanks are also extended to the following individuals and groups
which actively contributed to this process: attendees at all the one on one
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interviews and phone calls, strategic partners to the City and members of the
community at large who provided input via the survey process.
Introduction
Community and government leaders across the nation have come to realize
their actions can change, alter, and direct the condition of their local
economy. The economic quality of life of the residents and the success of
businesses many times are directly influenced by the policies and leadership
of those who have the influence and power to create a climate conducive to
economic growth. Those who chose to shape their future; can. Those who
chose to avoid their future often find it shaped by forces outside of their
control. Change is bound to happen. The choice to be made is whether the
change will be shaped by the community or by forces beyond its control. A
strong economy provides benefits to all who experience it while a weak
economy puts businesses and residents at risk to the economic effects of
external forces. Economic development strategies are developed by
communities who chose to shape their own future.
In areas with strong economies, local governments do not struggle to fund
essential services and are usually able to provide expanded programs
benefiting all that reside in the area. In such areas, schools are strong,
streets safe and clean, park and recreation programs abundant, and the need
to provide social welfare programs for impoverished citizens is reduced.
Citizens living in an area with a strong economy enjoy consistent
employment, regular wage gains, opportunities for personal advancement,
and are able to reliably save for and invest in their future. Businesses are
able to plan for consistent expansion, hire full-time employees for the long
term, and are willing to risk significant capital, investing in their operations.
Communities grow closer, tight-knit; as young men and women, after
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completing high school or college, remain in the area as growing employment
opportunities in their"hometown" capture their interest.
In areas with weak or declining economies, the opposite occurs. Local
governments struggle to fund essential programs, with budgets under
growing pressure to assist the impoverished. Residents have uncertain
futures, filled with personal anxieties, with limited employment opportunities,
stuck in subsistence level jobs. Businesses employ part-time workers and are
unwilling to risk significant capital because of an uncertain future. The best
and brightest young men and women must move from the area to seek
quality employment, which is not available in their hometown.
Nationally, there are more than 6,000 economic development organizations,
Chambers of Commerce, and local, regional, and state government offices
working in some fashion to improve the economy of their respective areas.
Never in history has there been such an effort. Some organizations have
large budgets, better community cooperation, and a stronger commitment
from local government than others. These areas have the best chance to
either maintain or improve the economic quality of life and standard of living
of their citizens. Some areas, however, provide little or no attention to
economic development programs. They do not fully understand the need to
have a constant, aggressive economic development program just to maintain
the existing condition. In these areas, typically, the local economy is in
decline.
Even though local community leaders cannot control the actions or policies of
the federal or state government, they indeed can establish policies and
create local programs, which assist and foster economic growth. The
premise, therefore, of this economic development strategy for Arden Hills is
that an active participation in fostering the economic strength of the local
economy is an essential action by the local unit of government and a
responsible action thereof.
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Economic Development Strategies in a New Economy
Times have changed, and with them so has the underlying economic
structure in which we all live. This new economy requires smart thinking by
our leadership facilitated by new ways of solving problems and collaborations
with sometimes unexpected partners. In the new economy, the ticket to
faster and broader income growth is innovation. This economy puts a
premium on what the Nobel laureate in economics Douglas North calls
"adaptive efficiency," which refers to the ability of institutions to innovate,
continuously learn, and productively change. As markets fragment,
technology accelerates, and competition comes from unexpected places,
learning, creativity, and adaptation have become the principal sources of
competitive advantage in many industries. Enabling constant innovation
needs to become the goal of all organizations committed to prospering.
Similarly, the goal for metropolitan areas must be to foster innovation and
adaptation - in infrastructure, in institutions both public and private, and on
the part of individuals.
These efforts need to be proactive and designed for the long term.
Government, civic, and business leaders need to challenge all economic
sectors and institutions, including their own institutions of government, to
become cultures of innovation. The consequences for any community that
does not respond to this challenge are low productivity, stagnant living
standards, and reduced opportunity for its citizens.
Innovation and change mean uncertainty and disruption. But it is becoming
increasingly clear that dynamism is critical to growth. (You can't have
upward mobility if no one is on the move.) The more churning in a
community in terms of new business start-ups and existing business
changes, the faster the community's rate of economic growth. In fact, of all
of the indicators in this report, churn is the most strongly correlated with
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employment and income growth. This means that communities need to
promote change and innovation, not retard it.
A New Goal: Get Prosperous, Not Bigger
As communities achieve low levels of unemployment in an era of fairly strong
economic growth, economic developers need to think more about quality
than quantity; more about getting prosperous than simply getting bigger
(e.g., more jobs and people). Most economies, both big and small, still see
getting bigger as the main goal of economic development.
In the last 20 years, the transitional period between the old and the new
economy, "getting big" made some sense because economic growth was slow
and unemployment high. However, even when local and regional economies
were weak, job growth was at best a means to two possible ends: raising the
average standard of living in the metropolitan area, or helping reduce
poverty by employing those at the fringes of the labor market. The first of
these two goals is now more effectively achieved by focusing on income
growth per se and not job growth as a means, particularly with the
unemployment rate at around 5 percent. The second is now largely a matter
of structural or social reform, such as job training, K-12 improvement, and
solving the problem of spatial isolation in low-income, inner-city
neighborhoods. It is difficult to see how programs aimed at undifferentiated
job growth that are not focused on higher wages or higher-skill jobs can
provide more opportunities for the poor than already exist in most metro
economies, unless those areas are losing jobs or have high unemployment.
Unfortunately, in most places it is hard to reverse the "go for growth"
political juggernaut that remains on autopilot. A powerful growth coalition
exists in most metro areas (e.g., real estate developers, Chambers of
Commerce, newspapers and utilities, and economic development
professionals) that advocates getting bigger, even if the new jobs pay little
and the region is coping with the pains of growth. For example, economic
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developers in Northern Virginia still aggressively recruit new firms, even
though traffic congestion is the worst in the nation, housing prices among the
highest, and unemployment among the lowest.
As a result, the new goal for economic development, particularly in fully
developed areas, should be to raise average per capita incomes through
higher-wage jobs, while working to reduce poverty and expand opportunity
for economically disadvantaged residents, all the while boosting the region's
quality of life. This does not mean that communities should oppose growth
and erect regulations limiting it; it does mean that most areas should not
continue to pursue job creation for its own sake.
This is not to say that the strategy should remain fixed. If, unlikely as it is,
productivity growth rates slow significantly in the next decade and
unemployment increases, the appropriate goals and strategies might change.
But for now and the foreseeable future, economic strategy should focus on
raising incomes rather than simply attracting jobs.
Beliefs About Economic Development in the Old and New Economies
. . .$ - .
economy, .ple believe
I
Being a cheap place to do business was the Being a place rich in ideas and talent is
key. the key.
Attracting companies was the key. Attracting educated people is a key.
A high-quality physical environment was a Physical and cultural amenities are key in
luxury stood in the way of attracting cost- attracting knowledge workers.
conscious businesses.
Regions won because they held a fixed Regions prosper if organizations and
competitive advantage in some resource or individuals have the ability to learn and
skill. adapt.
Economic development was government- i Only bold partnerships among business,
led. government,and nonprofit sector can
bring about change.
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A New Means: Get Better, Not Cheaper
A new goal requires new means. In the old economy, places sought to get
big by "getting cheap." In the New Economy, the key to success is to "get
better." Policy makers used to believe that a low-cost environment was the
key to success and that making investments to create a high-quality physical
environment just raised costs and drove away business. That's why
communities focused on physical infrastructure, below market-rate financing
and tax holidays for big industrial and commercial projects, and marketing
and incentives to attract industry. The result was often low-wage jobs and
companies that were just as likely to leave after a decade for even cheaper
pastures.
In the New Economy, the path to raising wages and quality of life is in
ensuring a technologically advanced infrastructure, boosting the skills of the
region's workforce, creating fast and responsive government, ensuring a high
quality of life - including a high-quality physical environment that is attractive
to knowledge workers - and developing a responsive, efficient government.
This is not to say that fiscal discipline should not be a cornerstone of
government in the New Economy. But a low-cost environment with a poor
quality of life is not the ticket to success.
In the New Economy, communities need to shift their focus from
providing tax breaks and other subsidies to investing in the skills of
the workforce, a vibrant infrastructure for technological innovation,
and a superb quality of life.
Rather than simply trying to cut costs or react to each new economic
gyration, communities should instead invest in the foundation areas for
growth in the New Economy. A progressive, innovation-oriented metropolitan
area policy framework for the New Economy should rest on five
cornerstones:
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1. Building an Organization That Can Support Economic Development
2. Creating a Community that Fosters Investment
3. Retaining The Existing Business Base
4. Attracting New Investment
5. Creating a Strong Workforce
DeSCo's Philosophy of Strategic Planning
DeSCo's philosophy on strategic planning for economic development
mandates that every member of the community be afforded the opportunity
to provide input and insight into the plan. We realize that not everyone will
have an opinion nor wish to express it; however we find it important that
every citizen in the community be afforded an opportunity to speak.
In economic development, there are four layers of input solicited in the
development of the strategic plan. They are:
Leadership. We define two key components to comprise the
leadership in the community; the elected officials on the City
Council and the members of the EDC who are driving economic
development efforts.
♦ Power Base. In any community, there are people who hold power
and influence. The goal of an economic development strategy is to
find out what these individuals are thinking. The power can be:
o Elected power afforded to those in office.
o Appointed power commonly received from elected officials.
o Wealth achieved from success in business.
o Knowledge from achieving expert status at something.
o Positional power from holding a position of responsibility.
We request the input from those who hold the power or influence in
the community as we start our work in the community.
♦ Strategic Partners. These are individuals or organizations who
work closely with City Hall and the EDC. They often involve
Planning Commission and other City Committee members, the
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Chamber of Commerce, health care officials and others with similar
interests.
♦ Citizen Tax Payers. These are foundation upon which everything in
the community.
We begin our engagement with one-on-one interviews with the leadership
and power base in the community. Our questions to these individuals are
purposely open ended, allowing DeSCo staff to collect the information
necessary about what issues are faced in the community when it comes to
economic development. We do not lead, we listen.
The answers to these questions are formed into a survey that is circulated at
first to the strategic partners and then ultimately to the city as a whole. We
contact both by directing their attention to the City's web page where the
economic development survey is hosted. This works to establish the
community as the leader in economic development as opposed to the
consultant. By sequentially distributing the survey in this manner we are
able to stratify the opinions of the community and show any separation in
opinion between those"in the know" and the rest of the community at large.
Citizen involvement in economic development strategy formation is essential
for support and implementation of the plan. Elected officials, economic
development staff and citizens all play important roles in governing the
community. Therefore, DeSCo commits to promote and to sustain a
responsive citizen involvement environment. With the opportunity to provide
input comes buy-in. With buy-in comes support and with support comes the
ability of the EDC and the community to implement an effective economic
development strategy.
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Economic Development Plan for Arden Hills
Finding itself at a crossroad for growth, the City of Arden Hills engaged the
services of DeSCo in the summer of 2006 to create a strategic plan for the
City. This plan of action was to be developed not from a point of isolation
but from an interactive process involving substantial community input.
Using our proprietary methodology developed through creating strategic
plans for communities throughout the United States, DeSCo went to work in
Arden Hills to develop a strategy for economic development success.
The final stage of our engagement resulted in the development of this
strategic plan. The plan is segmented to address the five cornerstones of
economic development:
Building an Organization That Can Support Economic Development
Creating a Community that Fosters Investment
Retaining The Existing Business Base
Attracting New Investment
Creating a Strong Workforce
Every economic development organization is pressed with deciding how
many of these five cornerstones their budget and staffing will allow them to
address. Once they determine which cornerstones they can approach they
are then faced with determining the relative emphasis to be placed on each
cornerstone. In the formulative stages of the organization, much more work
is required in the first three cornerstones; Organization, Product and
Business Retention & Expansion. More mature programs are able to shift
their resources toward the latter cornerstones; Workforce Development and
Marketing. At its current level of funding the City of Arden Hills can only
address three cornerstones well. Based upon the needs discovered during
our strategy sessions we would recommend those to be the Product,
Organization and BRE Cornerstones.
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s
It is the recommendation of DeSCo that funding and staffing is secured for
full implementation of this plan. Assuming this to be an achievable
objective, we have written a five year economic development strategy that
addresses all five of the cornerstones. This program is heavily weighted
toward the first three; organization, product and business retention and
expansion however. It is the consultant's recommendation that these are
the best investments of the City's economic development funds at this time.
Project phasing into three sections; Early, Middle, Late. In a five year
strategy such as this early implementation is recommended for less than two
years from plan adoption; mid term is for year's two to four and late term is
years four through five.
Organizational Development
Economic development cannot occur without the staff and organizational
support necessary to make it happen. It is, without question, the point
where all ED must start. Arden Hills is not exempt from their need to
address this area either.
The first component essential to a successful economic development program
is to ensure that the organizational capabilities are in place for ED to
succeed. In order to accomplish that success, we recommend that Arden
Hills address the following organizational issues:
Early: Years 1-2
1) Economic and Community Development Director.
For economic development to succeed there needs to be someone in
the community with the title for such responsibilities. Currently, there
is no one on City staff with the title of economic development director.
In order to begin the process of addressing this critical issue an
economic development director needs to be put in place. Full time
economic development staff is not warranted at this time. However, a
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minimum of part time attention to economic development is warranted
for consideration. Our first recommendation is that the awareness of
this priority be recognized through title changes. We would
recommend that the title of the Community Development Director be
changed to Economic and Community Development Director as soon
as possible.
2) Support Staff for Economic Development
The new Economic and Community Development Director cannot
assume the additional responsibilities of their job without sufficient
staff to manage that task. If the City adopts the recommendations of
this plan, a full time economic development administrative assistant
will be required. This position may be able to be supported from other
capacities in the City's system in the early stages, but it cannot be
sustained without permanent staffing added to support this goal.
Moreover, should TCAAP mature as expected, a support person for
economic development as well as a redevelopment director will
become a necessity in order to channel the growth opportunities
successfully. In the near term, this individual needs to be put in
place to assume the support responsibilities necessary for meeting this
priority.
3) Council Development
Arden Hills is at a new crossroads in economic development. In order
for the City Council to support the efforts of its staff, there needs to be
a higher level of expertise of economic development issues amongst
the elected officials. Toward this end, we would recommend up to six,
three to four hour training sessions be held at City Hall at a frequency
of one every other month. These sessions should be open to the
public. Topics for discussion may include:
♦ Incentive Utilization for Competitive Economic Development
♦ Brownfield Redevelopment
♦ Economic Development Finance
♦ Redevelopment of Existing Properties
Main Street Revitalization
The Link Between Education, Workforce and Economic
Development
Leadership in economic development. Why everyone is a
leader in Arden Hills.
Middle: Years 2-4
4) Strengthening of City Administrator's Position
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Economic development in Arden Hills will succeed when city staff
turnover is reduced to levels representative of the industry and
preferably below that level. In order to accomplish that task, the
City Administrator must be commissioned with full administrative
responsibility of the city while the City Council bears the responsibility
for policy and legislative roles. We would recommend that a
consultant be employed to recommend the most effective roles and
responsibilities for the City Manager and Council in managing the city.
5) Community Awareness
The third leg of the economic development is the community itself. If
the citizens understand the vision for economic development they will
be much more capable of supporting an economic development
mission. Toward that end, they need to be perceived as part of the
overall economic development effort. Incorporating citizen support
for economic development will require that they be informed of the
economic development focus of Arden Hills. This will be accomplished
by amending the Mayor's already well received newsletter to include a
section on economic development. In addition, this newsletter will be
appended to the City's recently revamped web page for download.
Late: Years 4/5
6) Redevelopment Director
As a land locked community, Arden Hills is no longer able to stimulate
economic growth through the annexation of additional space. The
goal for the community now is to optimize the space available to them.
Even if the TCAAP project were to never materialize, the need to be
more actively involved in the redevelopment of Arden Hills presents
itself today. This individual would be strongly skilled in the ability to
take existing properties and convert them to new investment and job
creation opportunities.
Product
The next most important component of an economic development program is
the product itself. In a similar fashion to a business taking their product to
market, the community needs to look at itself as a product that is being
bought, improved and resold over and over again. Enhancing the quality of
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the product works directly at improving the customer's satisfaction of the
buying experience. Activities recommended for consideration in improving
the product include:
Earl: Years 1-2
7) Gateway Plan.
Visitors to Arden Hills are often in the community before they realize
they are arrived. It is easy to move from a neighboring community
without realizing that one has entered Arden Hills. The paths along
which one moves into and out of a community are referred to as the
gateways. Arden Hills would be well served by placing modern
welcome signs at its gateway entrances greeting visitors and
residents.
8) Way Finding Signage
Moving throughout the community can be made more effective
through the addition of way finding signs. As their name implies,
these signs help to direct travelers to specific destination points in the
community such as city hall, parks, shopping districts, schools, etc.
When incorporated into the design of the gateway signage, they add to
the style of the community creating a greater sense of presence that
someone has arrived in Arden Hills.
9) Capital Improvement Planning
One of the most challenging, yet unglamorous roles that community
leadership must address is creating an operating and maintenance
program for its many assets. To the average citizen these assets
seem like permanent infrastructure that will be there forever. To
anyone who has served in the public arena the knowledge that these
assets are in a continual state of decay is well known. Improvement
plans and budgets need to be put in place so that this process is an
annual appropriation of funds. The electorate is most focused on
those items that are above ground, i.e. streets, sidewalks (trails) and
parks. Prudent fiscal planning will also address those items below
grade; sewers, water and utility infrastructure.
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Middle: Years 2-4
10) Central Business District.
The lack of a city center is a common challenge for modern
communities. Many of these communities developed similarly to
Arden Hills, as a suburb from a larger metropolitan center. Once
critical mass was achieved, a community was formed by the first
settlers. Since the "city" at that time was the larger metropolitan
downtown, the focus on creating a central business district did not
exist. However, as the community grew the need for its own identity
grew with it. As is frequently the case, the area for a city center was
not zoned or planned in the process.
Arden Hills has areas of higher retail and service concentration;
however they were planned for vehicular transportation and have the
look and feel of such a decision. A city center is more pedestrian
oriented consisting of:
a. Higher buildings
b. Zero lot line development (front and side yards)
c. Shared parking
d. Parks (typically passive)
e. Entertainment and dining venues
f. Niche retail
Areas like this do not currently exist in Arden Hills. This matter is
further complicated by the fact that the"historical"city center/main
street which many have defined as CR E has been "abandoned" by the
construction of the new City Hall along CR G/96th Street. As city halls
are traditionally located in the City Center, the citizens in Arden Hills
question where the true city center may be at this time.
A master plan, zoning changes and development/redevelopment
efforts designed to create a city center would benefit Arden Hills
greatly. This center would be addressed through the way-finding
signage presented elsewhere in this strategy and supported through
various fairs and festivals held purposely in this area to help create
greater awareness and presence for the city center in the community.
11) Trails & Recreation Program
Arden Hills is challenged by the presence of major segregating assets
which are its highways and lakes. These bisect the community into
small pockets allowing for separate and unique residential
opportunities. However, this separation also increases the need for
attention to be paid on linking the individual pieces together. Citizens
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•
in Arden Hills reflect their interest in a trails program as they often site
the segmented nature of the community in discussions and surveys.
DeSCo recommends that this become a major initiative for the
community through the development of a Recreation Master Plan.
This plan would link the trail system into a unified network of
pedestrian transportation throughout the community.
Late: Years 4 - 5
12) Development Sites.
As a land locked community, Arden Hills is rapidly running out of
developable sites for consideration. This shifts the community's
priorities from a development to a redevelopment nature. Due to
development pressures in and around the community, single site
redevelopments can and will most often be handled by market forces.
However, the need to look at the community from a higher level and
to take larger tracks of land that are under or non-performing and
convert them to a higher and better use is what we are talking about
here. Arden Hills is at a point where master planning entire
neighborhoods, retail districts, business parks and yes, the city center
needs to move onto the public agenda. Through this process, a more
proactive vision for the city can be implemented. Accomplishing this
vision will require the city's participation in the development process
through financing, incenting and negotiating key partners to
participate in the process.
r
Business Retention
Business development represents some of the core activities of any economic
development program. Over time, the importance of a successful retention
and expansion program has risen over that of the traditional attraction
efforts. The most effective economic development dollars are those spent
working with existing businesses since most of the economic growth in a
community is the result of established businesses. Here are some activities
frecommended for Arden Hills.
I
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Early: Years 1 - 2
13) Business Retention Program.
Recent research on economic development effectiveness conducted by
numerous resources has consistently emphasized that a business
retention program focused on the base (those businesses that bring
money into the county) and the largest companies is the most
successful economic development strategy a community can design
and implement. The center piece of this program is the business
leader meetings. These should be conducted annually and focused on
removing the obstacles hampering business success. Based upon the
input received in these meetings, a series of business services can be
provided. Since they need to be directly responsive to the needs
presented during the interviews we can only offer suggestions of
programs that other communities have used successfully in the past.
If the recommended staffing levels are added to the community, we
see no reason why 30 to 40 visits per year cannot be conducted in the
community.
14) Business & Education Initiative
Arden Hills is blessed with two key assets; a strong business base of
signature companies and a school system that ranks as one of the best
in the state. In order to maintain and enhance both entities
strengthening the link between the two is essential. Increasing
business participation in the schools is valuable for showing Arden
Hills' students what a business career will be like when they graduate.
Having business leaders, and most especially business owners, speak
at career fairs goes a long way toward strengthening the tie between
the two. A ready-made program that makes this process as much fun
as it is easy is provided through Junior Achievement. JA's pre
planned instructional packets work extremely well in tapping the
expertise of business leaders in an educational setting for students of
all ages.
15) Sign Committee.
It is unclear whether the city's sign ordinance is overly restrictive or if
it is just perceived to be. However, enough businesses in town have
the opinion that the sign ordinance is too restrictive so it would be
beneficial for Arden Hills to convene a committee to review this
matter. These people would be instructed to review surrounding sign
ordinances and standards set forth by the American Planning
Association. The comments received by this committee can be
developed into a recommendation for the EDC and ultimately Council
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to consider. Inclusion of the City Planner in this effort would be
essential.
16) Business Issues on Community Web Page.
Arden Hills' new web page will work to provide a new more progressive
image for the community. This page can become a too[ for business
retention by creating a section directed toward existing business
issues. By creating a business only section of the web page the
importance of this component of the economy can be emphasized.
17) Mayors Council on Existing Business Services.
We would recommend a council on existing business services that
would serve as counsel to the Mayor. This would be an advisory panel
of business representatives large and small who would meet with the
Mayor and the Economic Development Director to address
business/government issues in the community. Initial agenda items
may come from city hall, however longer term success of this group
will occur when the members take ownership of the agenda and
propose things for consideration.
Middle: Years 2 - 4
18) Resource Database.
City Hall can position itself as more supportive of business if it creates
a resource directory of business support services available from the
governmental as well as private sectors. This can be as simple as a
Word file that is periodically updated, printed and put on display in
City Hall lobby to something as sophisticated as an online database
accessible from the City's web page.
19) Business Matters.
A section of the Mayor's monthly newsletter should be directed toward
business issues in the community. We would title the column
"Business Matter." The double entendre aspect of the title is purposely
selected. With topics ghost written by economic development staff,
the Mayor can focus on issues relating to the business community in
her newsletter each month.
Late: Years 4 - 5
Business Retention activities are additive events, i.e., they do not
terminate quickly. Later year implementation of these new priorities
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•
will see success when earlier efforts are sustained, perfected and
streamlined.
Business Attraction
Business attraction focuses on identifying companies from outside the area
and enticing them to expand or relocate into a community. The goal is
simple and straightforward; to secure new jobs and investment that off sets
business closures. It is glamorous work, frequently commanding the most
recognition of economic development efforts in the media. However, it is
extremely expensive and it offers relatively low return on the economic
development dollar. Since Arden Hills has not spent a great deal of time in
this area, is just now considering an attraction effort and has little budget
allocated 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
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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.
Middle: Years: 2 - 4
23) Decision Influencers.
Site selection consultants deal with the larger, more sophisticated
projects that are decided upon each year. Marketing dollars could be
well spent on approaching these individuals, sharing with them the
benefits of an Arden Hills site selection and working with them in the
future as projects materialize. Consultant approaches in the
Minneapolis/St. Paul market would be the most affordable to approach
followed by those in the Chicago market areas.
24) Joint Marketing.
As the program matures, the City would be well served to partner with
other surrounding cities in a joint marketing effort. This is a common
strategy in economic development as companies who are focusing on
an area are able to be approached earlier in the decision making
process through group marketing than they can be with individual
marketing. The sooner that the community can make an impression
on a company, the higher their chances are of securing the new
investment.
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Late: Years 4 - 5
25) Individual Marketing. •
On rare occasions the community may opt to pursue its individualized
market efforts. As stated before, these are very expensive and
frequently result in little or no return on investment. However, for
highly targeted instance where a niche opportunity presents itself, the
community would be well served to have the capacity to pursue
specific prospects by having the appropriate funds budgeted.
Workforce Development
Arden Hills has one of the most highly skilled and highly educated workforces
in the State of Minnesota. This strength is a blessing that needs to be
protected and nurtured as much as possible. Promoting the excellent school
system as a community asset is essential to long term success in economic
development.
For rank and file workers, much of the City's success in Workforce
Development will result in partnering with The Ramsey County Workforce
Investment Board (RCWIB) in this area. RCWIB is networked into a
statewide system of education and training that prepares people for high-skill
jobs and assures employers of a skilled, flexible workforce. This
comprehensive program is designed to improve the productivity level of the
workers and allow companies to grow in the future. We recommend that
this support for education continue in its current form and extend through
the full five years of this strategic plan.
26) Education.
The quality of the local school system and the work ethic it instills in
the students may be the most valuable asset in the overall economic
development resource base. Promoting, protecting and enhancing the
school/business relationship are an essential component to maximizing
the role that education plays in economic development. In the BRE
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•
section of the plan, we discussed ways that the business community
can become more actively involved in the local school program.
27) Foster Workforce Training Initiatives.
Through the BRE effort, help to bring new training opportunities to the
attention of key partners such as RCWIB. There are funds and
programs available through the RCWIB that can brokered as solutions
for local employers in the community. These resources can help cut
the cost of workforce development significantly for qualified activities.
28) Data Collection.
Some workforce information is readily available but a great deal of it is
not. The ability of the City to collect this less accessible information
and to make it available to the employers is directly proportional to
their success with retaining and attracting quality companies. The
most valuable information is wage and salary data broken out by job
classification. The goal is to collect and disseminate valuable labor
information not readably attainable from other sources in order to set
the community apart from its competitors.
29) Certified Worker Program.
In order to increase the value of the workforce in the community, a
certified worker program that promotes a qualified worker should be
considered. However, since the school system is not exclusive to
Arden Hills, this program will have limited value in differentiating
Arden Hills from its competing neighbors. We would recommend that
it be pursued however as many of the competitive situations will
involve Arden Hills competing against communities outside of the
Metropolitan area.
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Summary Thoughts
A successful plan is, by definition, a usable plan — one that directs the City's
economic development activities as well as its long-range view, and that
yields meaningful improvements in effectiveness, capacity and relevance.
More than a few strategic planning efforts have run aground because they
were based on a fundamental misunderstanding of what a strategic plan is.
Sometimes strategic planning is confused with other planning modalities,
each valid in its own right but geared toward a different end result.
To put it simply, not every plan is a strategic plan. A strategic plan is a tool
that provides guidance in fulfilling a mission with maximum efficiency and
impact. If it is to be effective and useful, it should articulate specific goals
and describe the action steps as we have in this document. As a rule, most
strategic plans should be reviewed and revamped every three to five years.
This plan is no exception.
Strategic planning has long been used as a tool for transforming and
revitalizing economic development organizations. In its own right, this plan's
primary goal is to energize the Arden Hills EDC and to chart a course of
action for the organization. Recently, however, skepticism about planning
has been on the rise. Political and economic uncertainty is the norm and the
pace of technological and social change has accelerated. There is some
disillusionment with planning efforts that can't keep pace. "We did a plan five
years ago and haven't looked at it since," is one common complaint. Or, "By
the time we completed our plan, we were already carrying out all of its
strategies."
However such comments miss the point. Rather than expose some fatal flaw
in strategic planning, they reflect a basic misconception about the purpose
and value of strategic planning and what it takes for a plan and the process
to succeed. Indeed, the process can prove pointless and frustrating and the
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end product of dubious value when care isn't taken to set clear, realistic
goals, define action steps explicitly and elicit the views of major stakeholder
groups.
Yet few tools are better suited to help address the staggering array of
challenges brought about by a changing environment. This strategic plan for
Arden Hills has addressed the needs of the community in economic
development while taking great strides to ensure that the common pitfalls for
plan failure have been averted. All that lies next is to implement the plan in
a logical, sequential manner. In so doing, Arden Hills will move its
economic development efforts, and with it the community as a whole, to a
new standard of performance that parallels that of the most successful of
communities.
We wish you success with your implementation of this plan.
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