JASPER, IN (June 9, 2010) – The Dubois County Area Development Corporation (DCADC) unveiled its new Economic Development Blueprint for the county during its 2010 annual meeting luncheon held today at The Huntingburg Event Center.
With the new economic development plan, labeled the Blueprint, the DCADC is redefining itself and re-emerging as an aggressive, proactive agent for Dubois County’s economic advancement.
“The Dubois County Area Development Corporation has been investing a majority of its resources into supporting existing industries and that has been a wise investment” noted Bob Grewe, President of the DCADC. "However, we realize that in order for our existing industries to grow and our local communities to prosper, we need to diversify and grow our local economy, and help provide the re-trained workforce talent that our companies will require in the future.”
The national and global economic downturn emphasizes the need to do more to diversify and strengthen the area’s economy. Dubois County’s manufacturing industries and their supporting businesses have historically been largely tied to and reliant upon only a couple of market sectors, primarily wood furnishings for the commercial and residential markets.
“Over the last several years, Bob and the DCADC have done a great amount of work on behalf of the county in supporting our existing local businesses, including money for the Purdue Technical Assistance Program for worker technical training, as well as providing seed money for local start-up companies through the DCADC’s Enterprise Loan Fund,” said John Burger, DCADC Chairman, “With the current state of the economy, we feel it’s important to “level-set” expectations with the public.”
Given the historic strength of local businesses and the county’s overall economy, in the past there was little need to spend time or resources to recruit new companies, so DCADC took a more passive approach to marketing. Instead, when opportunities arose, DCADC stepped up to fully assist those businesses that expressed an interest in possibly relocating into the county. However, the new plan calls for proactive business attraction efforts, contacting targeted industries or businesses that research identifies as being a good match to the area’s communities, workforce and infrastructure.
Recently, the DCADC announced it would prepare a Targeted Industry Study (TIS), to identify growth-oriented business and industry sectors most suitable to locate in Dubois County. Results of this research will form the basis for these marketing efforts.
“Our goal is to take a more aggressive approach to actively recruit new businesses into our communities,” said Grewe. Previously, the focus was on a Business Retention and Expansion approach, to help the existing local companies. Going forward, the Blueprint calls for equal efforts on business retention, new business recruitment, and utilization of existing location capacity.
Developed with support from Adam Prager, professional consultant and principal of The Prager Company, the new Blueprint plan provides a framework to guide DCADC activities, priorities and accomplishments to achieve a high level of successful outcomes.
The DCADC has embraced its mission and seeks to emphasize its identity as a proactive champion for economic investment in Dubois County. However, both the Targeted Industry Study and the Blueprint plan provide strategic insights that will enable objective, critical decision making.
As Grewe stated, “We have a lot to offer in Dubois County, and we are keeping our citizens in mind, protecting their best interests.”
A summary version of the Economic Development Blueprint for Dubois County is available on the Dubois County Area Development Corporation website at: www.DCADC.org
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