October 10 Update
Spotlight on TRDA
Sharing the vision for the economic development opportunities waiting to be tapped along the AR/OK state line, the Tahlequah Regional Development Authority (TRDA) leaders joined with the Fayetteville Economic Development Corporation as the founding members of HAMMRC in 2021.
HAMMRC was organized to bring local rural communities together to create one voice in recruiting medical device manufacturers. This group is tasked with getting companies to commit to the region along U.S. Highway 62 in Western Arkansas and Eastern Oklahoma to provide high paying, quality jobs for rural communities.
TRDA’s mission is to advance the economy and environment through partnerships which preserve, attract, and promote business growth in the Tahlequah community. TRDA strives to support all businesses in the area. The TRDA Board of Directors focus on four areas to continue growing the community:
Entrepreneur and Small Business support
Business Recruitment and Expansion
Workforce Training and Talent Pipeline
Housing
Headquartered in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, TRDA covers Cherokee County and a laborshed extending for many miles in every direction. Tahlequah’s population is over 17,000 with daytime population over 20,000, and a low unemployment rate of 2.1%. Tahlequah is located just 69 miles from Tulsa, 57 miles from Northwest Arkansas, and 29 miles from Muskogee. Median household income is approx. $32,000 and has a median disposable income over $28,000. The cost of living in Tahlequah is less than the national average by about 17.7%. Some of the top industries in Tahlequah include healthcare and social services, educational services, retail trade, real estate and rental properties, utilities, and oil, gas, and gas extraction.
TRDA is represented on the HAMMRC Board of Directors by Nathan Reed, TRDA and Chamber of Commerce President, and Josh Hutchinson of the Hutchinson Law Firm.
Mark Goodman CEcD, Director of Economic Development
Economic Impact Analysis
How’s our community doing? Community leaders are asked that question all the time. Perhaps the answers we give differ depending on who is asking. When it comes to economic development, our task is to measure our community by specific terms pertinent to business development and our ability to support families and an increasing standard of living.
In this case, community identify is measured by our ability to address what economic developers call, “factors of location”, or those factors impacting the location choice of businesses and people. Addressing our situation right here and right now, determining our strengths and weaknesses, are components of a community assessment for economic development. In effect, we’re identifying those key issues locally, as well as inventorying the components of our community, that make us both competitive and not.
What is a comprehensive community assessment for economic development?
Comprehensive assessments typically include a combination of community economic analysis, objective information inventorying, and subjective data collection through surveys, focus groups and interviews. The analysis of economic activity, inventory of assets identified, and interviews conducted are all critical methods and complementary to each other in an assessment.
The following is a summary of the data points necessary to be addressed if you are planning to conduct an economic development community assessment:
Population and the movement of people
Measure the change in population and households over time, focusing on people, ages, income, consumer spending, etc.Identify who is spending their money locally.
Employment and workforce
Measure the change in employment, by sector, wages, concentration, unemployment rate, etc.Identify who your employers are that are generating the most economic bang.
Business and industry
Measure the change in business and industry establishments and employment.Who are your top employers?Identify the condition of your commercial districts, industrial sites and buildings.
Infrastructure
Measure the condition of, and capacity of your physical infrastructure.Identify the capacities for growth with water, sewer, solid waste, electric, gas, and broadband, among other factors.Include citizen mobility and transportation infrastructure!
Environment
Measure the conditions and composition of your water, soil, and other physical attributes, as well as environmental issues and mitigation.
Education
Measure the change in education attainment, enrollment, scores, graduation rates, rankings, etc., as well as programs of significance.Education also refers to adult education, community colleges and skills training and retraining programs.
Medical
Measure the change in healthcare services locally, including hospital beds, program specialties and the market area served.Are your clinics’ hours of operation serving the population?
Crime
Measure police force specs, crime rate
Housing
Measure change in housing permits, residential utility hookups, median home value, affordability
Community spaces and places
Measure community centers and gatherings… attendance, capacities, events
Local government
Measure whether the community is engaged in comprehensive planning, regional efforts, recycling, downtown development, business development, and offering government services on-line
Citizens
Measure leadership programs, bond issues passed/failed, voter participation, social programming
Culture and activity
Measure quality of life programming, outdoor activities, shopping and entertainment
When to do an assessment?
Community assessments are often viewed as efforts we engage in on an occasional basis. Naturally, communities conduct an assessment ahead of a strategic planning effort. After all, how do we know where to go if we don’t know where we are right now? However, communities should utilize the information collected from an assessment as a part of their marketing and business development efforts (think, “website”). The right assessment asks the same questions of community conditions and collects the same information that would be requested by a prospective business or industry. The regularly – updated comprehensive community assessments can be one of the most important and valuable economic development tools we have.
Where do I get help?
Much of this information can be captured through secondary sources such as the Census and other Federal and State data publications, though some of this information can only be secured locally within the community. Partnering is the best way to conduct an assessment. We wish to discuss community assessments at the HAMMRC board meeting in November.
UPCOMING EVENTS
HAMMRC Board Meeting
Friday, November 10, 2023
10:00 a.m. in Stilwell, Oklahoma
Location TBA
Open to investors, members and their guests.
HAMMRC Leadership Seeks Recompete Grant
The leadership team of HAMMRC joined with consultants from the Economic Development Authority (EDA) office in Muskogee to prepare and submit a grant request in the “Recompete Pilot” grant opportunity. The group focused on the geographic areas of Adair and Cherokee Counties and the AR community of Lincoln, which fit the needed grant criteria (rural and distressed) and were certified as eligible.
The document prepared presented our vision for support to the eligible areas, including using potential funds (up to $500K) for developing multiple site-ready industrial properties in the eligible areas, and developing workforce and talent acquisition programs to help industries fill vacancies. Area educational facilities- Cherokee Nation Career Services Department and Indian Capital Technology campuses in Tahlequah and Stilwell, OK and Northwest Arkansas Community College and Northwest (AR)Technical Institute- will be engaged in designing custom programs to ensure they are career-focused and industry-driven to effectively meet employer demands and expectations.
The project team included Nathan Reed, Wayne Mays, Steve Clark, Mark Goodman, and Mike O’Neal of HAMMRC. Constructive input was received from Lincoln Mayor Doug Hutchens and Stilwell Mayor Jean Ann Wright. We contracted with the Muskogee office of the EDA and received significant support and input from Ernie Moore, Jay Hayes, and Scott Harding of EDA. The completed application was submitted on Oct. 5; we expect results to be announced by the end of the year.
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Thanks to our HAMMRC Investor AEP/SWEPCO, we have access to valuable economic development training for our community leaders.
AEP/SWEPCO’s new online course, “Energizing Economic Development,” can be a valuable tool for small communities like those in our corridor; most rely on city officials or volunteers to lead their ED efforts.
This high-quality, free course will fit everyone’s budget. After completing the course, which takes between 3 and 4 hours, Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce/HAMMRC staff member Wayne Mays agrees that it contains time-tested, proven steps to success. "From the 'do’s and don’ts of marketing' to a 'Business Retention and Expansion Program,' this course is on-target and provides a checklist and roadmap for new or experienced ED leaders,” Mays said.
Click the button below to access and register for the free course.
HAMMRC appreciates this timely contribution to our success. Contact Mays for more information or questions.