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Let "s Sgmeeze the Water Out of he Fat..... <br />Let's review what we have learned so far: <br />• A local economy is a place where people live and work, earn and spend. Its <br />growth is dependent upon money flowing into the area, principally imported by the <br />primary industries. This money circulates and drives the profits and earning of all <br />other businesses, including local government. <br />• To improve -a local economy, an area needs to increase the number of primary <br />businesses which hopefully will pay a wage higher than the area average. To do <br />this, the economic development organization should focus on companies which can <br />utilize the area's geographic assets and have the greatest impact. <br />Given the two most important site selection criteria, does this mean if your community <br />has hundreds of acres of improved, approved real estate and a trained or trainable <br />workforce, you are guaranteed to have economic growth? <br />No. What it means is ®u have a chance. Without both, however, you have none. But <br />there is one more issue, believe it or not, which will determine if your area grows or <br />declines. <br />It is "local community attitude." <br />In order to do all the things necessary to build an economy, the <br />support of the "people" and all local governments is necessary. <br />Local. laws need to encourage economic growth, not stifle it. <br />Funding, from the private and public sector, needs to be available to <br />pay for an aggressive economic development program, land, <br />training, transportation systems, incentives, and all the other issues <br />which influence profitability. Existing companies need to be <br />encouraged, not berated. New companies need to be welcomed, not <br />protested. <br />It is a characteristic of the strongest economies to have the full <br />support of the people and local government to cause and drive it to <br />happen. <br />M <br />Usually a sour community attitude toward economic development is the result of the <br />people not understanding what it is. Perhaps The Mwe of bough will change this. <br />Flow of bough - Page 36 - Veg-s6on August 20, 2007 <br />