Business Assistance, Retention & Expansion

Our successful C7 mentoring program is expanding its focus to accommodate and support retail entrepreneurs and owners. The EDC is heavily recruiting individuals managing retail establishments throughout McLean County and our Uptown and Downtown business districts. We have some mentors with retail experience and are seeking more. We will hold informational sessions for protégés soon.

If you feel you can contribute as a mentor or know someone who could benefit from participation, please contact Chad Carson at Chad@bnbiz.org.

New Business Recruitment & Development

An interesting book by Richard Florida of “Creative Class” fame talks about the difference between the flat world of Thomas Friedman and what Florida calls “spiky cities.” To understand the term “spiky,” one needs to see the specialized maps he has produced in the book. As an economist, futurist, demographer and social critic, Florida has once again opened the door for more discussion on how the workforce looks and where they live. How does this bode for our efforts to attract new companies to the Bloomington-Normal area? Hard to tell, but by doing a concentrated read this summer and listening to him this fall at the International Economic Development  Council will tell us more. For now, we will continue to push the virtues of the community to the outside world and hope something sticks. Here are some of the things we are doing:

Corenet Global - San Diego Global Summit on May 4-6. We will be attending with other communities from Central Illinois to market our region. It is a group effort and that helps leverage our investment in attraction.

Central Illinois Development Partnership - This group, managed by the EDC, had a luncheon on Thursday, April 24 at the new Holiday Inn in Bloomington. Thirty mayors, economic development professionals and utility officials heard a panel discussion on regional marketing that included Mike Kearney, economic development director for Ameren, Bernie Anderson of Nicor Gas and Jim Mentesti, executive director of the Great River Economic Development District (Quincy, Ill.). Representatives from Springfield, Champaign, Peoria, Decatur, LaSalle-Peru, Streator, Clinton and others attended. The CIDP is hoping for additional investors/members. More on our progress will be provided in future newsletters.

Community Improvement

One Voice - A video highlighting the 2008 One Voice Washington, D.C. fly-in is now available online at www.1community1voice.org. A committee has been assembled to begin planning for next year's trip and a possible event this fall.

Westside Revitalization - A community summit regarding the westside revitalization plan will be held Thursday, May 8th at 7:00 p.m. at Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church. The public is encouraged to attend to learn about the neighborhood revitalization project and offer their insight and ideas.

The effort is focusing on the area south of Locust Street, east of Morris Avenue, north of Taylor Street and west of Lee Street. The West Bloomington Task Force, comprised of representatives from several local companies and community organizations, is currently studying the area and identifying economic development opportunities. The goal is to enhance the neighborhood and make it a better place to live and work.

Please contact Michelle Spicer at the EDC at (309) 452-8437 to RSVP for the summit. For more information, visit the Westside Web site.

Program Oversight & Investor Relations

Ever wonder why you are an investor and your best friend - the person who owns the company down the street, the one you play golf with every Saturday morning - is not an investor? Have you ever thought they should “get with the program” and be fully engaged in the community and be part of the EDC? Even though we provide our services to investors and non-investors alike, if we had more resources (more investors) we could do more and provide a greater level of service.

This summer the EDC will run a “mini-campaign.” This campaign will reach out to the companies and organizations that did not have the opportunity to become an investor the first time we conducted our campaign. The EDC is asking you to help us identify successful companies with the ability to invest. Why should they? First, in a very short time we have established a track record of completing the goals we have set out to accomplish. In the second year of our five-year plan we have created jobs, helped induce capital investment, helped secure federal dollars for community projects and have made progress on developing an entrepreneurial infrastructure. This long-term investment in the community will help sustain the community's economy well into the future.

If you know of a company that needs to be part of the EDC family of investors, please let us know. There are 107 investors in the EDC. If each of these investors was able to help us secure at least one more investor, we could double our strength. Watch  for more news about this program in the summer.

For more information, contact Marty Vanags at (309) 452-8437.

1/3/5 Mile Demographics

The EDC has acquired software that allows us to generate demographics reports for custom radii in McLean County.  We can now take any point in the county and quickly generate summarized statistical readouts about population, economic factors, housing and social characteristics for a specified distance surrounding the chosen point.  The reports we create are very similar to those constructed by for-profit companies like Claritas and ESRI, both of which charge upwards of $70 per report.  The EDC is proud to offer this service to our investors at no cost.  Contact Ken Springer at (309) 452-8437 or ken@bnbiz.org to see sample reports or to answer any questions.

Completely renovated three-story office building in historic Downtown Bloomington. Building is adjacent to the McLean County Law and Justice Center. Close proximity to a large parking deck. Building fully served by elevators. Excellent location for law firms, other office uses.  5,553sf GUA. Asking $700,000. Contact Mike Flynn at (309) 663-2277.

Learn more about our building and sites locator.

Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner
Reviewed by Ken Springer

In the best-selling work Freakonomics, Drs. Steven Levitt and Stephen Dubner have attempted to do for the field of economic analysis what Stephen Hawking successfully pulled off for physics with A Brief History of Time – taking a complex technical field and making it accessible to the lay reader.  

Freakonomics has a very simple format. The author takes a socio-economic question and applies statistical analysis to attempt to answer that question. Sounds like a college term paper, right? Sort of.  Levitt and Dubner have the tendency to ask some very interesting, if not unorthodox, questions. The chapters in Freakonomics focus on subjects like the business models and economic incentives that undergird crack dealing in Chicago, the rise and fall of the Klu Klux Klan in the 1920’s and several other “edgy” topics. The authors address each of their subjects using statistical data analysis with the findings provided in casual prose instead of traditional academic-speak. Click here to read more...

IEDC Federal Legislative Guiding Principles
by Marty Vanags

Each year I attend the International Economic Development Council’s (IEDC) Federal Forum Conference. The focus of the conference is on all matters related to the federal government’s economic development-related policies. As part of our work, each year the IEDC develops legislative action items. As a member of the IEDC’s Public Policy Advisory Committee (PPAC), I have been involved in the discussions and deliberations leading up to the development of the 2008 guiding principles.

In this election year, the economy’s strength is in question. This concern reaches home when you require a small loan just to fill your car’s gas tank. The economy and its relationship to energy is on everyone’s mind and is related to competitiveness, economic security and our long-term future. This will be important as the 111th Congress is sworn in and a new president takes office. Here is what IEDC is supporting and communicating to our legislators and professional economic development professionals throughout the country (Click here to read more):

Integrity Technology Solutions
by Chad Carson

Who knew that the crossing of American vaudeville, Broadway and the glitz of Las Vegas would fuel the creativity and success of one of Bloomington-Normal’s business leaders? Integrity Technology Solutions was founded in the early ‘90s by Harlan Geiser, whose unique history of musical support to the likes of Bob Hope and Wayne Newton, are just part of what makes him a dynamic and influential person in the community.

Integrity Technology Solutions is an information technology firm that provides consultation, basic network protection and unique application design. This year, Integrity celebrates its 15th anniversary. Its success is influenced not only by Geiser’s diversity, but also by nurturing a customer base from primarily referral customers to long-term established relationships that serve the technology needs of both commercial and educational clients. The company uses its technological expertise to serve small business clients and school districts throughout the United States. Integrity has a goal to educate the community about the real risk of information asset loss. The unique diversity of leadership and clientele has Integrity positioned for a stable and growing existence in Bloomington-Normal.

By remaining integral participants in the community's ever-important technological landscape, Integrity has become an asset to Bloomington-Normal’s business environment. An active investor in the EDC and a member of the McLean County Chamber of Commerce, the company also prides itself in its employees’ involvement in Relay for Life, the board of the American Red Cross of the Heartland and other charity events through the Salvation Army and the Marc Center.

Learn more about Integrity Technology Solutions.

Downtown Bloomington business scholarship opportunity

The Downtown Bloomington Association is pleased to offer its members a partial scholarship of $100 to participate in the Illinois State Small Business Development Center’s Know and Grow Program. This three-session program, starting May 21, is designed to provide hands-on guidance for those who want to launch and or grow their business. This offer applies to the first five members to contact the DBA upon registration. Please take advantage of this great educational opportunity!

For more information on the program and to register you can go to http://www.sbdc.ilstu.edu/training/ or call Joyce at (309) 438-3610. For information on DBA membership, please call (309) 829-9599 or email info@downtownbloomington.org.

Downtown Bloomington Farmers' Market kicks off

The Downtown Bloomington Farmers’ Market will open its 2008 season on Saturday, May 17.  This year, in response to customer requests, the market will open a little later than usual – 7:30 a.m. and will remain open until noon. 

The Downtown Bloomington Farmers’ Market is located on the old courthouse square and runs through October 25, with a special Thanksgiving Farmers’ Market scheduled for November 22 inside the U. S. Cellular Coliseum.  The May 17 Farmers’ Market kick-off is part of an entire day of downtown festivities, including Adopt-a-Pot and Tour de Metro.  The Old Men Boys will provide musical entertainment for the event.

The market became producer-only two years ago – meaning farmers participating in the market only sell products they grow or raise themselves. As in years past, the 2008 market will feature locally grown produce, hormone-free meats, free-range poultry, local cheeses, herbs, honey and maple syrup, cut flowers and floral arrangements, potted plants, free-range eggs, handspun alpaca yarns, and a wide selection of organic and chemical-free foods.  In addition, the market will offer a variety of juried arts and crafts -- including handcrafted baskets, oil, acrylic, and watercolor paintings, handmade natural stone jewelry, original photography, and ink drawings. 

The market first began selling bakery goods in 2007 and will feature several new baked goods vendors this year, including Kelly’s Bakery & Café, which will have a booth on the square offering a variety of homemade baked goods as well as fresh-brewed coffee and other beverages.  A couple of new vendors will cater to the market’s four-legged customers, with a selection of doggie treats and apparel, including birthday items for customers’ “best friends.”  Other new items anticipated at this year’s market include local, farm-raised tilapia and goat milk soap.

Thanks to a community access arts grant from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, and the McLean County Arts Center, local musicians will perform at every market from May through September.  Other special activities include cooking demonstrations, a weekly bake sale, free gardening advice from the Master Gardeners, and – new this year – children’s activities sponsored by Children & Elders Forest.

For additional information, contact the Downtown Bloomington Association at (309) 829-9599 or visit http://downtownbloomington.org and click on the farmers’ market logo.

Community Broadband is Normal

Congratulations to Sonja Reece, EDC past chair and Normal councilmember, whose article, "Community Broadband is Normal," was published in the Spring 2008 issue of the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors Journal. Click here to read the full article. For more information, visit www.natoa.org.

Uptown Toastmasters

Do you have trouble speaking in front of a room full of people? Would you like to find out how to better express your ideas? Are you interested in learning how to run meetings more effectively? Toastmasters can help you become a better speaker AND leader!

The EDC has started a Toastmasters International chapter, the "Uptown Toastmasters." At Toastmasters, members learn better communication skills by speaking to groups and working with others in a supportive environment. At each meeting, members give impromptu and prepared speeches and receive constructive evaluation from their peers.

Toastmasters helps employees give better sales presentations, improve their management skills, work better with other employees, effectively develop and present ideas, offer constructive criticism and accept criticism more objectively.

If you are interested in joining the group, please contact Brooke Weishaupt at (309) 452-8437 or brooke@bnbiz.org. Meetings are held the second and fourth Thursdays of each month at 5:30 p.m. in the Bank of Illinois Community Room, 200 W. College Ave., Normal. To learn more about Toastmasters, visit www.toastmasters.org.