Lebanon
The proposed Economic Development Commission would research potential development opportunities, make plans to market Lebanon to investors and issue recommendations to other city boards and committees, according to a draft charter shared with business and city leaders on Wednesday.
The nine-member group would include two city councilors and seven community members and be aided by City Manager Shaun Mulholland and Rob Taylor, executive director of the Lebanon Area Chamber of Commerce.
“I want us to be a committee that does things,” Mulholland told members of the city’s Economic Vitality Exchange Committee on Wednesday evening. “We’ve got a lot of stuff to do in a relatively short period of time to get it done.”
The idea for the new commission was formed in the existing Exchange Committee, which has fewer responsibilities and is known as a place for city officials to share and exchange ideas with the business community.
If the new commission is formed, its members would be more active in Lebanon’s decision-making process, issuing reports to the City Council and actively helping to drive policy. It would not be able to purchase and develop property on its own, however, as the City Council would retain those powers.
“It seems like it’s a step up from the Vitality Committee, which is kind of a coffee klatch really, right?” Lebanon engineer Dan Nash told fellow committee members. “We got together and discussed things but we didn’t really do anything.”
“At least now, we’re giving recommendations and if there’s a development proposal before the city … I think that we could chime in with some things that are proposed to go on and be helpful,” he added. “I’m seeing more of an active role.”
Committee members appeared to approve of the draft charter presented on Wednesday, proposing few changes and expressing a need for someone to take a greater role in attracting new developments.
It’s a task the City Council is often too busy to do on its own, Mulholland said, adding that city staff also are tied up with existing work.
“They’ve got the budget to deal with and all of the other things that the city is facing,” Mulholland said. “If they’re going to spend the time that we’re spending here once a month, they’re not going to get anything else done.”
The city manager also advocated against hiring an economic development director to take on the work. Such a position could cost taxpayers upward of $150,000 a year, he said.
The commission is just part of Mulholland’s push to attract high-tech companies to move to Lebanon. With Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center already making its home in the city, and Dartmouth College in Hanover, he said he hopes startups might find a warm welcome.
The new group also will have a focus on Lebanon’s two downtown neighborhoods. Its proposed charter calls for members to serve on a downtown revitalization committee and oversee implementation of the downtown visioning study. Another committee would be formed once a study is completed in West Lebanon.
It’s not just Lebanon that’s looking to attract businesses and greater investment. Neighboring towns also are beginning to take steps to encourage growth.
“The traditional municipal role — which was you kind of sit back, and see what happens and then you adjust based on what’s happening — that paradigm is changing,” said Enfield Town Manager Ryan Aylesworth, who is not part of the Lebanon vitality committee.
Enfield’s past efforts to attract businesses to the Route 4 corridor have met mixed results, and Aylesworth said it’s time now for government to take a more active role seeking out developers.
“If we have parcels that we think could be redeveloped for a higher and better use and we know that the person that owns them is interested in parting with them, municipal officials shouldn’t just sit back or sit in a meeting and talk about, ‘Well wouldn’t it be neat if … ?’ ” he said.
“Let’s actually promote it. Let’s use the town website, social media and other outreach products to attract developers, investors and others,” Aylesworth said.
Mulholland said he hopes for the new Economic Development Commission to be formed sometime in February, should the City Council approve it.
Tim Camerato can be reached at tcamerato@vnews.com or 603-727-3223.