City and County Planners matter in economic development : Collaboration is a must

Ask planners if they are involved in economic development in their community and often the response is "no" or "not really," when the answer ought to be "yes."

Too often, planners defer to their city’s economic development department or the local chamber of commerce — or give the nod to the local redevelopment agency, private industry council, visitors and convention bureau, or downtown merchants association. In fact, there is a tight link between community economic development and planning — and abundant resources for planners who want to participate in the economic development of their community.

To make those linkages, we contacted eight planning and economic development professionals with different geographical focuses (rural, small town, city, regional, national, international) and different types of economic development practice. We asked them to define economic development, describe the role that planners play in economic development, and cite economic development projects that involved planners. What we found out is explained below.

By Al Zelinka, AICP, and Jennifer Gates

Full Story: http://www.planning.org/planning/nonmember/default1.htm