BATTLE MOUNTAIN - The University of Nevada Cooperative Extension is conducting a Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) study in Lander County.
The study is being headed by Fred Steinmann, extension educator/assistant professor for the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension out of Eureka, with the help of Rod Davis, extension educator for the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension in Battle Mountain.
The study is not mandatory but is required by the federal government every five years for those counties that want to apply for non-entitlement federal economic development grants.
The county has applied in the past and has indicated to Steinmann an interest in applying for those grants again, he said.
The study, which takes around six to nine months and kicked off in June, looks at multiple aspects including changes in overall population, changes in unemployment rates, changes in per capita income and educational attainment levels.
"It's a very lengthy list of items that we will be taking a look at," Steinmann explained.
The study will consist mostly of public meetings and public input is vital, Steinmann added. The kick-off meeting was held June 19 from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Battle Mountain Civic Center and consisted of eight members of the public.
It was facilitated by Steinmann and Davis. Tom Harris, director of the University Center for Economic Development at UNR, was not there but will help facilitate future meetings.
At the meeting, Steinmann gave an overview of CEDS and then moved onto a review of data trends and SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats), a type of economic analysis. Then the public did small group work.
The meeting also covered various types of economic development used in Nevada and concluded with the next steps to the project.
The second meeting will be held at the civic center on July 23 from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and the public is asked to attend. Attendees will work on revising different development opportunities for Lander County and updating the mission, vision, goals, policies and implementation measures from the 2009 CEDS report.
After the public gives its input at the July 23 meeting, Steinmann said he will be rewriting the CEDS document and have the public review it at the next meeting.
The finished document will be submitted to the Lander County Planning Commission and the Lander County Commission for review and approval before being shipped off to the Seattle Office for the U.S. Economic Development Administration for approval.
In addition to studying the county, Steinmann also plans to take a look at the towns within the county, he said. The results and marketing package from the Future Industrial Needs Discovery (FIND) project will also be used in this study as well as other studies, reports and documents from the Lander County Sustainable Development Committee and the Lander Economic Development Authority (LEDA) that have been completed over the years, Steinmann said.[[In-content Ad]]
