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Home My WebLink About8-4-10 Deschutes Economic AllianceMission The Deschutes Economic Alliance is a grassroots eort organized by a diverse group of local, private- sector business and community leaders who seek an objective, coherent vision for the economic future of Deschutes County—a vision which builds on our regional strengths, but provides greater economic stability for sustainable growth. The Alliance recognizes the extraordinary eorts of existing public/private organizations dedicated to diversifying our local economy through recruitment and expansion, supporting existing businesses through training and educational opportunities, and otherwise enhancing the economic vitality of our community. The Alliance will collaborate with those existing organizations to create and implement a thoughtful strategy for our economic future with the independent guidance of internationally renowned economic development experts—a strategy driven by empirical data, with discrete actions for implementation and objective measures of success. Goals Specically, the Alliance intends to collaborate throughout the Deschutes community to meet the following overarching goals: To provide a common vision and collaborative framework for the economic future of Deschutes County To aid in the diversication of the local economy To attract and develop environmentally and economically sustainable jobs To encourage innovation and entrepreneurship To improve the stability and quality of life for our community members through the availability of attractive, well-paying jobs To promote and improve the image and visibility of Deschutes County as a business and family-friendly region. Near Term Goals Despite the signicant planning and best eorts of our local government agencies and business leaders, our community is in the midst of an economic crisis with record-level unemployment and property foreclosures. While no one can be blamed for the current situation, each of us is responsible to take action now to help alleviate the joblessness and personal losses that are tearing apart the fabric of our community. With our local economy in turmoil and regions across the country competing for new job creation, the challenge ahead is daunting. Therefore, it is critical that we reach out beyond our community and governmental agencies to nd seasoned economic development expertise. To that end, the Alliance board members have identied and engaged in discussions with Praxis Strategy Group, a world-class consulting group that is renowned for its achievements in regional economic development (to learn more about the consulting group see “Consultants” below). Praxis’s (www.PraxisSG.com) experience is grounded in more than 20 years of research, policy and practice in small to medium-sized metropolitan and urbanized rural areas. Working with communi- ties and regions throughout the United States, Praxis has been at the forefront in creating innovative processes that move citizens to community oriented action. You can learn more about Praxis’s work be reviewing Case Studies (praxissg.com/casestudies.php). The Alliances primary near term goal is to engage Praxis in a regional economic development plan (the “Plan”) to help diversify and grow a strong, sustainable economy. Engaging Praxis to complete the Plan will require a nancial commitment from local businesses, government agencies and indi - viduals. To learn more about how you can help, see “Get Involved” below. Praxis’s process for developing the plan will be to visit our community several times, to meet with community members and assess our region’s economic strengths. This hands-on market research will be coupled with available regional economic data to develop a clear, actionable plan. Assuming that the requisite funding is secured in a timely manner, the Alliance will engage Praxis im- mediately and we estimate that a nal plan will be available from Praxis by the fall of 2010. Long Term Goals Developing a strong and well-tailored development plan is a critical start on our road to recovery. However, it is clear that a plan a plan alone will do little to improve the well-being of our community. We must, therefore, be committed to a strong follow-through for the long term. Although this document is not intended to oer a comprehensive long-term strategy, we should note that the intent of the Alliance is to maintain an ongoing advisory board to implement and mea- sure the success of our plans. Additionally, we intend to collaborate with local agencies, such as EDCO and other County and City agencies to implement the plan. Finally, it is worth noting that the Alliance has formed a permanent, non-prot organization, whose purpose would be to execute on critical components and secure additional funding for the region from state and federal governmental sources, as well as charitable foundation. Consultants Dr. Delore Zimmerman, Ph.D. Co-Founder, President & CEO of Praxis Strategy Group Delore is a strategy consultant with twenty-ve years of domestic and international experience work - ing with local and regional economic development groups, companies and universities. He co-devel- oped the High-Performance Community Initiative while a Senior Fellow at the Denver-based Center for the New West and has spearheaded its development and deployment for 10 years with regional development organizations, universities and business leaders to create innovation and technology- based economies. Delore serves as the Director of the Coordinating Center for the Red River Valley Research Corridor, an initiative championed by U.S. Senator Byron Dorgan to build world-class research centers and to pro- vide support to the region’s growing technology sector. He is also a board member of the National Network for Technology Entrepreneurship and Commercialization (N2TEC) Institute, a nationwide consortium of major research universities, Fortune 1500 corporations, and governments whose mis- sion is to increase the level of innovation and technology commercialization in the United States. Delore served as the lead consultant for the Business Development Workgroup of the Northern Great Plains Rural Development Commission, formed by the United States Congress in 1997 to develop a ve-state regional strategy. He has worked in Wales, England and South Korea advising regional technology and development organizations and has worked with business groups from Russia in agricultural processing and construction to advise them on productivity and competitive strategies. He has received undergraduate and graduate degrees from the University of North Dakota and a doctoral degree from the Pennsylvania State University where his work focused on the mobilization of territorial-based alliances for economic development. Consultants Joel Kotkin Senior Consultant, Praxis Strategy Group An internationally-recognized authority on global, economic, political and social trends, Joel Kotkin is the author of the critically acclaimed book, THE CITY: A GLOBAL HISTORY, published by Random House/Modern Library, with editions published in China, Spain, UK and the British Commonwealth, Japan and Korea. His new book, THE NEXT HUNDRED MILLION: AMERICA IN 2050, was recently published by Penguin Publishing. The Book explores how the nation will evolve in the next four decades. Kotkin is Distinguished Presidential Fellow in Urban Futures at Chapman University in Orange, Cali- fornia. A highly respected speaker and futurist, he consults for many leading economic develop- ment organizations, private companies, regions and cities. Joel is also a Senior Fellow with the New America Foundation in Washington, DC; a Fellow with the Center for an Urban Future in New York City; and a Senior Consultant with Praxis Strategy Group. Consultants Bill Watkins, Ph.D. Executive Director, Center for Economic Research and Forecasting, Cal Lutheran University Bill Watkins joined California Lutheran University in June 2009 as the executive director of the new Center for Economic Research and Forecasting and as an associate professor of economics. He is also helping to launch CLU’s new Master of Science in Economics program, which focuses on forecasting and applied research. Prior to coming to CLU, Watkins had served as the executive director of the University of California, Santa Barbara, Economic Forecast Project. In his nine-year tenure, he expanded the project’s publica- tions and geographic scope and enhanced its reputation. Previously, he served as an economist with the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C. Watkins has been widely published in academic journals, traditional media and new media and is quoted regularly by news organizations throughout the world. He holds a bachelor’s degree in busi- ness administration-nance from California State University, Northridge, and a master’s and doctor - ate in economics from UCSB. Get Involved Our region’s economic crisis has touched each of us directly and indirectly. We can overcome our current predicament, but only if we work together for the good of the community. Advisory Board Members Member Company Title Lawnae Hunter Hunter Properties Owner Jerry Mitchell Independant Consultant Development Manager Michael Taus CodeBenders Founder Tom Bahrman Foreterra Principal Jim Clinton City of Bend Councilman Tom Van Hemelryck Premiere West Bank Sr. Vice President Shelle Pack Premiere West Bank Vice President Darrell Deglow Cascade Commercial Appraisal Co-Owner Maggie Annschild Annschild and Associates Principal Steve McDonald Deschutes County title County Manager Arlene Gibson Foundations That Make A Dierence Founder and CEO David Lewis Bank of Oregon Loan Consultant To learn more and get involved, please contact Lawnae Hunter /8(SFFMFZ"WFOVFt#FOE 03t www.DeschutesAlliance.org DESCHUTES ECONOMIC ALLIANCE