By John Estridge
For many years, probably dating back to former Gov. Mitch Daniels days, state officials have tried to get county economic development efforts to expand to regional economic development efforts.
There are many reasons this scenario has been stressed. One of the main ones is instead of each county out for itself, the counties, within the region, can combine resources that make the entire region attractive.
A pilot program was decided on by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation in 2019, and that pilot program involves Dearborn and Franklin counties.
Prior to the pandemic, people from both counties were meeting in the St. Leon area to work on a collaborative effort. Then, the pandemic struck and, like much of life, the effort went on hold.
However, Tuesday afternoon, August 25, through the use of Zoom, state officials, county officials as well as business leaders and residents of both counties met to carry forth the effort.
State officials explained why they chose Dearborn and Franklin counties for the pilot program.
There were four major points: shared business and transportation connections, location at outer edge of a metropolitan area (Cincinnati and Tri-State), unique community assets and commitment to economic development. Also, officials said both Dearborn and Franklin counties have been active in the economic development efforts.
Taking the reins for the meeting were Franklin County native and 2002 FCHS graduate Mike Perleberg with One Dearborn County, that county’s economic development arm, and Nick Lawrence of the Wheatley Group, which is the economic development consultant for Franklin County.
Representing FC through this process have been Mikel Beck the county’s tourism bureau executive director; Earnie Holtrey, East Central Indiana liaison formerly with OCRA and now with the state’s broadband initiative; Tom Horninger, president FCN bank; Lawrence, Shelly Lunsford, executive director of the Franklin County Community Foundation; Nancy Main, Brookville Main Street Inc.; Scott McDonough; county councilman; Bob O’Bryan, Brookville Redevelopment Commission member; John Palmer, president of the Franklin County Economic Development Commission and a member of the Franklin County Redevelopment Commission; Bill Schirmer, president of the Franklin County Redevelopment Commission; Todd Thackery, president of the Brookville Redevelopment Commission; and Mick Wilz, business owner and supporter of economic development in Franklin County.
Dearborn County representatives include: Tim Doll, county council member; Guinevere Emery, formerly with Aurora and currently with the City of Lawrenceburg; Andrew Jackson, superintendent of Sunman Dearborn Schools; Randy Maxwell of Maxwell Construction; Mark McCormack, Dearborn County zoning and planning director; Perleberg, Steve Renihan, Dearborn County Regional Sewer District; Mark Sams, member of the One Dearborn County board and with Civista Banks; Michael Schwebler, president and CEO of High Point Health; and Terri Randall, the president and CEO of One Dearborn.
Some of the shared assets include: Interstate 74, Indiana 1 corridor, including the St. Leon area, U.S. 52, U.S. 50 and tourism, which includes the tourist attractions in both counties as well as natural beauty in both counties, and good trail systems.
Lawrence and Perleberg went through a PowerPoint presentation showing some of the common attributes of the two counties. The research was done by Thomas P. Miller and Associates, which does economic research.
Both counties are driven by income levels above the state and national average. Again, education attainment levels within the two counties are stronger than state and national levels. An example is bachelor degrees or higher. FC is at 24 percent while Dearborn County is at 18.7 percent. The state level is 19 percent and 10.5 percent for the nation.
One of the challenges for both counties is the median age within the respective counties: each county’s median age is 43. That is compared to the state’s 37.5 and the nation’s 37.8 years.
Another area of similarity is the migration of the workforces. For FC, 2,362 people are employed in FC, but live outside of FC; 2,039 are employed and living in FC; and 8,772 live in FC but are employed outside of the county. Dearborn County’s numbers are 6,066 employed in DC but lives outside the county; 6,381 live and work in the county; and 16,323 live in DC but are employed outside of the county.
Also, the counties have as a challenge the projected population growth which is projected to fall for each county after 2035.
Four industries were targeted for the two counties to attempt to target. These are in addition to tourism and visitor-based enterprises. They are: Information Technology Analytical Instruments, Aerospace/Defense Support, Food Processing and Medical Devices.
Strengths for both counties are: natural assets to draw visitors to the region, easy access to major roadways (I-74, U.S. 52 and I-275), strong sense of community and good work ethic, proximity to Lawrenceburg’s planned deep water port and the Cincinnati airport in Northern Kentucky and a well-educated workforce.
Opportunities within the region include: roadway connections to nearby metropolitan areas, existing agricultural base that can support production of diverse agricultural products, trails that can be connected, I-74, I-275, Ind. 1, U.S. 50 and U.S. 52 corridors and again the future river port.
Shared visions for the two counties making up the region are: improved connectivity between and within region’s trails, roads and downtowns; creation of a cohesive and proactive marketing strategy for the region; a prosperous region with key industries for attraction and retention; involvement of diverse groups in government and planning; increased housing supply suited for a diverse range of income groups; and develop tourism into a regional economic driver.
Shared goals for the two counties are: align economic development strategies and actions to promote a more-defined southeast Indiana region, foster and promote quality of place and regional amenities to grow population and create a distinct regional identity and develop, prioritize, and scale investment in infrastructure to support economic development and residents’ quality of life.
That leads to focus areas to make those goals a reality. With infrastructure they are: broadband, transportation and sewer and water. Quality of life includes: housing, trails and amenities. Regionalism is capacity, marketing and business attraction.
To make those items reality and to keep the ball moving, the group talked about how to make the infrastructure, action items for quality of life and regionalism a reality.
One area that was immediately talked about is adding Ripley County and Batesville to the region. A representative of Batesville Economic Development connected to the meeting via Zoom and said she was ready to come to the party.
That announcement led to the next-step portion of the meeting. Included in that are developing and convening a working team, prioritizing action items in each focus area, developing action steps and implementing accountability measures and emphasize short-term focus on “low hanging fruit.”