Mayoral Priorities Outlined (Sun Prairie Star)

Mayoral Priorities Outlined (Submitted to the Star by Mayor John Murray)

Link to Full Article: http://www.sunprairiestar.com/main.asp?SectionID=5&SubSectionID=5&ArticleID=7550

Excerpt from the Article:

"A focused economic development strategy. Sun Prairie is competing against other cities and regions for job growth and retention. I have proposed beefing up our Community Development Authority into a more robust marketing and economic development entity. By working with the Chamber, the Business Improvement District and other business and civic groups, we can retain and grow our local jobs and increase tax base."

Blogger's Note: Obviously excited to have the Mayor list this as a priority. Mayor Murray was the public sector co-chair for the Ad Hoc Committee that developed our current Strategic Business Development Plan in 2008-2009. This plan identified preliminary target sectors in two groups:

Immediate Sectors

• Finance and Insurance
• Information Technology
• Light Manufacturing
• Warehousing & Distribution
• Food & Beverage Processing

Emerging Sectors

• Healthcare
• Biotechnology
• Agricultural Technology
• Renewable Energy
• Continuing Education
• Hospitality & Tourism

My guess is we're going to start with that document and try to focus it even further. Marketing and retaining these sectors will probably be up for discussion with the Council at their upcoming Strategic Planning discussion, as well as what sort of resources the City may need to allocate to this effort. Sounds like a good move to me.