Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce releases community survey results

By Emily Cole, News Tribune

Resources for businesses, attractiveness to retired people and access to technical training were some of the areas highlighted in the results of a community survey by the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce, which were released Tuesday.

The survey is part of an ongoing Community and Economic Development Strategy conducted by the chamber along with Market Street Services, a community and economic development firm based in Atlanta.

To read the full article, click here or email Alexia Eanes.

Jefferson City Chamber seeks community input through online survey

By Emily Cole, News Tribune

As part of an ongoing strategic plan, Jefferson City and the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce are seeking input from the community through an online survey.

Missy Bonnot, director of economic development for the chamber, said the Jefferson City, Missouri Community and Economic Development Strategy hopes to examine the community to figure out what changes are needed to improve it.

The process should take six months — from September 2019 to March 2020.

The strategy is being conducted with help from Market Street Services Inc., an Atlanta-based economic development consulting firm.

As part of the first of four phases in the strategy, the survey was released in mid-September to gather public opinion and comment. Bonnot said they've already passed their initial goal of 1,000 responses and hope to have many more.

"Our hopes in the survey is to get varying opinions about Jefferson City and the assets that we have and the challenges that we have in Jefferson City, and just get as many people to take that survey so we can have varying perspectives," Bonnot said.

The survey shouldn't take more than five to 10 minutes to complete, according to the chamber. The survey starts with some basic information like employment status, schooling, and family and demographic information. The survey is anonymous.

To read the full article email Alexia Eanes

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PLANNING BEGINS

By Alan Miles

Expanding developments of businesses and homes are imperative to a growing city that may need guidance to strategic structure of its communities. This planning can lead to prosperous businesses as well as joyful citizens embracing their new beginnings. Speaking with Ranada Robinson from Market Street Services the ideas presented are attracting more building in Jefferson City.

CAN YOU TELL US A LITTLE MORE ABOUT YOURSELF AND MARKET STREET SERVICES?

Market Street was founded in 1997 by J. Mac Holladay, the only individual to head state level economic development organizations in three different states. We recently celebrated 20 years of serving as a trusted advisor for a wide range of clients in more than 165 communities and regions across 34 states. The majority of our work is focused on applying a holistic approach to strategic planning for community and economic development in communities of all sizes, and we also provide assistance with research and strategic planning that is more narrowly-focused on a specific issue (i.e. entrepreneurship, workforce development, cluster development).

I have worked at Market Street for 11 years, and in that time, I’ve worked in dozens of communities, leading research, facilitating focus groups and stakeholder input, and advising clients on strategic actions. Outside of work, I’m very involved in my own community, where I’m usually focused on economic empowerment and providing various opportunities for kids. I’m also a supermom to my 7-year-old named Frederick and my 11-year-old mini schnauzer Smokie Robinson!

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Our View: Regional cooperation is the key to bringing new jobs to our area

By: Washington County News

When we say we need more economic development, that’s just sort of a bureaucratic way of saying we need more jobs.

It’s kind of like a statement we heard on a TV show recently, where a boss told an employee, “When someone comes into the hardware store looking for a quarter-inch drill bit, what they’re saying isn’t that they need a drill bit. What they’re really saying is that they need a quarter-inch hole.”

And, as anyone involved in economic and community development knows, the goal is to create new jobs (preferably ones that provide living wages) at least as fast as the old jobs are slipping away.

Losing jobs — and not having enough new ones to replace them — will eventually spell death for a community, so it’s not only prudent to focus on job recruitment, it’s an absolute necessity to ensure survival.

And when we engage in economic development activities, sometimes we must put city, county and state borders aside and concentrate on the region as a whole.

That’s the message that about 20 community and business leaders from both of the Bristols; Sullivan County, Tennessee; and Washington County, Virginia, heard last week during a forum at the Bristol Chamber of Commerce. The speaker was Mac Holladay, founder and CEO of Market Street Services, an Atlanta-based economic and community development consulting firm.

To read the full article click here or email Alexia Eanes.