By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Bowling Green economic development plan has been streamlined.
Last week Bowling Green City Council approved an update to the master plan that guides economic development in the city.
The 14-page document, adopted in 1987, was whittled down to one page.
“This is a great plan. I appreciate the hard work Kati did,” City Council member Greg Robinette said of the city’s economic development director Kati Thompson.
Thompson’s one-page update offers a “comprehensive yet nimble approach.”
“Our world changes really quickly with the rate of technology,” Thompson said, explaining the brevity of the plan when she introduced it earlier this year. The document addresses overarching goals for the city, while the actionable steps will change year to year, she said.
When the update was introduced in January, City Council President Mark Hollenbaugh said he liked the flexibility of the plan “to provide a framework of where we want to go.” The “nitty gritty” details can then be addressed in the zoning code and other land use documents, he said.
Before voting last week, at the suggestion of City Council member Bill Herald, the word “appropriate” was added to the sentence about economic development efforts.
“Who decides what’s appropriate?” council member Joel O’Dorisio asked.
Council member Jeff Dennis said “appropriate” reflects the city’s desire to grow in a “measured way.”
“We’re not in for economic growth just for economic growth’s sake,” Herald said.
At the suggestion of the city’s planning commission, an additional bullet point was added to promote “identifying opportunities for redevelopment.”
In the proposed plan, Bowling Green’s four strategic economic development goals are:
- Sustained economic growth. The city attracts, retains and facilitates the expansion of industrial, professional and commercial business.
- Infrastructure and utility development. The city optimizes planning, funding and partnerships for beneficial land development and expanding municipal utilities.
- Encourage innovation and entrepreneurship. The city creates a community culture of innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship, making Bowling Green the Northwest Ohio hub for these activities.
- Improve quality of life. The city collaborates and participates in community development efforts that enhance the quality of life for residents.
Key economic development efforts include:
- Meeting annually with industry leaders to assess successes, challenges and opportunities for solutions.
- Analyzing key industry sectors (professional services, manufacturing, trades) to recruit based on community assets and goals.
- Supporting workforce development initiatives.
- Preparing land for future development, using the future land use plan as a starting point and the zoning code as a resource.
- Using federal, state and local tools to aid and incentivize development.
- Collaborating with utility partners for effective development.
- Fostering innovation and entrepreneurship.
- Promoting the city and its assets.
- Supporting placemaking initiatives.
- Identifying opportunities for redevelopment.
