WREX.com – Rockford’s News LeaderTri-state area leaders brainstorm how to revive economy

Tri-state area leaders brainstorm how to revive economy

by Marissa Alter

ROCKFORD (WREX) - The key to reviving the Rockford area's economy may be collaboration with communities in other states. That's the focus of a two day conference titled "Rebuilding the Economy of the Tri-state area."

About 60 political and business leaders from northern Illinois, eastern Iowa, and Southern Wisconsin are at this conference, sponsored, in part, by the American Assembly. That's a research and public affairs forum.

The group's testing theories from a recent report it released about how to stimulate the economy in older industrial areas. The American Assembly brought national experts to drive the conversation, but if you thought they also brought solutions, you'd be wrong.

"We're not coming with answers," explains David Mortimer, President of The American Assembly. "Those have to be developed here."

"By planting the national thoughts in the minds of people here, and by going through a very specific set of discussions at this meeting, what will be produced is an agenda that answers your question of what does it take to stimulate the economies," says American Assembly Project Director, Paul Brophy.

But Brophy says the group's national report shows improving metropolitan areas is key. That means first, strength in entrepreneurship. Second, make places as physically strong as they can be. And third, connect the workforce system into economic development.

Dubuque's city manager made the drive from Iowa. He says his community's a big believer in regional development. "There's been informal cooperation, and there's been individual communities that have cooperated with each other on projects," says Dubuque City Manager Michael Van Milligen. "But there's not really been an organized effort, and I would hope that's something that would come out of this."

"It's an exciting moment for us, especially when you think we're in a deep recession," adds RAEDC President Janyce Fadden. "So ideas about how we could come out of this recession, what changes we would need, how the federal government could help us, are really critically important to the region right now."

Tomorrow the group of 60 breaks down for smaller discussion sessions on how to help business start-ups, how to build a sustainable workforce, and how to get governments in the tri-state region to work together.