EDCUtah reports that eight cities and counties have successfully completed the Development Ready Communities (DRC) Program. The five-stage program was launched in April 2019.
A virtual “graduation” ceremony took place Friday, October 23 during an EDCUtah Investor town hall. San Juan County Economic Development and Visitors Services office director Natalie Randall was one of the members of that first graduating class.
“The process pulled together so many of the pieces for how the state and EDCUtah are doing business recruitment. For me it is helpful to understand an organization's strategy, organization, and structure so that I can know how to best partner and integrate thepartnership into my office’s strategy,” said Randall.
“The Community Assessment SWOT analysis in particular is regularly referenced here, and has been a particularly helpful tool for our local businesses looking to reinvest in our county.” Randall referring to industry acronym SWOT (Strengths Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) felt it was especially useful to businesses challenged with the logistics of operating in remote and rural San Juan County
Elaine Gizler, Economic Development director for neighboring Grand County also felt the program put her in touch with those who have the experience and knowledge needed to move her region forward. She complimented EDCUtah’s efforts, “The continued support of EDC Utah to raise the bar for economic development in our rural communities is valuable.”
“The Development Ready Communities Program is designed to better prepare our communitypartners to attract and grow competitive companies and foster the expansion of local businesses. It has been great to see city and county participants utilize the data provided through the program to strengthen local economic development strategic plans,” said Theresa Foxley, president and CEO of EDCUtah.
The eight participants to have completed the program include:
Box Elder County
Brigham City
Cedar City
Grand County
Orem City
San Juan County
South Jordan City
Syracuse City
“After participating in training sessions, we’ve seen the quantity and quality of local partners’ responses to our Requests for Information improve dramatically. Communities are better prepared for site visits. Interaction between communities, statewide, has been enhanced. Engagement with EDCUtah’s private sector partner companies has increased,” said Alan Rindlisbacher, EDCUtah director of community strategy.
Available to public members of EDCUtah, the program provides a structured, comprehensive and efficient methodology, taught in part by subject matter experts affiliated with EDCUtah. EDCUtah’s Community Strategy team assists members through the five stages of economic development preparedness, including Community Assessment, Planning, Community Marketing, Training and Preparation, and EDCUtah Integration and Support.
“As we’ve involved both public and private sector partners to help with the instruction in the training sessions, both the teachers and learners have benefited. All told, we think the DRC Program is making a positive difference as we work together with our local economic development partners-Team Utah-to build Utah’s economy,” Rindlisbacher continued.
To learn more about San Juan County's Development Ready Community resources including the Community Assessment or Community Profile, visit our Economic Development page https://www.utahscanyoncountry.com/economic-development
For any additional questions contact Natalie Randall at 435-587-3235 or [email protected]
