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Breakthrough Solutions
News in the NCARED Region
2008 •
2007 •
2006
2008
NCARED Board Accepts Regional Blueprint, Sets Priorities
July 2008
At a board retreat of the North Central Arkansas Economic
Development Corporation, the NCARED board voted unanimously to
accept and endorse the 21
st Century Regional Blueprint. The
blueprint was developed through our Breakthrough Solutions program
and involved community leaders and high school youth in every county
of the region. The board also reviewed and revamped the by-laws and
set priorities for the coming year:
- Education;
- Entrepreneurship and business
development
- Tourism and attracting retirees
- Manufacturing and industrial
recruitment
- The creative economy.
The board emphasized that they welcome initiatives and activities
in other issue areas but felt the need to focus on these top
priorities for the coming year. Alan McVey and Jerry Smith from the
Arkansas State University Delta Center for Economic Development
facilitated the sessions.
Grant Information Seminar Set for January 25 in NCARED Region
January 2008
Community, county, and economic development leaders in the north
central Arkansas region have a unique opportunity to gain first-hand
information about the new AEDC grant program mentioned in the above
article. North Central Arkansas Economic Development (NCARED) is
sponsoring a grants information seminar on Friday, January 25, in
Mountain Home for community and county leaders to learn about this
funding program.
"We have a new opportunity to fund projects in the NCARED region,
but will have to act quickly," states Gil de Lorenzo, Executive
Director of NCARED. "The due date for the grant applications is
March 3, 2008." The seminar will take place at El Chico Cafe in
Mountain Home, from 12 noon until 2 p.m. Lunch will be provided,
courtesy of NCARED. Morris Jenkins with the Arkansas Economic
Development Commission will speak at the seminar, as well as
representatives from the Northwest Arkansas Economic Development
District and the White River Planning and Development District. You
won't want to miss out on this opportunity, so please invite other
local officials and economic development leaders in your community
to attend this seminar. Contact Gil de Lorenzo (gilmar@centurytel.net
,
870-424-7473) if you will be able to attend.
ASBDC Launches New Business Portal for NCARED Region
January 2008
Timothy Lee, Associate Extension
Specialist, UALR Lead Center
The Arkansas Small Business Development Center recently announced
the opening of OzarksU.com, a business portal for the North Central
Arkansas region. OzarksU.com consolidates news, discussions,
learning, events, and important resources for businesses and
individuals in the Ozarks region. The OzarksU.com business portal is
funded under a one-time grant from the U.S. Small Business
Administration. The portal provides links to no-cost online learning
resources from Business Week, MIT, and UC Irvine. The Arkansas SBDC
is providing free access via OzarksU.com to twenty ASBDC online
learning programs through the grant period.
A virtual library provides for the development of ebooks. While
starting with over two dozen business ebooks, the portal provides
the capability for individuals and groups to create and edit
additional ebooks on any topic, including education, health, and
other areas of regional interest. An interactive events calendar
tracks holidays, regional events, networking opportunities, and
national retail promotion periods. Calendars can be exported in iCal
format for use with Google calendars and other calendar software.
Partner organizations, such as chambers of commerce, can easily add
and edit events for their city or county.
A news aggregator monitors syndicated news feeds from dozens of
expert sources. News sources range from official sources such as the
SBA and ASBDC to marketing professionals and lawyers. Discussion
forums provide a place for businesses and individuals to ask
questions on accounting, marketing, and retailing. Additional forums
provide for discussions of regional issues related to education,
employment, health care, and housing. Partners involved in creating
the portal included the North Central Arkansas Regional Economic
Development (NCARED) and the U of A Cooperative Extension Service.
Individuals may register for free access to OzarksU.com at:
http://ozarksu.com/user/register.
2007
North Central Arkansas Region Summit Held October 9
November 2007
Tuesday, October 9, was a beautiful fall day, and for the NCARED
citizens who traveled to the Van Buren County Fairgrounds near
Clinton, a treat was in store. The fair building was transformed
into a beautiful banquet hall, complete with fall decorations,
courtesy of Linda Fisher of Clinton and her team of volunteers from
Van Buren County. Mike Durow, NCARED President, served as the MC for
the event.
Jennifer Bonds with the UALR Small Business Development Center (SBDC)
made an exciting announcement for the NCARED region. SBDC has been
awarded a grant of $80,000 to work in the eight-county NCARED
region. The grant project includes development of a regional web
portal, intensive business support for 20 businesses in the region,
and web development training for additional businesses. In addition,
there will be on-line training for small businesses available at no
charge through September 30 of next year.
Progress reports were presented from study action teams working
on housing, business and entrepreneurship, manufacturing and
education, creative economy, agriculture, and local government.
During the delicious buffet lunch, there was a brief presentation by
Ancil Lee of University of Central Arkansas about the Community
Development Institute, and an economic update on Izard County by
NCARED board member Ken Ballman.
Lieutenant Governor Bill Halter spoke to the group about the
importance of education and about his efforts to offer Arkansas
voters the opportunity to decide the merits of a lottery to support
education (with no link to casino gambling). Those who did not
attend missed out on a truly special opportunity to support the
region. Thanks, Linda Fisher, and all those who assisted with and
attended the event.
Workforce Housing Important to the Region
September 2007
"Think about a couple in Marion County who work in a local
manufacturing plant, each making $8-9/hour and taking home a total
of $500-600/week. They may have a couple of kids and a car payment
or two. Even though they work hard, they cannot save enough money to
make a down payment on a home. We want to give them an opportunity
to own their own home - to participate in the American dream,"
stated Gerald Hammon, co-chairman of the 21st Century Vision
Workforce Study Action team and Marion County realtor. "Our vision
is to make affordable housing available for people of all income
levels in the NCARED region."
Hammon was speaking at two Workforce Housing information meetings
held on September 14 in Mountain View and Mountain Home. The
meetings were sponsored by 21st Century Vision, a regional
development initiative of the North Central Arkansas Regional
Economic Development organization (NCARED), in cooperation with the
University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service. NCARED serves
eight counties in North Central Arkansas: Baxter, Fulton, Izard,
Marion, Searcy, Sharp, Stone, and Van Buren.
Another speaker, Martie North, a representative of a state-wide
housing and community development coalition and vice president of
Bank of the Ozarks in Little Rock, stated: "You have an opportunity to develop creative responses to the
housing needs of people in your region. We are talking about housing
for people who work for a living - they may be in law enforcement,
emergency health, or a teller at a bank."
"Not every person is meant to own a home, because a home requires
responsibility," added North. "Quality rental units are part of the
mix that communities need for their citizens." North also discussed ACHANGE (Arkansas Coalition of Housing and Neighborhood Growth for
Empowerment), a state-wide housing and community development
coalition that was formed to support the development of housing and
community economic development in the state.
Murray Harding and Thalia Lee from the Arkansas Development
Finance Authority and Jackie Davis and Neal Hodges from USDA Rural
Development were present to share information on the loan and grant
programs available through their agencies. These included
- First-time home owner loan programs that feature
below-market interest rates, fixed interest rates for 30
years, and nothing down
- A variety of loan programs that allow residents to fix
up their homes and enable communities to convert vacant
buildings such as schools and big box stores into quality
housing units
Mark Peterson, professor of community development with the
University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, described a
study that confirmed the importance of quality housing to retain and
attract a good workforce. "Because a quality workforce is so
important for economic development, workforce housing becomes an
important economic development strategy for a county or region,"
stated Peterson.
Modular housing was also presented as having promise for the
state of Arkansas. Unlike manufactured housing (mobile homes),
modular housing is considered real estate by the lending community,
is built to meet local building codes, and looks and feels like
regular stick-built homes. Modular housing has been used in other
parts of the country for over 20 years and provides significant cost
savings in construction.
In response to a question about how local governments can fund
needed infrastructure, those present identified the Arkansas
Economic Development Commission, Arkansas Development Finance
Authority, USDA Rural Development, Community Resource Group of
Fayetteville, and planning and development districts as being very
helpful.
Hammon described the intent of the 21st Century Vision Workforce
Housing Team to continue to share information about housing
opportunities with people in the region, including loan and grant
information on the NCARED website.
Economic Development Dependent upon Qualified Work Force
September 2007
"This is an exciting time to be in Arkansas," stated Randy Zook,
deputy director for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission.
"Since January of this year, $1.25 billion of new capital
development and 4,200 new manufacturing jobs have been created in
Arkansas." Zook spoke at the September board meeting of the North
Central Arkansas Economic Development Corporation (NCARED) at Ozarka
College in Melbourne. NCARED serves eight counties: Baxter, Fulton,
Izard, Marion, Searcy, Sharp, Stone, and Van Buren.
"The Fayetteville shale gas plan is having a profound impact on
the economy of Arkansas. In capital expenditures alone, it has been
like three super projects. The 9,500 jobs it brings is like 20 super
projects. For example, Chesapeake Energy starts its workers at
$48,000 per year, and in three to four years, they can be making
$90,000-100,000/year. And this is a project that will last 25-30
years.
There are four major factors to successful economic development:
1) We have a new governor who gets it - he understands
the link between education and economic development and
understands the state's role in this process.
2) A financial incentive package, which includes the
Governor's Quick Action Closing Fund and community
development block grant funds
3) A new director of economic development, Marie Haley,
who has broad-based experience in international and economic
development
4) Communities that are much more pro-active in their
economic development efforts. They know it is a competition,
and they compete to win. Voting for a sales tax to support
economic development is an example of what communities are
now doing.
Governor Beebe's goals include
- Creating a business environment to support
manufacturers
- Compete aggressively for new jobs
- Tailor our strategy for each part of the state
- Expand and enhance post-secondary education
- Improve the per capita income in Arkansas. Per capita
income is 48th in Arkansas at $28,000/year, while the
national average is $36,000.
If you look around Arkansas, you will see 70,000 unemployed
people and 70,000 jobs. The problem is that most of these people
don't have the skills to do the jobs. Dassault Falcon Jets would
hire 450 people today if they had the skills, and 150 of these would
be engineers.
The problem with education is there are a lot of resources
focused on the top 15 percent of the students and a lot on the
bottom 20 percent. We have to have a lot of people who can make and
fix stuff.
Within the next five years, 35 percent of state government
employees will reach retirement age. We have to find a better way to
provide technical, engineering, and mathematical training for
workforce needs, or our state will fall farther behind.
In the five-year period ending last year, we graduated only one
person qualified to teach physics. At the same time, we graduated
3,500 PE teachers! We also need to take a look at our severance
taxes. Southwest Energy pumps 200 million cubic feet of gas per day
and pays $600/day severance tax. In Texas, the same gas would
generate $95,000. There is an opportunity there - somewhere between
$600 and $95,000.
What we can do:
- Learn what is going on and become engaged in your local
public school.
- Find a teacher who will invite you to speak about your
job and profession.
The NCARED board and guests also received an update from 21st
Century Vision, a regional development initiative it sponsors.
Maureen Rose with the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension
Service informed the board about a Creative Economy meeting that was
held August 31 in Mountain View, with artists and crafts people from
throughout the region in attendance. A seed money grant was received
from the Clark Williams CenturyTel Foundation to support the
development of the creative economy in the NCARED region.
NCARED board member Gerald Hammon announced there were two
Workforce Housing information meetings coming up September 14 in
Mountain View and Mountain Home. On October 9, the annual NCARED
Economic Summit will take place at the Van Buren County Fairgrounds
in Clinton, from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.
Agencies to Host Application Workshops
September 2007
Application workshops will be held in three locations in the
State of Arkansas to inform the public on the procedures for
applying for grants from four different agencies and organizations:
the Community Resource Group, the Arkansas Department of Rural
Services, the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, and the U.
S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Community
Facilities Program.
The Community Resource Group is a private, non-profit
organization that provides assistance to communities and water and
wastewater districts in the form of loans and technical assistance
for water and wastewater projects.
The Arkansas Department of Rural Services provides grants to
counties and small Arkansas communities. These grants may be used to
fund a variety of projects, including community centers, fire
stations, and fire trucks.
The Arkansas Economic Development Commission administers the
state Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program, as well as
several state-funded grant programs aimed at economic development.
Projects funded through CDBG include senior centers, child care
centers, county health units, and grants to benefit companies that
are locating or expanding in Arkansas.
The U. S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Development Community
Programs provides grants and loans to fund essential community
facilities and water and wastewater projects for public use in rural
areas. Examples of projects include community centers, fire stations
and fire trucks, medical facilities, waterline extensions, and
wastewater collection/treatment systems.
The workshop will be held on Thursday, November 8, at 1 p.m., at
the North Telephone Company, 301 East Main, in Flippin. All
interested persons are encouraged to attend. For more information,
contact Dana Heatley at the Arkansas Economic Development
Commission, (501)682-1211, or by e-mail at:
dheatley@arkansasedc.com
Economic Study: Collaboration, Not Competition Key to Economic
Improvement in North Central Arkansas
August
-
September
2007
North central Arkansas' amenities, natural resources, and
diversified manufacturing sector are the raw materials for a
healthier economy, but leaders in the eight-county area must
collaborate, not compete, to make development efforts successful,
according to a study done by the University of Arkansas Cooperative
Extension Service.
Results of the study by Dr. Wayne Miller, an extension economist,
were released at an August 14 meeting of the North Central Arkansas
Regional Economic Development Corporation. "The NCARED region has a
diversified economic base which can take advantage of growing
demand," Miller said. "If the region enhances its infrastructure
and develops a skilled and knowledgeable workforce - those existing
industries can be a launching pad for an improved economy."
In the "NCARED Region Target Industry Study," Miller's goal was
to identify target industries that have potential for growth to
2030, add value to the resources and commodities of the region, and
could increase the region's average wages. The study looked for
"industry clusters," concentrations of industries that gain in
performance through proximity. There are two types: vertical
clusters, which have buyer-seller relationships, and horizontal
clusters, which share a common market or use common technologies or
resources.
The study noted several economic trends:
Manufacturing - Despite declines, manufacturing "remains an
important component of the economic base of the region in terms of
the number of jobs it provides for local residents." The most
promising areas for manufacturing include food, wood products,
plastics, primary metals, transportation equipment, and computer and
electronic component manufacturing.
"To grow the economy and increase the number of higher-paying
jobs in the region requires producing products with higher value
added instead of commodities and increasing worker productivity,"
the study said.
Even though the medical equipment industry is the largest
employer in the region, "projections for both the U. S. and the
region suggest that this industry will … decline to about 85 percent
of current levels in 2030."
Tourism - Miller said tourism has "the potential to be an
important driver of future economic growth." Tourist spending grew
25 percent in the region between 1990 and 2005 and could grow even
faster in the future if more value is added to the tourism
experience.
In-migrating retirees - The area has been attracting retirees
since the 1970s, and though there have been some declines in the
numbers moving to the area, the millions of American boomers who
will hit retirement age in the next decade will need a place to go.
Key advantages of the NCARED region are outdoor recreational
opportunities and scenic beauty.
The study recommends
- Retaining and expanding existing businesses, which is
less costly then attracting new business
- Encouraging and supporting entrepreneurs by improving
infrastructure, access to venture capital, and a network of
like-minded individuals
- Increasing workforce productivity by investing in
education and infrastructure
- Enhancing and developing synergies between public and
private sectors and among industries
- Developing infrastructure to reduce the cost of doing
business and to enhance quality of life
The eight counties in the region are Baxter, Fulton, Izard,
Marion, Searcy, Sharp, Stone, and Van Buren. The study was prepared
for 21st Century Vision, an initiative of NCARED, which is part of
the Breakthrough Solutions program of the extension service. For
more information about NCARED, visit www.ncared.com. To learn more
about Breakthrough Solutions and other community development
initiatives, visit www.vworks.org
.
21st Century Vision Blueprint Working Session
Draws 125 Participants
January - February 2007
If you look at the world you see tremendous change.
The competitive advantage of regions and nations is changing
due to the easy mobility of capital, technology and labor
across regional and national boundaries. Technology has made
it possible for jobs to move without people moving. These
factors have had a great impact on the competitive advantage
of rural America. - Dr. Wayne Miller, Professor - Economic
Development
University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service
Dr. Miller was sharing the highlights of the Regional Economic
Analysis for the North Central Arkansas Region, which he authored
and will soon be available, at the 21st Central Vision Blueprint
Working Session in Mountain Home on February 8. Over 125 leaders
from across the eight-county NCARED region participated in the
event.
Economic clusters with the most potential identified by the study
include:
- Retain and expand manufacturing industry clusters with
growth potential (transportation equipment, plastics and
rubber, and primary and fabricated metal)
- Produce high-value-added products using agriculture and
forest commodities
- Attract tourists, retirees, and teleworkers that will
contribute to the growth of the region
- Maintain and enhance the medical industry with
associated linkages
- Enhance the retail and service sectors to capture more
local and non-local dollars
Dr. Miller then recommended these strategies to have the most
impact:
- Strengthen collaboration and cooperation - among
schools, industry, businesses, and local government across
the region
- Expand vertical and horizontal linkages among existing
industry clusters
- Invest in people through training and formal education
and by creating a local culture of learning and
entrepreneurship
- Support innovation and telecommunications
- Produce high-value-added products instead of
commodities.
Fifteen study action teams were formed, with resource people
available to participate in the planning sessions. A special thanks
to all who came, participated, and made it possible.
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"It was very impressive to see the commitment of these leaders to
this process," stated Jeff Jones, public affairs manager with
CenturyTel. "By commitment, I mean a willingness to sit down and
roll up your sleeves and collectively work to position your
community and region for the future. It is a testament to the
persistence of people like Gil deLorenzo, the NCARED board, and
others who are involved."
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2006
Former Boeing Plant Secures New Tenant in October
November 2006
The Melbourne plant vacated by Boeing has new life! Based in
Batesville, Bad Boy Mowers currently builds high-end rider mowers.
This expansion to Melbourne is for their new product line, an
electric multi-terrain vehicle (MTV). Randy Zook, Boeing Plant task
force chairman, recognized the efforts of the task force, Entergy,
and the Arkansas Department of Economic Development (ADED) for the
successful conclusion of this search. The task force includes Zook,
Carla Rush, and Suellen Davidson of Ozarka College, Melbourne Mayor
Mike Cone, James Albert with the White River Housing Authority, and
Arlen Marsyla, a retired Boeing plant manager who was very
instrumental in this effort. The task force developed a plan to let
everyone in the area know of the availability of the building, and
members were flexible in their expectations for the building's use.
The North Central Arkansas Economic Development (NCARED) board
was also very supportive of this project, with a summit held in the
facility in August. Speaking at that event, Senator Blanche Lincoln
advised the large crowd to talk to people they knew in order to find
a new tenant. An estimated 120 to 150 jobs will be generated by the
new plant within three years. When asked what made the most impact
in the effort of the task force, Zook responded, "The focus on
networking. This proves that there is a way to market a facility. It
is very important to reach out and inform people."
North Central Arkansas Region Moving Forward
October
-
November
2006
21st Century Vision, the regional community economic development
initiative of the seven-county North Central Arkansas Regional
Economic Development Corporation (NCARED), continues to move toward
its regional blueprint. All regional participants are informed and
able to share information through a weekly electronic newsletter, 21st Century Vision Voice, edited by Maureen Rose, program
associate with the U of A Cooperative Extension Service.
In September, over 60 people attended the Breakthrough Leadership
Skills workshops offered in Mountain Home and Mountain View. The
October workshop in Flippin focused on using high speed Internet and
technologies to create economic opportunities in the region. On
October 23, NCARED participants had the privilege of hearing Joanna
Wright from North Carolina discuss business and technology
telecenters. November's workshop in Salem had teams select from key
issues identified in the regions. Each team identified assets as
well as innovative and entrepreneurial opportunities. The work of
these teams will be carried forward to the next workshop.
At the January workshop, study action teams will finalize
strategies for addressing key issues identified throughout the
region. Issues fall into eight general categories:
Economic Development, Education, Housing, Quality of Place and
Life, Widespread Use of Information Technology, Social Ills and
Issues, Transportation, and Natural Resources.
The strategies and action plans from this session will form the
regional blueprint. Participants at this session will benefit from
key resource people and supporting information brought into the
process to advise and assist the study action teams in their
planning and action process.
Senator Blanche Lincoln Featured Speaker at 21st Century Vision
Summit
August - September 2006
"The strength of this country is the people in this country
- it
is the hard work and talent and faith and commitment in the
community," stated U. S. Senator Blanche Lincoln. "In a state like
Arkansas, we do have to come together, and we share what we have in
order to grow our communities and region… I am looking forward to
seeing results of the University of Arkansas Breakthrough
[Solutions] Program, and of the other activities here. I know it
will be something you will all be proud of, and I am proud to
represent you."
Senator Lincoln was speaking at the 21st Century Vision Summit, a
major event on August 10, hosted by the North Central Arkansas
Regional Economic Development Corporation in cooperation with the
Arkansas Department of Economic Development, Central Ozarks Task
Force for Economic Development, Ozarka College of Melbourne, City of
Melbourne, and regional energy providers. One hundred seventy-five
community leaders from the North Central Arkansas (NCARED) region
came together to hear Senator Lincoln and other speakers discuss
challenges and opportunities in the 21st century economy. The summit
took place in the recently vacated Boeing plant outside of Melbourne
and served to showcase the facility and its availability.
Steven Sanders, President of the NCARED Board of Directors
"Since the beginning of this year, we have had a lot of jobs
lost. So far, there are at least 700 jobs lost in the NCARED region,
including the multiplier effect. This is over $13 million that will
be leaving our region by the end of the year. The individual
counties don't have resources to address these issues, but by
unifying as a region, we can do things that individual counties
cannot do. Consequently, NCARED contracted with the University of
Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service to conduct their Breakthrough
Solutions program in our seven-county region, through Dr. Mark
Peterson and Maureen Rose.
Larry Walther, Director, Arkansas Department of Economic
Development
"I just returned from a trip to Taiwan, Korea, and Japan. In
Taiwan, their literacy rate is 97 percent. It is phenomenal. Think
of a people with an illiteracy rate of less than 2 percent. That is
why they have created such a booming economy. The low-tech jobs are
moving out. We have been fortunate to keep them longer than other
countries. We need to be able to replace those jobs with more
hi-tech jobs and higher service jobs like Acxiom. That is the future
of our economy."
Breakthrough Leadership Skills Workshop Set for September 12
August
-
September
2006
Recruiting new leaders is just one of the topics that will be
covered at a Breakthrough Leadership Skills Workshop to be held in
Mountain View on September 12. This is the first in a series of
action workshops scheduled for the North Central Arkansas region as
part of their 21st Century Vision initiative. Other topics to be
addressed at the workshop include: leadership styles, effective
teamwork, dealing with conflict, community visioning, and regional
development.
As stated in the previous article, leadership skills are a
critical element of the development of a community or region and can
truly lead to breakthroughs. Communities today are competing
against collaborative community and regional initiatives, in which a
broad cross-section of leaders is involved from the public, private,
and non-profit sectors. For more information, call 501-671-2072 or
send an e-mail to vworks@uaex.edu.
21st Century Vision - A Report from the People
June/July 2006
Since the North Central Arkansas region (NCARED) chose to
participate in the Breakthrough Solutions program, we have met with
community leaders and citizens in each of the seven counties to
identify challenges and opportunities and introduce the program.
Here are the key issues identified in these meetings:
- Economic development - Create new jobs, support
existing businesses, and build on our assets
- Infrastructure - Improve major and secondary
roadways, increase air services, plan for future growth,
and manage our water use
- Education - Improve our high school graduate rate,
educate for trades and vocations
- Quality of life and housing - Become a more
attractive place for people to visit and live
- Natural resources - Protect our natural resources
as we move forward with development
- Social ills - We will need to deal with drug use,
poverty, apathy and complacency, and distrust of
outsiders if we are to move forward
- Health care - Access, shortage of professionals,
and planning for major emergencies
To guide the process, a regional leadership team was formed on
July 11 in Mountain Home. The team will work closely with us
throughout the development process. "We are a region, and we need to
look out for each other," stated Gil deLorenzo, executive director
of NCARED (North Central Arkansas Regional Economic Development). "We need to get more jobs - good jobs."
North Central Arkansas Region Hosts Breakthrough Solutions
Workshop
March 2006
Neither a wise man nor a brave man lies down on the tracks of
history to wait for the train of the future to run over him.
Dwight Eisenhower
With this quote, Gil deLorenzo, executive director of the North
Central Arkansas Regional Economic Development Corporation (NCARED)
welcomed participants to the NCARED Call to Action Caucus, a two-day
retreat for key leaders in the region, held at Gaston's Resort on
the White River. Board President Steve Sanders gave the history of
NCARED, reflecting on its beginning in 1991 with the industrial
development committee of the Mountain Home Chamber of Commerce. It
has grown since that time to become a seven-county region with
150,000 citizens and a workforce of 54,000. NCARED has been very
active, completing a business plan, a strategic plan, a DINA web
page through the UALR Institute for Economic Advancement, and a
summit last August with over 300 in attendance.
Mitch Chandler, director of marketing for the Arkansas Department
of Economic Development, shared these perspectives:
- The underwear and socks worn by the entire
audience were made in China!
- China has capitalism without democracy, so they
can make decisions faster.
- Forty thousand manufacturing jobs left Arkansas during the last five years.
Jay Chesshir, executive director of the Metro Little Rock
Alliance, stated: "Companies no longer care about political boundaries. What they worry
about is - ‘What is the labor force in a 20-mile radius?' If that
labor force will help them realize their goals, they will come and
visit." Chesshir added: "Today no
longer is broadband and add-on. It is a given. If you don't have
it, those types of industries won't even look at you." Robert
Pittman, director of the Community Development Institute, stated:
"You can't have successful economic development without successful
community development. It is critical that you practice both. "He
added, "Regionalism is a growing trend in the United States. It sends a
positive message that communities are working together."
Ron Swager, Director of Economic Development Education with the
UALR
Institute for Economic Advancement, described critical elements
for success, with a focus on organizational structure, staffing, and
funding. Mark Peterson and Maureen Rose presented the Breakthrough
Solutions program and led the retreat participants through a process
of describing four possible scenarios - plausible futures for the
North Central Arkansas region. These scenarios are:
- Moving Forward - Regions and communities
with a shared vision, able to harness the forces of
change
- Spinning Wheels - Regions and communities
with a shared vision, but not in touch with the global,
knowledge-based economy
- Frustrated Observers - Regions and
communities without a shared vision, but knowledgeable
about the global economy
- Left Behind - Regions and communities
without a shared vision, and not in touch with the
global economy
Wayne Miller, extension economist with the University of Arkansas
Cooperative Extension Service, then discussed "Identifying Regional
Opportunities for Growth."
Congratulations to Gil deLorenzo and the NCARED board for pulling
together such a top notch group of leaders in the region and hosting
a productive retreat. And thanks to Barbara Merrick of Entergy's
TeamWork Arkansas for her valuable assistance as well.
North Central Arkansas Region to Participate in Breakthrough
Solutions
March 2006
Congratulations to the North Central Arkansas Regional Economic
Development (NCARED) organization, which recently signed an
agreement with the U of A Cooperative Extension Service to conduct
the Breakthrough Solutions program for its seven-county region.
Under the leadership of the NCARED board and Executive Director Gil
deLorenzo, the North Central Region recently hosted a successful
Call to Action at Gaston's Resort, and a Breakthrough Solutions
Fundraising Workshop was held in Mountain. Beginning in 1991 with
the industrial development committee of the Mountain Home Chamber of
Commerce, this initiative has grown to become a seven-county region
with 150,000 citizens and a workforce of 54,000.
Breakthrough Solutions is based on the premise that ordinary
people can accomplish extraordinary things. The program draws on
concepts, research, and real-world success stories from multiple
disciplines. Each program is adapted to meet the needs of the
community or region being served, built upon its unique assets and
history. Currently, information meetings are being scheduled for
each county, for key leaders to learn about Breakthrough Solutions.
Leaders from throughout the region will soon be invited to
participate in workshops leading to action, strategy development,
and a regional blueprint. Breakthrough Solutions includes a regional
economic analysis conducted by Dr. Wayne Miller with the U of A
Cooperative Extension Service. For more information, contact Dr.
Mark Peterson or Maureen Rose at 501.671.2066 or
mpeterson@uaex.edu.
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