NOREEN: Economic development would be a good idea

It’s a famous story: Mahatma Gandhi was asked what he thought of Western civilization and he replied, “I think it would be a good idea.”

What do you think of economic development?

In Colorado Springs we’d say it sounds like a good idea — right after we asked, “Economic development? What’s that?”

Seriously, there are people in town who know what it is and they’ve been around long enough to remember the last time we saw it around here. You know, the old-timers.

A few hundred listeners at an Economic Development Corporation luncheon heard a general outline for a new economic development strategy Tuesday, when an action plan for Operation 6035 was unveiled. Luncheon attendees were not provided with many details, but the report compiled by Angelos Angelou, of AngelouEconomics is online and it says the Pikes Peak region should try to focus on (1) software technology, (2)aerospace, defense and homeland security (3) renewable energy (4) sports, health and wellness and (5) emerging industries and entrepreneurs.

The study said the community has lacked leadership and collaboration and Angelou urged his listeners “to become a citizen of your community, not to be just a resident.”

Pam Shockley-Zalabak, chancellor of the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and the co-chair of the 6035 effort, said “there is a passion in this region to create a new model” for economic development. ... We are going to have to build a new bus.”

Then everyone is supposed to get on, and that’s always the hard part.

The El Pomar Foundation is kicking in some money to hire someone to spearhead the implementation of the report’s findings. Whatever comes of this, it makes sense that Shockley and UCCS are involved. In an era that has seen an exodus of jobs, UCCS has been an economic engine of growing importance, and Shockley has been one of the city’s most dynamic leaders.

UCCS already has a role in the five job creation areas listed in the report and as a college, it remains relatively apolitical, not interested in picking winners and losers in the economy. The ability to educate the workforce is always a key variable in economic development.

Everyone wants economic vitality, but not many want to pay for it, as was shown in April, when voters overwhelmingly rejected a property tax hike to pay for economic development.

Precisely how we’ll attract jobs is hazy in the report, which discusses the formation of committees and task forces, but that’s sort of the way it is with action plans.

Planning is good, but “action plan” is a kind of oxymoron. In football they hold meetings called huddles, where they make plans. The game gets most exciting when they go without a huddle.

The economy is like that sometimes, too.

—

Read my blog updates at
gazette.com/blogs/barrysblog