Indiana Economic Development Corporation Wins Excellence in Economic Development Award
Fourth Economy congratulates the Indiana Economic Development Corporation for their Excellence in Economic Development Award from the International Economic Development Council on September 19th, 2017. The Indiana Economic Development Corporation won the award for the state’s efforts related to quality of life investments designed to support the retention and attraction of talent through the Indiana Regional Cities Initiative.
“Fourth Economy supported our vision with a creative and engaged planning process that allowed us to launch the Regional Cities Initiative on solid footing and achieve quick success.” –Eric Doden former CEO for the Indiana Economic Development Corporation.
In two short years since implementation, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation has approved $80.6 million in state funding for 41 projects, with a total of $903.0 million investment leveraged, which is a 10.2-to-1 ratio. Over 60% of the committed funds are coming from private sector investments with the balance coming from local resources.
“We are very proud to have been a part of the initiative that is fostering regional collaboration, cross-sector partnerships, bold planning, and quality of place investments for businesses and communities in Indiana.” –Rich Overmoyer CEO of Fourth Economy
Mr. Overmoyer went on to add, “These investments made in a region’s core city and in surrounding communities through an investment portfolio approach is demonstrating a new model of civic collaboration and direct focus on economic growth and prosperity.”
The Indiana Regional Cities Initiative, overseen by the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, sets a framework for communities to come together to develop long-term visions and actionable plans. The Initiative is a Silver Award recipient for the Regionalism & Cross-Border Collaboration, Population Greater Than 500,000 category. The Indiana Regional Cities program was originally passed with bipartisan support in 2015 by the Indiana General Assembly.
Fourth Economy cites the Indiana Regional Cities development process as being a critical experience for the firm as they work in communities throughout the country seeking to create a new model for quality of place investment.
Creating A Resilient Community & Economic Development System
Resilience is a word that you may be hearing more of lately. While it has its roots in environmentalism, the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities initiative defines resilience, in particular for cities, as…
“The capacity of cities to function, so that the people living and working in cities – particularly the poor and vulnerable – survive and thrive no matter what stresses or shocks they encounter.”
After attending the 100 Resilient Cities Urban Resilience Summit, among the 100 cities across the globe who are developing resilience strategies, one theme is clear: while they are confident in their ability to help their cities respond to natural shocks (such as floods) and stresses (such as antiquated infrastructure), they are less confident in how to create a resilient community and economic development system. With complex stresses such as economic inequality plaguing so many cities and the threat of shocks such as automation-driven industry collapse, the task of creating a resilient community and economic development system is not an easy one.
The Urban Resilience Kickoff Source: 100 Resilient Cities
It may help to start with a clearer picture of what a resilient community and economic development system looks like. According to 100 Resilient Cities, there are 12 goals that articulate what a resilient city looks like. Six of these relate to community and economic development:
- Minimal human vulnerability Indicated by the extent to which everyone’s basic needs are met.
For community and economic development practitioners, this means access to affordable housing, food, and resources, such as energy and water. - Diverse livelihoods and employment Facilitated by access to finance, ability to accrue savings, skills training, business support, and social welfare.
More than just a job, this requires a holistic approach to individual wealth building. - Collective identity and community support Observed as active community engagement, strong social networks, and social integration.
We can always be doing more to embed this goal into our various planning and outreach processes. - Sustainable economy Observed as sound financial management, diverse revenue streams, the ability to attract business investment, adequate investment, and emergency funds.
This is the heart of economic development; but doing it through a resilience framework means that we are considering a city and its private sector’s ability to respond emergencies – natural, economic, and social. - Effective leadership and management Involving government, business, and civil society, and indicated by trusted individuals; multi-stakeholder consultation; and evidence-based decision-making. The more we can build cross-sector collaboration, the stronger our leadership and the more resilient our cities are.
- Integrated development planning Indicated by the presence of a city vision; an integrated development strategy; and plans that are regularly reviewed and updated by cross-departmental working groups.
As more cities are looking to address community and economic development challenges, it becomes increasingly critical to ensure that land use and development planning processes are informed by and addressing those challenges.
While resilience professionals are trying to understand how to address community and economic development shocks and stresses through their work, we could benefit from doing our work in a way that also creates a more resilient community. We need to find a way to work together. At Fourth Economy, we think there are two important first steps.
First, we need to rethink the most basic analysis that informs our work. Instead of a SWOT, we propose a new framework that includes analysis of Shocks, Stresses, Assets and Capacity (S2AC). This process will prepare communities to identify the issues that matter most and build a resilience agenda for their communities that is based on their ability to take action.
Second, our worlds still speak different languages. To effectively engage the private sector and economic development professionals, we need to build the business case for resilience. For instance, in Pittsburgh, climate change and extreme weather is one of our primary potential shocks, and economic and racial inequity is one of our primary stresses. By making the case for addressing those shocks and stresses in terms of lost GDP, decreased tax base, and inability to attract investment, we can start to break down silos and build new partnerships.
This is uncharted territory and no one has the answers. But we’re excited to figure them out. Want to join us? Let’s talk.
Celebrating Top 10 FECIndex Representatives at IEDC Conference
At the IEDC Annual Conference, held in Toronto, Fourth Economy was honored to toast representatives from the Great Falls, Liberty, and Topeka communities for making the top 10 of the Fourth Economy Community Index. Our Index highlights counties poised to achieve sustainable growth in a 21st-century economy. At the ceremony, held on September 17th, we heard more about the wonderful work being done by these communities and how the Index was a welcome acknowledgment for all their hard work. In addition, it was just great to meet with individuals engaged in cultivating better economies.
One thing our research did not show is that Great Falls is home to the super fun Sip and Dip lounge. While not a direct factor in our analysis, it does demonstrate the fun side of a terrific community.
Placemaking and Business Retention and Expansion
The following is the second installment of a four-part series entitled, “Re-defining the Three-Legged Stool: Placemaking as a Component of Economic Development.”
The previous installment explored placemaking’s role in business attraction as it improves the quality of life of a community and the marketability of a place. This installment considers how placemaking influences business attraction and retention.
Defining Business Retention and Expansion
Business retention and expansion (BRE) is different than business attraction because it focuses on helping existing businesses already in the community to prosper and grow. Typically, the main tool of BRE is a yearly survey of businesses that economic developers send out to (or make appointments to work through in-person with) businesses in their communities. In cases where businesses are seeking to expand, economic developers can provide access to financing, in the form of revolving loan funds, grants, and other loans, or by providing access to municipal or state resources.
Mixed Uses Contribute to Improved Usability
But, even if they aren’t aware of it, economic developers are also likely engaged in business retention and expansion activities that overlap with placemaking. For example, businesses that are multi-use, such as breweries with attached tasting rooms or small-scale food manufacturers with attached kitchens, often do not fit into one zoning category — though their mix of uses is what makes them unique, and contributes to a lively neighborhood. This can make expansion difficult, and lead to cumbersome zoning negotiations, causing businesses to lose both time and money. If economic developers work with city planning staff to assist business owners in these cases, then they are helping to create more vibrant places with improved usability.
New Uses for Older Properties
As real estate tides change, economic developers will need to be creative about new uses for old properties. Retail outlets and office spaces are being repurposed for apartments, maker spaces and incubators or are being converted into space for existing businesses to expand. The success of these new uses depends on a vibrant, transit-linked, pedestrian friendly environment to attract the kind of young talent that populate these spaces.
Innovation Districts
Creating nodes of activity in centrally located, pedestrian, and transit-accessible areas can also assist with regional business retention. As shown by the Brookings Institution’s research shows, more and more companies are choosing to move from suburban corporate campuses to areas where economic, networking, and physical assets are more accessible, contributing to a rise in what has been termed “Innovation Districts.” These districts combine small businesses, bars, and restaurants with startups, institutions such as banks and universities, and large companies. The diverse mix of tenants leads to more collaboration and an attractive environment for knowledge workers.
Attracting a Quality Workforce
From assisting businesses with zoning issues to encouraging innovation districts, business retention and expansion efforts are improved when viewed through a lens of placemaking. However, the most important determinant for keeping businesses in a community and helping them to expand is a talented and plentiful workforce. Creating a place with a higher quality of life attracts more people to communities and engenders a strong bond that helps retain populations. Smart companies understand this and locate themselves where their workforce wants to live. Placemaking is part of a larger business retention and expansion effort, and offers an advantage that should be used by economic developers.
Economic Impacts of Marijuana Legalization
With changes coming locally in Pennsylvania, with the state’s Department of Health releasing permits for medical marijuana growers and processors as well as dispensaries late last month, it seemed high time to take a look at the economic impacts of marijuana legalization efforts in other states.
Colorado anticipated $70 million in marijuana tax collections per year, but it hit $121 million in 2015 and over $140 million in the calendar year 2016.1 One estimate put the economic impact for the state of Colorado at $2.4 billion.
In Washington, tax revenues are slowly ramping up, but still far short of the estimated $388 million annually estimated in the legalization effort. Excise tax revenues from marijuana were $62 million in FY 2015, $134 million in FY 2016 and expected to hit $270 million for FY 2017.
Whether all states will hit these targets is not yet clear, and there has not been any analysis of whether legalization has offset or increased other public sector costs. We don’t fully know if legalization has produced any savings from reduced drug enforcement costs, or if those savings are offset by increases elsewhere.
It may be some years before we can really examine the impact of legalization on public costs, but there are other impacts that are receiving less attention. The legalization of marijuana at the state level has created a fundamental conflict with federal law where it is still illegal and controlled as a Schedule 1 drug, the most serious category of illegal substances that have no currently-accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. As a Schedule 1 drug, the funds for research on medical uses are restricted, so it is even harder to get marijuana reclassified (as could happen if research proved that its medical use was beneficial). As recently as August of 2016, the DEA rejected reclassification based on the recommendations of the FDA.
The US Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) indicated in what is known as the Cole Memo that they would not charge a bank with federal crimes for accepting marijuana money if the financial institution ensures that all state laws and the directives of the Department of Justice have been followed. This situation puts a significant resource burden on institutions that effectively makes accepting these deposit not profitable. Some credit unions and “money service businesses” such as PayQwick are entering the marijuana market, but the uncertain legal patchwork they operate under provides a limited solution.
As a result, marijuana businesses that are legal in their home states cannot use banks or many traditional banking services.They have to pay all of their bills, taxes, and payroll in cash. They can’t get loans or mortgages, and they can’t build credit.
These problems can also extend to companies that supply marijuana businesses and all of their employees. If your income comes from an activity that is not allowed by federal law, then you as an employee may be barred from using a bank or getting credit. Furthermore, since these businesses are paying their workers in cash, any individual with a bank account would be subject to additional scrutiny for making large amounts of cash deposits. This is such a new industry that the potential problems facing employees in these businesses have not yet surfaced, but it is something that policymakers should be considering before significant problems emerge.
1. See Joseph Henchman, Marijuana Legalization and Taxes: Lessons for Other States from Colorado and Washington, Tax Foundation Special Report (Apr. 20, 2016).↩
Fourth Economy’s Chris Ellis Contributes to Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Publication
Fourth Economy’s Social Innovation Strategist, Chris Ellis, recently had a contribution published in a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) book, Knowledge to Action: Accelerating Progress in Health, Well-Being, and Equity. This book is the inaugural volume of a publication series from the RWJF intended to catalyze discussion, engage new partners, and inspire action to build a Culture of Health in America. Chris’ contributions are included in a chapter that focuses on public, private, and nonprofit partnerships. The chapter examines the impact of these partnerships by highlighting Utah’s Pay for Success transaction that expanded access to high-quality preschool services for low-income children; a program that Chris managed before working at Fourth Economy. More information about the book, including ways to purchase it, can be found here.
Four Skills for Civic Leadership
In June 2017, I think we can all say that our world is at a minimum just different than it was in June 2016. There are issues and ideas that we are dealing with that we may not have expected, but “deal with” them we must. The challenge we live with is that civic leadership is messy at a time when people want it to be simple.
In recent months, we have been working with many communities who are watching the CNN (and FOX) stream just like us, trying to gauge the direction of this country. At the same time, we see a path forward as we support the actions our civic leader friends are trying to accomplish: creating a fresh food incubator in Buffalo; a renewed theatre in Fort Wayne, Indiana; a design and manufacturing space in Providence, Rhode Island. These are the investments with exciting short-term gains and significant long-term impact of community building.
And that’s that catch: long-term impact that learns and delivers beyond the political cycle and can sustain a community is not always easy. This is where civic leadership is more asset than virtue, and where it matters the most. The challenge we live with is that civic leadership is messy at a time when people want it to be simple. Civic leadership is not born in 140 characters or through anonymous posts. Civic leadership is created in meeting rooms, in coffee shops and craft breweries, and these days on the lines of protests. My hope is that 2017 becomes the year we realized that we all need to communicate a lot more so we can understand where we want to be as neighbors.
Here are the four key skills that we see exhibited by the best community leaders with whom we work:
Listen: In every community, there are conversations occurring that can tear apart or strengthen the community fabric. Leaders must listen to all of those thoughts to understand their context and to allow for the development of empathy for one another.
Research: There is no such thing as the status quo, or a community that is exactly as it was in the old days; instead, communities are constantly heading in new directions. Leadership is about doing the research needed to understand what that direction is. Often times, data and fact-finding will provide a view that is not expected and at times painful to deal with, but it is critical to be able to communicate what is not working in order to build a case for improvement.
Create: Leaders need to create an inclusive vision. Where do we want to be in five or ten years? What do we want the rest of the world to know us for? What do we want to leave for the next generation? The vision should be bold and inspirational, and maybe even something that some people doubt achievable.
Act: Between the vision and action, there must be great planning that goes on to detail who or what is responsible for making the vision a reality, setting clear goals, and making sure the capacity to act is in place. While great planning bolsters success, it does not guarantee action. Only by recognizing the people in your community—the civic leaders who are brave enough to act—will the vision be achieved.
Let me know what you think are skills needed by civic leaders by sending a note to rovermoyer@fourtheconomy.com.
Three Lessons for Cluster Development
The Fourth Economy team has had the pleasure of supporting the University of Pittsburgh as they look to advance the life sciences cluster in Pittsburgh to the next level. Our work included researching the predicted next generation industry advances, analyzing the region’s research capacity and influence, location benchmarking, profiling the current cohort of life sciences companies, and discussing what is needed to build on the growing success of the sector.
We were able to provide the life sciences community with specific recommendations and a website to tell their story. The take-aways from our findings for this project are not necessarily unique to this sector in Pittsburgh and should be considered across any industries that a local community is looking to support.
#1: Sustained Leadership is Vital
Cluster development takes a vision and a level of sustained leadership that is able to evolve over a significant time horizon. Even when a region has a strong research base, it takes concentrated efforts by a community-minded intermediary to build a robust industry cluster. This cluster must provide collision points for local and out-of-region industry sector players to build relationships and find opportunities for collaboration. The output of this type of leadership activity cannot be measured in deals or investment, but creates the environment for those things to happen. We see many clusters fail because success is expected overnight, and leadership is not sustained long enough to build the necessary community infrastructure.
#2: Public, Private, and Philanthropic Investments Work
The important work of cluster development requires collaboration between the public, private, and philanthropic sectors to achieve the greatest leveraged impacts. At a time when questions swirl around the sustained commitment of federal research and development funding, it is critical to look at the models that many communities, including Pittsburgh, have demonstrated. Over 15 years ago, the state government, in collaboration with local philanthropy and the region’s research institutions, made a significant commitment to the emerging life sciences industry. The impact of those investments can be seen in the growing portfolio of companies and the position that the sector is in now.
#3: Regional impacts are Spurred by Neighborhood-Level Concentration
Industry clusters are often spread throughout a region both in terms of the location of firms and their employees. As firms mature and grow, they look for their own space, often in locations outside an urban core. But that urban core is vital to creating the density and culture of collaboration needed, especially in research and development-intensive industries. As the current generation workforce has made it known, they are looking for dense urban environments with ample amenities. In turn, the firms that are emerging will look for these locations as hosts for their employees. The Brookings Institute has advanced the notion of Innovation Districts to describe this phenomenon.
Three Things to Know When Developing an Aquaponics Project
Fourth Economy recently completed a feasibility study for an aquaponics facility designed to provide fresh produce and fish in a food desert. Through our work with programs like Invest Health, we know that there are many communities out there interested in similar projects. If that sounds like you, here are three things to know.
Because the world of community and economic development is so broad, our team supports organizations that are addressing a myriad of challenges and opportunities: reforming vacant land policies; growing emerging industries like ed tech; coordinating workforce development systemsthe list goes on! This year, we had the opportunity to support a community trying to develop an aquaponics facility to provide fresh produce and protein in a food desert. Through our work with programs like Invest Health, we know that there are many communities out there interested in similar projects. Based on our feasibility study, here are three things you should know:
Know Your Fish
There are real limitations in a commercial aquaponics facility’s ability to operate without incurring a net loss on the fish-rearing portion of the facility. Despite the cost savings represented by the considerable water conservation benefit, at the core of this issue is a low share of fixed costs relative to variable costs, which limits opportunities for economies of scale. In other words, producers in many industries can save money at higher volumes because the fixed costs (e.g. facilities, utilities, and equipment) are high but the actual cost of producing one additional units (i.e., more fish) are low. Unfortunately, in a commercial aquaponics facility, the cost of producing one more pound of food is high. The fish, feed, growing medium, staff time, and supplies needed for growing and transporting the food all influence the cost of production. Fish need to be checked on often, pH levels need to be balanced, fish needs to stay cold on its way to market, and water needs to be drained often enough to ensure the roots can get oxygen during growth. Managing these systems requires serious expertise.
Among fish raised in commercial aquaponics facilities, tilapia are by far the most common and highest revenue-producing choice because they can be harvested more frequently and are not as sensitive to their conditions as many other fish, including catfish and bass.
Know Your Community
Of course you know this already! But it’s tough to make these projects work, and the more you can do to engage your community and partner with other organizations and initiatives, the easier it will be. Are there other underutilized commercial kitchens you can use for processing? What products are doing well at farmer’s markets, and what is in short supply? Are there community or education organizations that could provide volunteers? Who else is using an aquaponics system, and how can you complement and learn from them? These questions should be asked early in the feasibility process, and potential partners should be engaged to help ensure the success of your project.
Know Your Buyers
If you want to sell to grocery stores, schools, or other commercial or institutional buyers, there are a number of considerations. The following is true of most, but not all, buyers:
- You must be GAP (Good Agricultural Practices) certified.
- The fish must be butchered; this requires special facilities and perhaps adherence to additional codes and regulations.
- You must adhere to specific packaging and delivery requirements (for example, will you need access to refrigerated trucks?).
- You must have liability insurance.
The good thing is that there are often resources to support new producers. Food hubs, Agricultural Extension offices, and increasingly-specialized incubators (like this one!) often provide training and technical assistance.
Despite the financial and operational challenges associated with aquaponics, these systems continue to gain popularity due to their ability to transform underutilized spaces into production sites for fresh food, spurring community and economic development. Hopefully considering these variables will ensure that your aquaponics project is a success!
Re-defining the Three-Legged Stool: Placemaking as a Component of Economic Development
The three-legged stool of economic development is made up of business retention and expansion, business attraction, and entrepreneurship and small business development. In recent years, it has become apparent that the strength of a community’s workforce undergirds this framework. Thus, in the diagram below, workforce development has been added as a foundation for each of these activities.
Placemaking, according to Wikipedia, is a multi-faceted approach to the planning, design and management of public spaces. Placemaking capitalizes on a local community’s assets, inspiration, and potential, with the intention of creating public spaces that promote people’s health, happiness, and well-being. While the process is heavily based in design, placemaking results in more choice of housing, transportation options, and retail options, which improves people’s lives across the economic spectrum.
Placemaking enhances economic development efforts in each of the three legs of the stool, as well as through impacting workforce development. Beginning with this installment, a new series of articles in the Fourth Economy newsletter will delve into the role that placemaking has in economic development as the economy continue to transition towards the knowledge and service economies. Competition is increasing because talent and companies are tied more and more to places that support knowledge economies rather than natural resources or commodities. As the playing field levels, the competition for jobs and talent is tied to quality of place.
Often, when discussing economic development, business attraction comes to mind first. Business attraction is the process of marketing your community to firms that fit well with its already-existing advantages. Marketing can happen through an internet presence, as well as through traditional means, such as brochures or advertisements in magazines. Another tool that is used to entice business are incentives in the form of lowered taxes, financial grants, or providing infrastructure.
There are a few disadvantages to these methods. Advertisements are designed to catch the eye of site selection consultants and corporate location specialists; however, these populations likely already have access to scores of data about your community through public data bases such as the Census Bureau and private databases available via subscription services. If the story that this data tells about your community does not correspond to their needs, then no matter how much is invested in advertising, there won’t be much interest.
Incentives in the form of lowered taxes, grants, or infrastructure improvements can be an effective way to bring new businesses into a community. However, offering tax incentives can lead to a “race to the bottom” with communities attempting to outbid each other. Furthermore, offering these types of incentives can cut into school budgets, and divert funds from other priorities.
Placemaking can therefore play an important part in business attraction because it improves the quality of life of a community. Quality of life is the top reason why company executives chose to locate in a place where they themselves have to live. Improving this factor can improve the impact of advertising and decrease the need for tax incentives by providing intrinsic value for employees living in the town. While all aspects of business attraction are important, placemaking improves the product being sold, which, in turn creates a better lifestyle for both employees of new firms and existing residents.