Statewide teamwork stressed at gathering on economic stimulus

It’s time for the people of Montana to leave the "we vs. us" mentality in the past and work together to change the state’s economy, Great Falls Mayor Randy Gray told a group of economic development professionals Thursday.

By BETH BRITTON
Tribune Business Editor

Speaking to about 100 people attending this week’s three-day economic development conference in Great Falls, Gray said the state for too long has been divided along lines — east/west, Democrat/Republican, rural/urban.

He told the group that it’s time to get beyond the idea of what’s good for Billings is bad for Great Falls, or what’s good for Kalispell is bad for Glendive. Teamwork, he said, is the answer.

Teamwork is exactly what brought the economic development professionals to the Holiday Inn this week. The Montana Economic Developers Association joined forces with PPL Montana and Montana Certified Communities for the combined fall conference, which began at noon Wednesday.

MEDA President Paul Tuss, the executive director of Bear Paw Development in Havre, said participants are working together to develop an agenda in preparation for the 2003 legislative session.

Speakers Thursday included Montana’s Chief Business Officer David Gibson, Dick King of Missoula Area Economic Development and MEDA Legislative Chairman Evan Barrett, the executive director of Butte Local Development Corp.

Barrett said MEDA’s main legislative priorities are to retain the economic development funding currently in the state budget and to restore some of the research and commercialization funding lost in recent cuts.

"I think the greatest concern is to maintain the state’s economic development infrastructure," Barrett said. "It could be snatched away, and that would be a disaster to the state."

Wednesday and the first half of Thursday’s agenda were devoted to the fourth installment of a PPL Montana/MEDA economic development training program.

Craig Erickson, a planner with Bear Paw Development Corp. in Havre, was one of about 50 people who received certificates for completing the series.

"As far as an organized, step-by-step training opportunity, it’s something that’s badly needed in Montana," Erickson said. The training program enabled economic developers from across Montana to understand broad development issues, he added. This fourth session emphasized marketing.

First impressions

Mark Sweeney, a senior principal with McCallum Sweeney Consulting of Greenville, S.C., was one of several featured speakers during the PPL Montana marketing session. Sweeney is a site selector and helps companies develop new locations.

"My first impression is that it appears that Montana is new to economic development as a professional practice, but the fact that PPL has supported a training program is a sign that economic development is starting to take hold here," Sweeney said.

Montana’s business professionals are open to new ideas, hungry for change and committed to making that change happen, he said.

Schedule:

The conference continues today from 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Speakers include EDA Regional Director Anthony Preite and John Kasperick, manager of economic information and technology for NorthWestern Energy.

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