A Look in the Economic Development Mirror

On November 17th, Aldermen Johnson, Linsky and Yates proposed a resolution requesting that the City of Newton become a member of the Dukakis Center’s Economic Development Partnership.  In particular, the Aldermen are interested in purchasing the Economic Development Self- Assessment Tool and associated Toolkit which comes along with membership.

Why is this important?

The Economic Development Self-Assessment Tool, developed through extensive interviews and surveys of corporate decision makers, allows communities to see themselves through employers’ and investors’ eyes.  In this way, they can see the municipality’s potential to attract private investment.

So what’s the impact on our village centers?  Well, very little – or a great deal, depending on your point of view.

On the one hand, the self-assessment tool is designed to address questions that large corporations and their consultants normally ask:

• What is the regional labor market like?
• What is the mix of business and services in the area?
• Does the community have suitable real estate at good prices?
• Are there available incentives?

Some of these questions relate to the community itself, and some relate to how the community relates to the regional context (within about a half-hour’s commute of the community).

However, some of the other areas for study are not only of interest to companies seeking a new place to set up shop, but also relate to how we as residents perceive the quality of life and diverse villages that we clearly prize.  There’s also a broader context.  We should be interested in understanding how businesses (both retail and corporate) view our city as a place to do business.

Our City is uniquely positioned in the Massachusetts economy, at the crossroads of I-90 and Rt 128, with fantastic access to public transportation to boot.  Companies want to be here for the same reason we do as residents – the access to talent, to partners, and a quality working environment.

The businesses that come to Newton can become powerful partners in helping our community maintain its livability.  In order to make this work, we need to first understand how we look to the corporate world, and for this the self-assessment toolkit might provide some interesting insights.  We also need to have a clear idea of what kind of partnership we want with businesses when they come to our community.  If we do, maybe we can build better opportunities to live, work, and play in Newton together.