BY MELINDA J. OVERSTREET
GLASGOW NEWS 1
Economic development is about “creating opportunities for all residents in our areas and not just a few,” according to Jeff Noel.
Jeff Noel, secretary of the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, presents his keynote address at the BRADD Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy Summit on Tuesday. MELINDA J. OVERSTREET / GLASGOW NEWS 1
Noel, the secretary for the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development, was the keynote speaker for the Barren River Area Development District Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy Summit.
More than 130 people from across the 10 counties served by the BRADD registered for the event, and Glasgow News 1 observed nearly 20 people were in attendance in the Barren County contingent, representing cities’ governments, county government, the state legislature, economic development, the planning commission and emergency management.
Noel was formerly a corporate vice president of communications and public affairs for Whirlpool, and also served as president of the Whirlpool Foundation, which included oversight of the company’s 20-year relationship with Habitat for Humanity, about which he spoke briefly, but he emphasized the importance of involvement in the community more broadly. He expressed appreciation for those who serve in elected offices and as volunteer leaders and spoke some of the goals of his and the cabinet’s, including the environment he feels they have there.
He said economic development work, for him, is not about job announcements, filling up an existing building or creating a park. It’s about more than that.
He said he does it to make life better for all Kentucky neighbors, not a few.
He sugested that if they can’t bring in new companies that are willing to go into schools to help middle-school students “explore how to get that yearning to do a better job in learning” or help people tap into the programs that offer second-chance opportunities or help those who want to learn new skills tap into those educational opportunities in our communities, get better jobs and be able to turn a house into a home, then why do it?
“We shouldn’t do it if we don’t have that kind of vision and that kind of commitment,” Noel said.
Eric Sexton, executive director of the Barren River Area Development DIstrict, speaks during the BRADD Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy Summit on Tuesday. MELINDA J. OVERSTREET / GLASGOW NEWS 1
Eric Sexton, executive director of BRADD, asked him what advice he would offer to the newly elected officials in particular.
Noel responded: “It’s always the right time to do the right thing. Pure and simple. And I really truly believe, if you follow that, you’re going to make all the right decisions.”
Sexton had told Glasgow News 1 that the summit was different than training events the agency has hosted in the past. It was uniquely designed because, for the first time in its history, it had digitized its comprehensive economic development strategy, which includes individual segments for each county. As part of that, they had been able to identify some main themes in relation to how it does business and how BRADD supports local decision makers. Those themes – housing, transportation, etc. — became the topic tracks for the summit.
Updating the CEDS by area development districts is required by the federal government every five years, but often it became like so many plans – put on a shelf and not really used, Sexton said, so they digitized it with real, measurable goals and objectives. It’s available online at planning.bradd.org. From here, the plan is to follow up with the communities on a quarterly basis to see whether those things are being done.
He said it was particularly timely after a year with local elections because so many officials are new, so they get to learn about what the ADD is, the services it provides and some other components of economic development.
Tad Long, community and economic development manager for the Kentucky League of Cities, discusses some of the services the agency provides during the BRADD Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy Summit on Tuesday. MELINDA J. OVERSTREET / GLASGOW NEWS 1
In addition to Noel’s appearance at lunchtime, the day’s agenda included four separate breakout-session periods during which participants could choose from three or four topics. For example, during the time just before lunch, on one side of the Cave City Convention Center, some attendees were learning from Joe Plunk, chief district engineer for Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 3, about the process for prioritizing which road projects should be funded, while another group was hearing about the programs offered by the South Central Workforce Development Board from its president and CEO, Jon Sowards.
At the other side of the building, the options were an introduction to the Kentucky League of Cities and the services it offers, presented by Tad Long, community and economic development manager for KLC, or a look at how tourism impacts local communities, presented by Sherry Murphy, executive director of the Bowling Green Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. Murphy had also worked in tourism in Elizabethtown for several years before moving into the role in Bowling Green, so she spoke about her experience there as well.
Some workshops were offered a second time.
Glasgow’s new mayor, Henry Royse, said he was anxious to hear the presentation on the housing shortage in the region and solutions for it.
“I also wanted to hear from the transportation department, Joe Plunk, talk about, you know, we have a lot of roads here that serve us well, but we’re always looking for the one that could help us do better, and he’s just is so, he’s such a good speaker about that. He’s tremendous,” he said.
On the housing front, he said there is a need to analyze what the housing needs are and compare that to where the houses need to be with respect to where people are working and easy access to good roads that quickly take families where they want to go.
Joe Plunk, chief district engineer for the District 3 of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, standing toward right, discusses the process for prioritizing transportation needs the state uses, called the Strategic Highway Investment Formula for Tomorrow, at the Barren River Area Development District Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy Summit on Tuesday at the Cave City Convention Center. MELINDA J. OVERSTREET / GLASGOW NEWS 1
“People are spending too much time in the commute for what they’re used to around here,” Royse said.
Barren County Judge-Executive Jamie Bewley Byrd, also new to her post, said she wanted to listen to opportunities other communities are exploring, learn more about what the BRADD office can do to help seize those opportunities and find out more about infrastructure issues such as through Plunk’s discussion.
She had just come from Murphy’s session and said she’s always particularly interested in tourism.
“I do feel like she just said, you know, tourism is the gateway to get people into your communities, to create the image, and that’s what people remember,” Byrd said, adding that she enjoyed hearing about what other places have done with funds generated through tourism, such as developing parks.
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