MARION — Although Anderson and Muncie have a history of battling each other to attract jobs, the two cities may soon join a larger effort to work as a region to spur economic development.
Anderson Mayor Kris Ockomon sat beside Muncie Mayor Sharon McShurley during a panel discussion about regional economic development Thursday, and both pledged to make a team effort in attracting business to east central Indiana.
The two were among more than 100 officials, business people and others from Madison, Grant and Delaware counties who visited the Ivy Tech Community College campus in Marion to attend “Speaking Regionally: Connecting the Dots in East Central Indiana.” The conference was sponsored by the Indiana Humanities Council and the Bowen Center for Public Affairs at Ball State University.
The event was meant to help east central Indiana towns and cities become more connected in hopes of promoting the region as a whole.
“I’m learning rapidly that the regional approach is the only way to go,” Ockomon told the audience.
Delaware County recently nabbed Brevini Power Transmissions and its 445 jobs, beating out Madison County’s efforts to court the wind power company.
Madison and Delaware counties took turns offering incentives to the Italian company but in the end, Delaware County was able to offer more.
On Thursday, McShurley said she’d like to see regions work together to attract companies like Brevini. “We need to be looking at incentive packages as a group.”
“We’re not competing with Anderson or Grant County,” McShurley said. “We’re competing against Indonesia, Turkey and China.”
Terry Murphy, vice president of the Muncie-Delaware County Economic Alliance, said jobs that end up in one city often help others in the area. “It’s still in our region and it’s going to affect other businesses and suppliers.”
Rob Sparks of the Madison County Corporation for Economic Development stressed the importance of education in attracting jobs to east central Indiana.
Sparks noted that Nestlé received more than 13,000 applications when it was seeking to hire 350 people for jobs at its Anderson production facility. To narrow the field, the company began looking specifically at applicants with an associate’s degree or higher.
Indiana Secretary of Commerce Mitch Roob was more specific about the region’s educational needs. “If you want to remain engaged in manufacturing ... you need a work force that is good at math.”
“Education, I think, is one of our biggest downfalls in this area,” McShurley acknowledged.
“We need to quit lying to our kids about the future, or opportunities will pass them by,” Sparks said.
Contact Brandi Watters: 640-4847, brandi.watters @heraldbulletin.com
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