Kane County Jobs Committee met Sept. 15.
Here are the minutes provided by the committee:
1. Call To Order
Madam Co-Chair Lewis called the meeting to order at 10:35 AM.
PRESENT Board Member Anita Lewis
Board Member Deborah Allan
Board Member Mavis Bates
Board Member Ron Ford
Board Member Cherryl Strathmann
REMOTE Board Member Gary Daugherty
Board Member David Young
ABSENT Ex-Officio County Board Chair Corinne M. Pierog
Ex-Officio County Board Vice Chair Vern Tepe
Also present: Bd. Members Juby* & Molina*; Dev. Planner Toth; WIA Fisc. Mgr. Gonzalez*; Sp. ASA Shepro; Community Reinvest. Dir. Berger; and ITD staff Peters.
2. Roll Call
3. Remote Attendance Requests
Committee Members Daugherty* & Young* previously requested remote attendance. No objections were made.
4. Approval of Minutes: August 11, 2023
RESULT: APPROVED BY VOICE VOTE
MOVER: Ron Ford
SECONDER: Mavis Bates
5. Public Comment (Agenda Items)
None.
6. Office of Community Reinvestment - Workforce Development Division A. OCR Financials (attached)
Community Reinvest. Dir. Berger stated that the financial reports were attached to the agenda. WIA Fisc. Mgr. Gonzalez* highlighted grant allocation benchmarks, which are exceeding goals. Discussion ensued.
7. Comments by Co-Chair
Madam Co-Chair Lewis stated that progress and objectives for the Jobs Committee are expected to be updated in November 2023. She announced that an Industrial Business Expo will take place in Carpentersville on October 10, 2023 from 3:00pm to 6:00pm. This expo will showcase local companies, products, and services. Much discussion ensued regarding the effects of warehouses opening in the area.
Madam Co-Chair Allan spoke on encouraging job growth and affordable housing to individuals seeking employment within Kane County.
8. Jobs Committee Priorities
A. RISE Grant Update
Dev. Planner Toth spoke on the progress being made with the World Business Chicago Team and RW Ventures on researching data to improve programs. He noted that key stakeholder interviews across multiple industries are underway. Discussion ensued.
B. Greater Chicagoland Economic Partnership (GCEP) Update
Dev. Planner Toth presented a detailed summary of Chicagoland's Quantum Ecosystem Bulletin from the World Business Chicago Research Center, which highlighted the uniqueness of Chicago's technological ecosystem throughout various industry sectors. Some of these industries include pharmaceuticals, chemicals, automotive, and finance. Also described in the bulletin, were quantum computing for physics calculations, quantum communication for transferring encoded information across networks, and quantum sensing for the measurement of physical properties, such as temperature and magnetic fields. The utilization of quantum technology would advance local productivity and jobs, as well as increase economic prosperity. He provided a regional chart that depicted a number of quantum companies and partners. Discussion ensued. C. ARPA Projects Update
Dev. Planner Toth stated that the current focus is on tourism and funding. He noted that further information will become available for upcoming Jobs
Committee meetings.
D. Fabulous Fox! Water Trail Initiative Update
Dev. Planner Toth announced that the department is in the process of finalizing two awarded state grants from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, which total $370K. He spoke on the economic benefits of acquiring National designation for the Fabulous Fox! Water Trail. He noted that they are in search of an Engineering Consultant. He addressed questions and comments from the Committee.
9. New Business
Young reiterated that he would like to highlight the mission statement of the Committee. Much discussion ensued.
10. Reports Placed On File
RESULT: APPROVED BY UNANIMOUS CONSENT
MOVER: Mavis Bates
11. Executive Session (if needed)
None.
12. Public Comment (Non-Agenda Items)
None.
13. Adjournment
RESULT: APPROVED BY VOICE VOTE
MOVER: Cherryl Strathmann
SECONDER: Mavis Bates
This meeting was adjourned at 11:14AM.
https://www.countyofkane.org/MeetingMinutes/6698/23-9-15.pdf
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