Economic Development Summit

Comment

Comment by John Gurvitch on June 23, 2010 at 2:25am

no worries, I know you have been a very busy girl!

Comment by Casey Maliszewski on June 23, 2010 at 1:28am

Hi John - the illustrated notes have been posted. The written notes are still on the way. Thanks for your patience as it has been a very time consuming task to compile and format the notes. Thanks!

Comment by John Gurvitch on June 23, 2010 at 12:32am

Has anyone received the notes that were going to be emailed to the attendees?
or have they been posted somewhere?

Comment by Rebecca on June 3, 2010 at 11:58am

Hello all,

Mayor Pluta has agreed to covered the registration fee of $150.00 for a citizen to attend the Innovative Cities Conference in Lowell, MA June 17-19.

Please let me know if you are interested in attending and I will submit your name to the Mayor. Please reply no later than Sunday, June 6.

Thank you,
Rebecca

Comment by Rebecca on May 26, 2010 at 11:13pm

CRUSH and Mount Holyoke College hold economic summit on city’s future
from The Sun; May 14-20, 2010

By Dennis P. Hohenberger
Turley Correspondent

HOLYOKE - The Citizens for the Revitalization and Urban Success of Holyoke (CRUSH) and the Roosevelt Institute at Mount Holyoke College hosted “Revitalizing: Building Holyoke’s Future” at Heritage State Park May 7. The daylong economic summit brought together local officials, as well as regional and national experts on urban planning and development. As final site selection for the High-P e r f o r m a n c e Computer Center nears, organizers discussed ways Holyoke can best leverage its economic and natural resources.

“[The event is] a perfect example on how Holyoke can be smart and connected,” CRUSH member and Holyoke City Councilor Rebecca Lisi said. “It’s making use of the knowledge and energy resources that are in the five-college area.”

She said the economic summit is a first in a series of “Civic Learning Labs,” whereby residents come together and discuss what works in other communities, and how those lessons can be replicated in Holyoke. “It’s all about thinking big, about what is possible,” Lisi said. “We don’t have to put a lot of hard work into re-inventing the wheel. It’s really about figuring out how those other models can fit and work for Holyoke.”

Casey Maliszewski, of the Roosevelt Institute, said the Mount Holyoke chapter was founded a year ago. The chapter, along with CRUSH, formed the summit to “stimulate dialog” on the city’s future development. “I think one of the purposes of event, and a great opportunity, is to learn what other cities are doing, because everybody has a different approach,” she said. “These gateway cities in Massachusetts, in a way, need to be aligned with one another, to bridge some ideas.”

John Dyjach, of the Holyoke Economic Development Department, was part of a panel that examined Holyoke’s current economy. He was joined by Brian Beauregard, of Holyoke Gas and Electric (HGE), and Bob Forrant, a professor at UMass-Lowell.

Dyjach said the “day-to-day, down-and-dirty” work conducted by city departments barely gets noticed. He said his department has set priorities, which includes retaining current businesses. “Our effort to retain businesses starts with outreach and we want to meet with as many businesses that we can in town,” he said.

He said the outreach can be frustrating at times because of limited resources, as city businesses face a number of challenges. Dyjach spoke of Holyoke’s industrial past, when internationally recognized companies were the norm. Now, he said, family owned businesses are the dominant
economic model.

Attracting new business since the downturn in the economy, he said, has been difficult, but that Holyoke possesses significant supply of water, which is used primarily for power generation, a key factor in the future development of the High-P e r f o r m a n c e Computer Center. Though there are sizable parcels available for the commercial and industrial use in the Ingleside section of Holyoke, the city’s main focus will be in developing the newly named Arts & Innovation District downtown.

Dyjach said challenges exist with blighted and abandoned buildings. “The last thing we want to do is take down some of these buildings,” he said.

According to Dyjach, the Holyoke Mall at Ingleside is the city’s largest employer, as the mall employs more than 3,000 persons in the region. Holyoke’s unemployment rate, though, is over 12.2 percent, higher than the state average.

He said businesses, such as the Holyoke Health Center, have returned workers to city-center and brought back needed foot traffic. While the city has seen some growth, much is riding with the High-Performance Computer Center, which is scheduled to break ground in the fall.

Though the center will not generate many jobs, city planners feel high-tech and other companies will position their businesses nearby, which could generate high-paying jobs both in the city and region. In the next few years, a north-to-south passenger rail will return to the city, which could
spark more economic growth.

Holyoke’s future depends on theavailability of cheap energy, power generated by the dam and canal system and other green technologies. Beauregard said the HGE “keeps the lights on in the city of Holyoke.”

Since 1997, said Beauregard, HGE has not only focused on energy generation, but on telecommunications and has constructed a fiber optic network. The network connects 90 percent of medium and large size businesses to high-speed internet. Still, he said, energy generation will remain HGE’s major focus.

“We can’t forget our core business and we have to ensure that we meet our mission statement - Excellent rates, excellent customer service and reliable service,” he said.

Beauregard said the HGE is currently studying the viability of harnessing wind power from the top of Mt. Tom, hydrokinetic energy from the Connecticut River, and other sources, with the emphasis on low-emissions sources.

Mayor Elaine A. Pluta, spoke during a break. “People are here because they feel the momentum and energy in the city of Holyoke,” she said. “We are, indeed, on the brink of being revitalized and reenergized. There’s a renaissance coming to the city. Everybody feels that and wants to be part of it.”

She said despite the national economic downturn, the city continues to move forward powered by an infusion of state, private and educational money, dollars that will go toward future high-tech and other projects.

The last half of the summit was devoted to “Lessons from other cities: Challenges and Opportunities.” The panelist included Benjamin Forman, of MassInc.; Kelly Aikin, of the Regional Planning Board of Hampden County; Adam Baacke, from the city of Lowell; Thomas Deller, of Providence Economic Development; and Timothy McGourthy, city of Worcester.

Comment by Casey Maliszewski on May 25, 2010 at 9:39pm

I just wanted to let everyone know that we are almost done with the notes. They should be up and sent out by the end of this week. Thanks!

Comment by Casey Maliszewski on May 12, 2010 at 11:37am

Photos of the notes by Amy Gilburg are up. I will try and get some clearer ones as soon as possible. If the photos are used, we ask you to please credit Amy Gilburg for her work.

Comment by Casey Maliszewski on May 10, 2010 at 5:40pm

Also, here are some pictures by Peter Palombella: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29133656@N03/sets/72157623890790093/

Comment by Emily Wazlak on May 10, 2010 at 3:13pm

I have uploaded some photos from the event (including the illustrated notes) onto the Roosevelt Institute @ MHC facebook page. There will be more going up later this week but until then I hope these are useful!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=172334&id=118530124646&am...

Comment by Aron Goldman on May 10, 2010 at 2:48pm

Great job last week. We are eager to post something about it on our web site, but we'd like to have some photos of the "illustrated notes" to accompany our post. Could you email us those photos and anything else (like video?) that might make our post more interesting? Thanks!

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