The mission of EDRP is to assist local communities by providing affordable economic development and policy research to enhance their competitive positions.
The types of research include strategic planning, forecasting, feasibility studies, readiness assessments, economic impact analysis, and labor market studies to name a few.
Some key findings of the study included issues of workforce supply, workforce demand, an occupational analysis, and a special industry focus on back office and manufacturing operations. Through a survey of 84 local employers during the month of June 2017, the study found that the two most often selected reasons for opening their business in Fannin County were “Quality of Life” and “Access to Markets and Customers”. The study concluded with an number of recommendations for the Fannin County Development Authority. One recommendation was that Fannin County should prioritize a comprehensive workforce development strategy as a key economic development tool for advancing economic development goals.
CEDR will be providing strategic planning and facilitation assistance to the recipients of the Georgia Smart Communities Challenge grants, and help those communities activate their smart community plans.
For more information on the Georgia Smart Communities Challenge, please contact Leigh Hopkins, Sr. Project Manager at ude.hcetagnull@snikpoh.hgiel.
Important dates:
April 9, 2018 (7:30am – 4pm): Workshop and Expo, GTRI Conference Center, 250 14th Street NW, Atlanta, GA 30318
May 1, 2018 (5pm): Proposals due
From the Press Release:
Announcing: The Georgia Smart Communities Challenge
The first statewide program to support local governments across Georgia with seed funding, technical assistance, and more as they plan and activate smart development.
ATLANTA—The Georgia Institute of Technology and its partners are excited to announce the
launch of the Georgia Smart Communities Challenge (“Georgia Smart”), open to all
communities in Georgia. Local Georgia governments of any size—cities, counties, or
consolidated city-county governments—will lead selected teams. Georgia Smart will provide
seed funding and access to technical assistance, expert advice, and a network of peers. A Georgia
Tech researcher will assist and advise each team and conduct research in support of the
community’s needs and goals.
Georgia Smart is the first program of its kind in the United States, bringing together an
unprecedented coalition of university, industry, and public sector partners to support local
governments in adopting cutting-edge technologies in their communities. The program is also
unique in that it extends beyond large cities to smaller communities whose voices have not been
as prominent in smart community development and who may not have access to technology
resources.
“We’ve spent the past year in workshops and dialogue with local governments across Georgia to
better understand their challenges and priorities. From these communications, we developed a
program that is sensitive to the local context while fast-tracking smart communities. We aim to
create more models for smart development that can be shared and applied across the state and
beyond,” said Debra Lam, managing director, Smart Cities and Inclusive Innovation at Georgia
Tech.
Georgia Smart is seeking proposals in the areas of smart mobility and smart resilience. Each of
the four winning teams will receive direct grant funding of up to $50,000, as well as additional
funds for research and technical assistance with a required local match. Georgia Tech and its
partners will then work with the winning teams throughout the year on implementing their
proposals, creating four testbeds of smart community development.
In May 2017, the Georgia Department of Economic Development’s Workforce Division announced the recipients of the Governor’s High Demand Career Initiative (HDCI). The purpose of HDCI is to identify what industries will be in most need of skilled workers and ensure a sustainable pipeline of workers. Building on previous partnerships created in the region, the State Workforce Development Board, which administers federal Workforce Investment and Opportunities Act (WIOA) funds, awarded the Northwest Georgia Workforce Investment Board (WIB) with a $232,200 Sector Partnership grant.
Led by Governor Nathan Deal, the economic development community in Georgia has heard from the businesses across the state that one of the greatest challenges is the need for a consistent, trained, and reliable workforce. In response, Governor Deal created the High Demand Career Initiative (HDCI) to bring partners from the University System of Georgia (USG), the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG), and local K-12 systems to hear directly from the private sector about their specific workforce needs (i.e., degrees/majors, certificates, courses, skillsets, etc.). With decision makers from each of these entities working together, the region will gain a clear picture of what businesses need, pair them with existing assets, and formulate a plan to tackle any gaps that may exist.
The Northwest Georgia Regional Commission (NWGRC) submitted a proposal to the state on behalf of the 15-county Northwest Georgia region that focused on advanced manufacturing; bringing together the local government, the private sector, local high schools and community colleges to build a network of partners. The NWGRC has selected the Center for Economic Development Research (CEDR) at Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2) to lead this effort.
The goal of HDCI is that this employer-led partnership will enable an education system responsive to the needs of advanced manufacturers in the region, and create a pipeline of workforce talent poised to apply their knowledge and creativity in a variety of industries. The opportunities created through the HDCI sector strategy will reach across all advanced manufacturing sectors. The NWGRC includes a 15-county region, comprised of the following Georgia counties: Bartow, Catoosa, Chattooga, Dade, Fannin, Floyd, Gilmer, Gordon, Haralson, Murray, Paulding, Pickens, Polk, Walker, and Whitfield.
Advanced manufacturing is tied to the economic development and long-term viability of communities in the Northwest Georgia region and beyond the state’s borders. Global competitiveness in the northwest Georgia region relies on the strength of the manufacturing sector. Since 2013, the NWGRC and the CEDR team have been working to convene a diverse consortium of manufacturers, community leaders, Chambers of Commerce and Development Authorities, industry associations, local schools and technical colleges and other stakeholders in the region to understand industry needs and plan for the growth of advanced manufacturing in the region.
Register today for the Basic Economic Development Course (BEDC) at Georgia Tech, February 27 – March 2, 2018. Let our talented speakers and instructors prepare you for impact and influence in Economic Development!
About BEDC 2018: In 1967, Georgia Tech offered the first Basic Economic Development Course in the country and continues today to provide innovative education in both fundamentals and new concepts in economic development. Our course will expose you to cutting-edge economic development trends that will help your community build for the future. Learn from some of the nation’s most dynamic economic development leaders as you satisfy the IEDC course requirements for Introduction to Economic Development.
This year’s theme will be automation. The course will explore the opportunities and impacts of automation to your communities and workforce.
You don’t want to miss our keynote address by Josh Benton of the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development. Along with hearing from some of the most dynamic economic development leaders in the nation.
This report examines the impact that the music industry has on the Georgia economy. Excluding music tourism, the economic impact of the music industry in Georgia in 2016 was $3.5 billion. There were nearly 17,000 people employed by, or who spent a significant part of their time, and/or received a significant part of their income from the music industry.
In September 2016, the City of LaGrange, GA adopted a plan to construct 29 miles of interconnected multimodal trails throughout the city. Known as The Thread Trail, the non-motorized and environmentally-friendly facility will provide a safe place to walk, cycle and hold special events.
The Thread Trail’s estimated cost is $23 million and would be funded over a 15 year period with a Special Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST). The first phase of The Thread Trail began in early 2017 as a demonstration “model mile” anchored around Granger Park.
According to the Trust for Public Land, property values near parks and trails are frequently higher than properties located where there is little or no greenspace. Increasing property values frequently leads to a corresponding increase in property tax revenues generated.
Georgia Tech’s Center for Economic Development Research will be working closely with the city to establish a baseline value of properties in close proximity to the trail. The values of these parcels will be tracked over time and compared to properties elsewhere in the city in order to demonstrate the positive impact on property values and to help measure the economic benefits of The Thread Trail.
Georgia Tech’s Center for Economic Development Research will lead the research. Researchers will define the county’s labor draw area, survey business leaders, and analyze detailed industry, occupational, and wage information. Researchers will analyze and assemble this information into a Labor Market Study that Fannin leaders can use to market to prospective business.
Blue Ridge, GA. Photo from the Fannin County Development Authority
The research team expects to complete at the end of August.
Across the nation, rural areas are facing challenges associated with shifts in demographic and economic trends. The most successful rural areas are those that are addressing their specific issues head-on. Clinch County is a rural county located in the southeastern part of Georgia with a population of approximately 6,800 people. Despite its small size, the county has an active and engaged development authority whose goal is straightforward — Grow Clinch. Over the past few years, the development authority has demonstrated its commitment to growing Clinch by hiring their first executive director and increasing their programming and activities. Using this momentum, the development authority requested a community assessment from Georgia Tech as part of EI2’s Economic Development Research Program (EDRP). The Center for Economic Development Research (CEDR) developed a process to help Clinch County facilitate economic growth as effectively as possible.
At the onset of the project, CEDR conducted a review of existing documents, research reports, and work agendas relevant to Clinch County’s recent economic development initiatives, community planning, and visioning efforts. CEDR also gathered and analyzed secondary information on demographics, educational levels, housing characteristics, and income in an effort to understand the dynamics of Clinch County’s local economy. During the spring of 2016, CEDR’s economic development professionals traveled to Clinch County to conduct confidential one-on-one interviews with local stakeholders. CEDR staff also conducted confidential phone interviews with state and regional partners of Clinch County. Information collected in the local stakeholder and external partner interviews was synthesized to complete a SWOT analysis of Clinch County. Using findings from the SWOT analysis and secondary data collected, researchers identified and defined a group of industry segments for the county’s business attraction efforts.
Researchers provided recommendations to the Clinch County Development Authority (CCDA) derived from findings from the data collected, insights gained during the community and state partner interviews, and the target industry analysis. CEDR considered the following four characteristics as essential elements needed for inclusion in the recommendations:
broad base of community support,
data analysis pointing to existing gaps/needs,
tied to long-term community goals, and
impacts Clinch County’s economic development goal to “maintain a long-term sustainable and diverse economic base.”
Recommendations were grouped into seven overarching areas:
workforce development,
economic development product,
support for existing business,
cultivate an entrepreneurial spirit in the community,
marketing,
partnerships, and
targeted business attraction.
Though the goals of this research project did not include a strategic plan with implementation guidelines, the recommendations and actions offered will help to enhance and strengthen the work of the CCDA. The assessment concluded that the development authority would need to continue brainstorming and collaborating with local partners so that its programs and activities are instilled with local knowledge.
This post is the second half of a series on economic resilience. It presents some successful practices from communities around the country and describes some resilience activities from communities in Georgia.
Mayor Kasim Reed has appointed Stephanie Stuckey Benfield as the city’s first Chief Resilience Officer. Photo : Stephanie Benfield, Twitter
The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) recommends that communities develop plans to mitigate the impact of shocks to their economies and support long-term recovery efforts. This includes all communities, whether they are prone to natural disasters or deleterious economic shifts or not. All communities should be aware of their vulnerabilities and be prepared to withstand and respond to related shocks. Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) Content Guidelines offer a number of resiliency strategies for economic development organizations to incorporate into their CEDS planning documents that accomplish this goal. Some economic resiliency initiatives are discussed below.
Initiatives around the US
Regions around the country have performed studies or outlined strategies to prepare for shocks. Below are just a few examples from other states that Georgia communities should consider.
North Central Florida: The North Central Florida Regional Planning Council (NCFRPC) completed a study in 2011 to assess the region’s ability to economically recover from natural disasters. The study consists of the following:
A hazards analysis to model hurricane-induced storm surges;
A vulnerability analysis to map developed areas and infrastructure at high flood risk;
A regional economic analysis to assess capital structure loss, job loss, and population loss from a hurricane; and
An economic resiliency discussion focused on the state’s Florida Business Disaster Tool Kit.
Mountainland Region Utah: The Mountainland Economic Development District (MEDD) updated their CEDS in 2013 and included a disaster and economic recovery and resiliency strategy. The section outlines MEDD’s commitments in the event of a disaster. It includes a phase describing efforts for pre-disaster preparedness and a phase devoted to post-disaster planning and implementation. It also defines MEDD’s role in post-disaster economic recovery. This includes restoring the economic base of disaster-impacted communities and identifying hazard-mitigation opportunities in concert with reconstruction.
Southeastern Vermont: Southeastern Vermont Economic Development Strategies (SeVEDS) developed their CEDS in 2014. Their CEDS touched on many issues, including economic resiliency, but it stands out because of its focus on results. Its goals, objectives, and strategies focus on concrete actions with measurable outcomes. For example, an objective to act regionally includes a strategy to expand public, private, and non-profit collaboration which includes a measureable outcome: “The Southeastern Vermont region will achieve a good to excellent rating for best practices in regional CEDS and collaboration by end of 2018”.
The CEDS’ focus on results keeps the plan from collecting dust on a shelf. Instead, it becomes a checklist of action items that the implementation team can measure their progress against. To do this, they employed ViTAL Economy’s S.M.A.R.T. framework to guide the development of their strategy and action items. Applying it to economic resilience goals and objectives ensures meaningful implementation.
Resiliency in Georgia
Augusta-Richmond County: The consolidated government of Augusta-Richmond County began focusing on the long-term after it experienced economic downturns toward the end of the 20th century. Their efforts for economic resiliency involved three goals: attracting a diverse mix of businesses, enhancing their higher educational institutions, and encouraging investment in their historic downtown. With these goals and with their focus on the long term, the community now boasts a strong economic foundation. They have attracted a diverse mix of small and large businesses. Their university is growing with new properties downtown. The downtown is also growing with mixed-use developments and affordable housing. Their long-term focus on these three goals is also credited with the community’s ability to weather the effects of the Great Recession.
Coastal Regional Commission of Georgia: In 2014, the Coastal Regional Commission released the Resilience Plan for the Coast of Georgia. The plan examines the natural hazards of the region, its natural and built environment, and related proposals and programs. The purpose of the plan is to strengthen the region’s ability to avoid the impacts of natural hazards and to recover from the effects of natural hazards after the fact. One component of the plan involves an assessment of business vulnerability (included jobs and sales effected) in the event of a category 1 thru 5 tropical storm. The plan also includes recommendations for communities to engage businesses regarding continuity planning in the event of a crisis and recommends courses to help businesses plan for catastrophic events through the Small Business Administrations.
City of Atlanta: The latest resilience effort announced by a Georgia community is the City of Atlanta’s appointment of a Chief Resilience Officer, Stephanie Stuckey Benfield. This new position, funded by the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities initiative, will lead city-wide efforts to address social, physical, and economic resiliency challenges. These include acute natural disasters such as hurricanes and fires, as well as “slow-moving” disasters like water shortages and unemployment. Some current resiliency projects include:
Converting the Bell Wood Quarry into a reservoir with a 30-day water supply;
Hiring an urban agriculture director tasked with bringing local, healthy food options to more Atlanta residents; and
Implementing the Renew Atlanta bond program to improve the city’s infrastructure.
Also of Interest: Economic resilience will be the focus of Georgia Tech’s 2017 Basic Economic Development Course—Economic Resilience: Building Capacity for Strong Communities (March 21, 2017-March 24, 2017). For more on the course, visit www.gt-bedc.org.
Sources
Note this discussion draws from the 2016 Georgia Economic Outlook Report prepared for the EDA University Center program, operated by Georgia Tech’s EI2.
United States Economic Development Administration (EDA). (2016). Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) Content Guidelines. Retrieved from: https://www.eda.gov/ceds/.
City of Atlanta. (2016). Mayor Kasim Reed, In Partnership with 100 Resilient Cities, Appoints Stephanie Stuckey-Benfield as City of Atlanta’s First Chief Resilience Officer. Retrieved from: http://www.atlantaga.gov/index.aspx?page=672&recordid=4803.
