KLA Hosts ‘Planning For Future’ Session
March 6, 2019 at 6:27 p.m.
KLA Hosts ‘Planning For Future’ Session
By Staff Report-
Dan Richard, who has been the director of the Kosciusko County Area Plan Commission since 1975, said that he and Warsaw “grew up together.” Richard went through a brief history of Kosciusko County – which was named after Polish noble Thaddeus Kosciuszko who fought with George Washington in the Revolutionary War.
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Richard talked about how the area plan commission goes about analyzing, setting goals, and implementing them through planning tools such as zoning ordinance, flood control ordinance, subdivision control ordinance, mobile home park ordinance, storm water runoff ordinance, economic incentives, health regulation and transportation plans. He presented the different uses for land, including agricultural, residential, commercial, tourism, industrial, public use, transportation and drainage, and said that Kosciusko County has the four highest county-maintained paved roads in the state.
Allen Tio, in the early stages of his time as CEO of the Kosciusko Economic Development Corporation, presented on how Kosciusko County is working toward attracting talent and supporting local businesses.
Tio wants business to have a sense of urgency when it comes staying economically relevant. He said, “When prosperity set it, we took our foot off the gas, and forgot how we are competing with other counties who are trying to take our jobs.”
Tio wants to think outside the box. He has worked on having KEDCo visit other cities (Finley OH, Bentor Harbor, MI) to see how they have been successful while dominating their specific product markets. But Tio stressed economic development is not just deal making. “We are not about transactions like tax breaks. We are about transformation. We want to work with companies at every stage of business,” Tio said.
Tio also shared the model he has developed for KEDCo. By cultivating, serving, and stewarding our community, job growth, business growth, and increased wages will follow.
Lastly, Tio stressed the importance of finding local solutions to local problems. Said Tio, “We will be known for the problems we solve.”
Dan Richard, who has been the director of the Kosciusko County Area Plan Commission since 1975, said that he and Warsaw “grew up together.” Richard went through a brief history of Kosciusko County – which was named after Polish noble Thaddeus Kosciuszko who fought with George Washington in the Revolutionary War.
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Richard talked about how the area plan commission goes about analyzing, setting goals, and implementing them through planning tools such as zoning ordinance, flood control ordinance, subdivision control ordinance, mobile home park ordinance, storm water runoff ordinance, economic incentives, health regulation and transportation plans. He presented the different uses for land, including agricultural, residential, commercial, tourism, industrial, public use, transportation and drainage, and said that Kosciusko County has the four highest county-maintained paved roads in the state.
Allen Tio, in the early stages of his time as CEO of the Kosciusko Economic Development Corporation, presented on how Kosciusko County is working toward attracting talent and supporting local businesses.
Tio wants business to have a sense of urgency when it comes staying economically relevant. He said, “When prosperity set it, we took our foot off the gas, and forgot how we are competing with other counties who are trying to take our jobs.”
Tio wants to think outside the box. He has worked on having KEDCo visit other cities (Finley OH, Bentor Harbor, MI) to see how they have been successful while dominating their specific product markets. But Tio stressed economic development is not just deal making. “We are not about transactions like tax breaks. We are about transformation. We want to work with companies at every stage of business,” Tio said.
Tio also shared the model he has developed for KEDCo. By cultivating, serving, and stewarding our community, job growth, business growth, and increased wages will follow.
Lastly, Tio stressed the importance of finding local solutions to local problems. Said Tio, “We will be known for the problems we solve.”
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