Kane County Jobs Committee met June 16.
Here are the minutes provided by the committee:
1. Call To Order
Madam Co-Chair Lewis called the meeting to order at 10:30 AM.
PRESENT Board Member Anita Lewis
Board Member Deborah Allan
Board Member Mavis Bates
Board Member Ron Ford
Board Member David Young
REMOTE Board Member Gary Daugherty
Board Member Cherryl Strathmann
ABSENT Ex-Officio County Board Vice Chair Vern Tepe
AWAY Ex-Officio County Board Chair Corinne M. Pierog
Also present: Bd. Members Kious* & Molina*; Dev. Planner Toth; Dev. Dir. VanKerkhoff; Dev. Exec. Planner Miller; Comm. Reinvestment Dir. Berger*; RW Ventures Pres. Bob Weissbourd & Assoc. Karen Cuenca; ITD staff Peters; and members of the press & public.
2. Roll Call
3. Approval of Minutes: May 12, 2023
RESULT: APPROVED BY UNANIMOUS CONSENT
MOVER: Deborah Allan
4. Office of Community Reinvestment - Workforce Development Division A. OCR Financials (attached)
Comm. Reinvestment Dir. Berger* stated that the monthly financials are attached to the agenda. No oral report was made.
5. Comments by Co-Chair
None.
6. Jobs Committee Priorities
A. RISE Grant Update
Dev. Planner Toth briefly stated that RW Ventures had been approved as the Consultant for the RISE Grant.
B. Kane County Economic Development Strategic Plan Consultant (Bob Weissbourd - President, RW Ventures)
RW Ventures Pres. Bob Weissbourd provided an overview of his consulting practice. He spoke on his growing team of experts in fields such as housing and agriculture. He presented charts on how the economy is changing and the effect on consulting firms. He detailed five market drivers, including labor markets, spatial efficiency, and governance. He noted the importance of identifying and building assets.
RW Ventures Assoc. Karen Cuenca itemized the process of implementation through their consulting firm, such as gathering quantitative and qualitative data to understand what the growing needs are in the Kane County region. Other steps include: investment landscaping, identifying and introducing stakeholders. She stated that after obtaining this information, they will move on to strategy and development, where goals play a large part in implementation. She noted a broad time frame of six months to implement a strategic plan for the area. She provided their contact information and requested suggestions on informational resources to better customize a plan for Kane County. Much discussion ensued regarding strategies, suggestions, and coordination with the GCEP partnership.
A brief disruption occurred and order was restored.
Additional discussion ensued regarding plans customized for Kane County's pride and resources.
C. ARPA Projects Update
Dev. Dir. VanKerkhoff noted that there will be funding available for actionable items found by RW Ventures.
D. Greater Chicagoland Economic Partnership (GCEP) Update
Dev. Dir. VanKerkhoff correlated the GCEP update with the previous presentation from the hired consulting firm, RW Ventures.
E. Fabulous Fox! Water Trail Initiative Update
Dev. Exec. Planner Miller announced that the Fabulous Fox! Water Trail was designated as part of the National Water Trail System. She detailed the many benefits of this distinction, including media coverage featured in USA Today and the Smithsonian Magazine. She spoke on the ARPA funds and where they may be allocated. Discussion ensued.
7. New Business
None.
8. Public Comment
None.
9. Reports Placed On File
RESULT: APPROVED BY UNANIMOUS CONSENT
MOVER: Mavis Bates
10. Executive Session (if needed)
None.
11. Adjournment
RESULT: APPROVED BY VOICE VOTE
MOVER: Mavis Bates
SECONDER: Ron Ford
This meeting was adjourned at 11:20 AM.
https://www.countyofkane.org/MeetingMinutes/6648/23-6-16.pdf
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