{"id":3222,"date":"2021-08-11T16:04:25","date_gmt":"2021-08-11T16:04:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/altoonanow.org\/?p=3222"},"modified":"2021-08-11T18:14:20","modified_gmt":"2021-08-11T18:14:20","slug":"what-is-economic-development-and-how-does-it-happen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/altoonanow.org\/what-is-economic-development-and-how-does-it-happen\/","title":{"rendered":"What is Economic Development, and How Does it Happen?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Have you ever stood in the middle of a good community, looked around at all the successful businesses and people, and asked yourself, How did all this HAPPEN?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s tempting to imagine that communities randomly spring from the ground. But the reality is that the long-term success of cities is no accident. It\u2019s the result of hard work, careful planning, creative thinking and good leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In other words, it\u2019s the result of economic development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Economic development is the process by which wealth is created in a community to benefit its businesses and residents. The success of a community\u2019s economic development can be measured by key indicators, such as the level of business activity, the employment rate, income distribution patterns, long-term fiscal solvency, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Economic development is also connected to indicators that are indirectly<\/em> related to economic growth, such as crime rates and the presence (or absence) of local arts and culture. High crime rates can drive away businesses and families, while a strong arts and culture scene can attract talented workers. As businesses struggle to find skilled workers, cities across the nation are finding that arts, culture, parks, public spaces and other amenities are essential to the strength of their workforce and the health of their economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How does economic development happen?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Successful communities are successful for two reasons: given advantages and concerted efforts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given advantages<\/strong> include factors such as a strategic location, land that is good for development, national economic trends, business friendly local policies, a strong (existing) local workforce and business community, and many others. They are the characteristics that make your community a desirable place to live and do business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Economic development falls into the latter category, concerted efforts.<\/strong> This category consists of all the deliberate actions that public leaders, business leaders and other members of the community take to grow the local economy and realize their vision for the community. This can include marketing campaigns aimed at retaining and attracting investment from developers and businesses, talent attraction campaigns, public communications, and the formation of a local economic development alliance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Economic development is all about marketing your community\u2019s given advantages, while granting members of the public and business community a voice in important decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What happens when economic development is done right?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s look at a good example of Iowa economic development: the city of Altoona.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, Altoona is a community of about 19,000 on the east side of the Des Moines metropolitan region. However, only a few decades ago, Altoona was barely a blip on the map.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the last few decades, businesses from a variety of industries\u2014advanced manufacturing, logistics, warehousing, entertainment, retail, data and more\u2014have invested in the community, along with thousands of new residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why? Because Altoona has a strong set of given advantages, and, over the years, the community has used smart economic develop to capitalize on these advantages and achieve their vision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of Altoona’s given advantages include:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n