"It's time to be bold"
That was the title of "A Message from the President" in the Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce's March newsletter, where Casey Steinbacher, CCE provided her members with an overview and call to action for the Vision 3D campaign. Casey went on to say, "So, are we nuts? Raising money in this economy? When it comes to economic development, there is no better time to promote the quality of people and place that Durham and the region has to offer... Now is not the time to retrench. It is time to think and act bold." We couldn't agree with her more. And apparently, she was correct. Thanks to strong volunteer leadership and NCDS' proven process, the Vision 3D campaign is on track to exceed its $2.5 million goal in July. Instead of retrenching and retreating, Casey and her staff will have additional resources to pursue economic, workforce, and community development.
Read Casey's full message. Learn more about the Vision 3D goals and objectives. Check out the local media's print and video coverage of the campaign kickoff event.
Just up the road in Raleigh, Harvey Schmitt, CCE (President & CEO, Greater Raleigh Chamber) and Ken Atkins (Executive Director, Wake County Economic Development) will also be getting a fresh infusion of economic development resources, thanks to the Edge 4 campaign, which has surpassed $10 million - an increase of more than $1 million over the previous campaign, in a recession! Harvey and Ken certainly deserve a lot of the credit for Raleigh's growth and success. We also applaud them for their leadership in regional cooperation with Casey and the folks in Durham, Rick Weddle at The Research Triangle Park, and Charles Hayes of The Research Triangle Regional Partnership. Harvey and Ken even endorsed the nearby Durham campaign, recognizing that a stronger, more robust economic development effort from Durham would be good for the region, and therefore good for Raleigh and Wake County. NCDS is proud of its two veteran campaign directors who carefully balanced the primary interests of their respective client organizations with the productive synergies made possible by concurrent campaigns with some overlap in investors and leaders.
Some Good News for Investors in Tennessee
Launched in 2005, the Highlands Initiative is a four-year partnership between Putnam, Overton, and White counties to "improve the economic and jobs picture; maximize regional benefits of tourist, medical, and retail development; and advocate for improvements to infrastructure, transportation, education and recreational enhancements for the Highlands of Tennessee." NCDS raised over $2 million to fund the initiative, and our Economic Strategy Center has produced three annual Score Cards to communicate the program's impact and returns to its investors. ESC Director Juli Golemi recently completed the 2008 report, which was presented by NCDS President Tom DiFiore at the annual investors meeting. Led by George Halford President & CEO of the Cookeville-Putnam County Chamber of Commerce, the Highlands Initiative's 2008 performance was impressive: 540 new manufacturing jobs; $28.8 million in new payroll earnings; and $154 million in additional local output. Most importantly, the Score Card reported a return to the community of $69 for every $1 invested in the program.
Challenging Conventional Wisdom (What you think you know about small businesses' role in job creation may be wrong)
Some of our most successful campaigns have been for non-traditional, out of the box programs and projects. So, we're no stranger to (actually, we're big fans of) innovative thinking and approaches to community and economic development. When we read the "Coming Full Circle" article in IEDC's Economic Development Journal (Winter 2009), written by respected economic developer Ed Bee, we took notice. Ed's research and conclusions challenge some of the conventional wisdom that has influenced policies and strategies for almost two decades in communities of all sizes. We are intrigued by the article's revelations and suspect it will stir significant debate among practitioners, consultants, and others. It might even change the nature of the programs and initiatives for which we raise funds. Whatever its impact, it's a thought provoking and recommended read.
