9/4/2009 6:00:00 AM 'Vision Themes' developed by Economic Development Committee
After a year of examining Stoughton's strengths and weaknesses, a report by the city's Economic Development Committee recommends the development of a comprehensive collaborative plan to revitalize Stoughton's's economy and improve its "liveabilty."
In an Aug. 25 presentation to the Common Council, Finance Director Laurie Sullivan highlighted the tasks identified by the 55-member committee, the civic entities that will undertake them and deadlines to accomplish them.
The council adopted the committee's report, which offered a short list of the community's assets including "a rich and ethnic heritage, great schools, excellent healthcare choices, an historic Main Street, historic homes, high quality natural resources such as Lake Kegonsa and the Yahara River, fine parks, developable lands, rail and road access, a collaborative spirit among organizations and a mix of housing."
Conversely, the report also said the city's has a lack space in the business and industrial parks, empty downtown storefronts, a lack of diverse merchandise, no commuter bus to Madison and an underutilized rail line.
Consultant Bill Rizzo, of the University of Wisconsin-Extension, facilitated the committee's discussions and noted in the final report that Stoughton hasn't been "particularly aggressive in marketing itself as a desirable place to live, work and/or own a business and, presently, is not well organized to do so."
In response, the committee established six "vision themes" that address strategic objectives, including:
n Asset preservation and development;
n Business recruitment;
n Marketing plan and priorities;
n Business retention and expansion;
n Housing plan and priorities; and
n Collaborative structure and process.
City government will take a lead role in the economic development effort, including the mayor's office, city staff and city utilities, according to the report. The Stoughton Chamber of Commerce and Stoughton Area School District will also be engaged in the process.
While the report stressed collaboration between the various interested community entities, some council members acknowledged at the Aug. 25 meeting that other entities hadn't been fully brought on board yet.
Ald. Carl Chenoweth said Stoughton schools had been an originator of the process 18 months ago, but other than a mention of training and education, the final report didn't precisely state what the school system would add or contribute as the economic development effort unfolds.
In seperate comments to the Courier Hub early this week, School Supt. Mary Gavigan said the school system has been an early supporter of economic development, including providing more opportunities for families with young children to move to town.
"We've been very supportive of (the city's) efforts and would look forward to serving on the (executive) committee," said Gavigan.
The council didn't discuss the merits of the economic development report, but instead focused on the proposed executive committee that would steer the process going forward. The mayor, presidents of the city council, school board, chamber of commerce and three appointed members would comprise the executive committee.
While Ald. Paul Lawrence said he assumed the chamber favored the proposed membership of the executive committee, due to their support of the committee's tasks, he noted the school board hadn't ratified the committee.
"We're just talking about an organization chart...the executive committee is the next step and needs to write their own rules," he said.
Ald. Steve Tone said he was uncomfortable with the "missing pieces" of the proposed executive committee's function and wanted to know how their expenses would be funded. Ald. Dave McKichan expressed reservations about the city funding an organization whose structure wasn't fully fleshed out.
Ald. Ross Scovotti asked what roles would be carved out for the school district, chamber and city government; how they would interrelate and to whom they would answer. Tone's motion to refer the recommended executive committee back to the Economic Development Committee to work out details died, as the council has already disbanded the committee in a previous vote.
The rules that will govern economic development in the city "aren't' written in stone," said Mayor Jim Griffin, adding they need to be flexible in order to response to changing conditions. He agreed there needs to be "more text" to develop the rules but like Chenoweth, called the recommended executive committee "a good first step."
McKichan suggested that one of the executive committee's first tasks would be determining their funding sources and explain their functions and responsibilities. After reporting back to the council the rules could be amended but "until that's done we're running blind," McKichan said.
