Lincoln County Economic Developmentcouncil

Programs: Statement of accomplishments for our three largest program services for 2016. 1. Business creating, retention, & epansion during 2016 the lincoln county economic development council (edc) provided direct assistance to 68 businesses. That assistance involved start-ups and esablished companies; property owners, realtors and developers; non-profits; and partnerships with chambers and public development authorities. One focus of the edc's 2016 outreach was to promote shopping local first. Another focus was helping businesses with their online presence, a serious need in our rural area. Small brick and mortar businesses in rural areas need to compete with online retailers, both in the store and online. The edc created several wordpress websites for businesses and are providing ongoing assistance. Additionally, a workshop on getting found on the internet was provided for both new website owners and seasoned owners. The edc sponsored a business plan challenge during global entrepreneurship week with 41 high school students participating. The challenge was that the business being planned had to be a fit for their home towns. Student plans were presented to the edc. In 2015, the edc learned that lack of child care options was making it difficult for local businesses to recruit and retain employees. Last years efforts to bring attention to the need for more licensed childcare centers paid off in 2016 with four new in-home child care centers opening and two school districts adding after school programs. A goal for 2016 was to provide summer day camps in communities that still have no licensed centers and the edc assisted in planning for 6-week day camps in two communities. (no costs accrued except staff hours. No revenue generated for the edc. No grants received by the edc)2. Provide the infrastructure necessary for resource delivery and economic growth lincoln countys municipalities continue to face a barrier to funding critical infrastructure projects projects that typically cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and that would go undone if not for government grants. Federal income figures used to determine eligibility reflected an unfounded increase of income levels for 2016, leaving seven of our eight towns ineligible for cdbg grants and low interest loans and loan forgiveness from the dept. Of health or the dept. Of ecology. The burden was on the community to verify the correct income levels and the only option to do this was through an income survey of residents. The edc completed two income surveys for two of our municipalities that were combined total of $1,343,000 for water and sewer system improvements. Two more communities have asked for assistance with income surveys in 2017. (no costs accrued in 2016. No grants received by the edc. ) rural broadband access and infrastructure is an ongoing focus of the edc. Assistance was provided to the harrington public development authority to connect their historic downtown to the high speed, federally funded fiber available at the local library. In a public-private partnership with the broadband fiber contractor, buildings in the business district now have access to speeds up to one gig of bandwidth. The edc helped to market the improvements. (no costs accrued except staff hours. Grant funding was acquired by the harrington public development authority) 3. Grow lincoln countys tourism industrytourism is a strong industry for lincoln county. To grow that industry, the edc contracted with lincoln county to perform as a lincoln county visitor & convention bureau for a seventh year. The goal of this partnership with the county is to encourage visitation of tourists from outside of the county, bringing outside revenue into nearby communities. An emphasis was put on promotion of the 100th birthday of the national park service through their find your park program. Lake roosevelt national recreation area was highlighted in a television commercial, social media, print media, a radio campaign, and rack card distribution at rest area kiosks across the state. Under the 2016 contract, the edc administered $23,090 of lodging tax funds. Additional tourism related activity included: production of rv parking maps for two communities; promotion of hunting and fishing opportunities through social media and state regulation guides; and participating in the update process of lake roosevelt national recreation area interpretive plan to improve the visitor experience. Through a partnership with plugin north central washington, local government, the lions club, and avista utilities, the edc facilitated the installation of an electric vehicle charger in davenport, resulting in the completion of a network of chargers that electrified hwy 2 from everett to spokane. (no costs accrued except staff hours. No grant funds received. The lodging tax funds went toward tourism promotion only. The costs associated with the electric vehicle charger were covered by donations. )